Franklin's Gull (Larus pipixcan)

Other Scientific Names
Leucophaeus pipixcan [Christidis and Boles (2008)]

Family
Laridae (Gulls, Terns, Skimmers)

Size
32 - 38 cm

First Described (Guide)
Wagler, 1813

Derivation
Lar-us - Gk, laros, seabird: pip'-ix-can - derivation unknown, but possibly an indigenous Mexican name for a sort of gull

Abundance (Guide)
V

Rare vagrant, from early Spring to Autumn. Widespread sightings but few verified.

Habitat
Sandy beaches, mudflats, rocky spits and coastal wetlands, all sheltered regions of the coast in estuaries and bays.

Range (Guide)

Argentina, Aruba, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada (B) (P), Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Falkland Islands (Malvinas), French Guiana, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, USA (B), Venezuela.

Vagrant to Australia, Belgium, Cuba, Faroe Islands, France, French Polynesia, Gambia, Germany, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia [Federated States of], Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Netherlands Antilles, Norway, Portugal, Senegal, South Africa, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Spain, St Helena, St Pierre and Miquelon (P), Sweden, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom, United States Minor Outlying Islands, Zambia.

Breeds in central North America, wintering mainly in South America.

Vagrant to Australia, early spring and autumn.

Rarity Status
View Rarity Status Information

Population
Estimated population is 470,000 - 1,500,000 (2010).

Status LC
For more information see BirdLife International Species Factsheet.

Food
Fish and other marine life, procured from the surface of the sea.

Voice
Soft 'krruk' in breeding colony, otherwise silent.

Xeno-Canto Sound Files (more (38)...)

Franklin's Gull (Leucophaeus pipixcan) [XC311072]
by Nick Komar from Nabor Carillo, Estado de M\u00e9xico, Mexico (call)

Franklin's Gull (Leucophaeus pipixcan) [XC282854]
by Dante Buzzetti from Lostwood NWR, Burke County, North Dakota, United States (call)

Breeding Season (Guide)
May - July.

Nest
A floating mass of vegatation in shallow water.

Eggs (Guide)
Usually 3; buff-brown or greenish-brown, spotted and blotched with various shades of brown.

Subspecies
No subspecies.

Similar Species
Laughing Gull (Larus atricilla), which is slightly larger, longer wings and legs, and black hood not extending to upper fore-neck.

Compare Images

References
See References.

The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9

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