Gulls & Skuas
Black-legged Kittiwake
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually.
Takes two/three years to reach maturity.
A small and agile gull with all black wing-tips, black legs (adults) and yellow bill. Area close to wing-tips much paler than rest of wings, and often visible at surprisingly long range (more so than the black tips). Adult winter with grey neck and black half-collar. Juveniles with black zig-zag pattern to wings, resembling pattern seen in Little Gull, Ross's Gull and Sabine's Gull. Differs from those in; no dark bar on secondaries, underparts of wing white, back grey, black on primaries reaches wing-tip. Flight action different from larger gulls; fast, stiff wing-beats and elegant manoeuvring even in strong winds.
Diet
The black-legged kittiwake eats marine invertebrates, plankton, and fish. It feeds in flocks and catches food at the surface of the water. It also dives just below the surface of the water to catch its prey, in fact, it is the only gull that dives and swims underwater!
Longevity record
28 years (Found dead in the UK, EC 26662)
Usually seen in
January - February
Occasionally seen in
March, October - December
Click on the image to open slideshow
Note distinctive black neck patch & plain grey back in the Black-legged Kittiwake.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
38 - 40
93 - 120
305 - 525
Slender-billed Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually but occasionally in small groups.
Takes two/three years to reach maturity.
This scarce gull breeds in colonies, nesting on the ground and laying up to three eggs. Like most gulls, it is gregarious in winter, both when feeding or in evening roosts. It is not a pelagic species, and is rarely seen at sea far from coasts.
The head and dark red bill have an elongated tapering appearance, and this bird also appears long-necked. The legs are dark red, and the iris is yellow. In summer, the breast has a pink coloration. This bird takes two years to reach maturity. First year birds have a black terminal tail band, and dark areas in the wings.
Diet
Mainly feeds on fish. Occasionally feeds on marine invertebrates and catches insects in flight.
Longevity record
16 years (Russia, E 271491)
Usually seen in
March, October
Occasionally seen in
all other months
Click on the image to open slideshow
The dark bill indicates an adult in summer plumage.
Light orange bill and legs characteristics of 1st winter gull.
Note a more pink tinge on breast, belly, tail and primaries and a small ear spot in the ear coverts. Bill and legs are redder. This is considered as a complete winter moult. In summer the beak and legs will be darker.
The dark bill indicates an adult in summer plumage.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
40 - 44
100 - 112
223 - 375
Bonaparte's Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
A small gull that is a North American resident and breeder. A vagrant to see in Europe.
The Bonaparte's gull takes two years to reach maturity. It is slightly larger than the Little Gull and resembles also a similar flight although it has a jizz more likely of a Black-headed gull but with narrower wings.
At all ages, it has whitish translucent primaries with a black trailing edge, a slender body, pale pinkish legs and a shortly slender dark bill.
Diet
Mainly feeds on fish. Occasionally feeds on marine invertebrates and catches insects in flight.
Longevity record
18 years
Gawwija ta' Bonaparti
Chroicocephalus philadelphia
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Vagrant
Usually seen in
---
Occasionally seen in
November, January
Click on the image to open slideshow
Whitish head with broad dark ear spot. Pale pinkish legs. Dark markings on back indicate a 1st year bird.
Whitish head with broad dark ear spot. Pale pinkish legs. White outer primaries with black trailing edge. Dark markings on back indicate a 1st year bird.
Whitish head with broad dark ear spot. Pale pinkish legs. White outer primaries with black trailing edge. Dark markings on back indicate a 1st year bird.
Whitish head with broad dark ear spot. Pale pinkish legs. Dark markings on back indicate a 1st year bird.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
28 - 30
75 -90
170 - 235
Black-headed Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen in flocks, small groups or individually.
Takes two years to reach maturity.
Chocolate-brown hood in adult plumage (seemingly black at a distance), but head only with dark markings in winter and juvenile plumages. Underparts of inner primaries dark grey. First few primaries white with black tip, both on upper side of wing and under. Last character conspicuous in all plumages, but slightly less obvious in juveniles due to larger dark area of wing-tip.
.
Diet
This gull is omnivorous. It eats mostly animal material, including wide variety of insects, also earthworms, marine worms, molluscs, crustaceans, small fish, carrion. During summer may eat many seeds and small fruits.
Longevity record
32 years (Ring read in the field in the Netherlands, 3275396)
Usually seen in
November - February
Occasionally seen in
March - April, September - October
Click on the image to open slideshow
Clean grey upperwings, black head. The white eye rings are still not complete and the bill and legs are yet to get darker for a Summer plumage.
Clean grey upperwings, black head. The white eye rings are still not complete and the bill and legs are yet to get darker for a Summer plumage.
Clean grey upperwings, black head. The white eye rings are still not complete and the bill and legs are yet to get darker for a Summer plumage.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
34 - 39
100 - 110
161 - 400
Little Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually but may be seen in very small groups.
Takes three years to reach maturity.
Very small gull with rounded wings and almost tern-like appearance. Underwing black, with broad white trailing edge. Lacks Black-headed Gull's conspicuous white outer primaries. Adult summer plumage with black (not chocolate) hood, that reaches far down on hind-neck. Winter plumage without hood, but with dark cheek-patch and dark cap. Juveniles differs from juvenile Kittiwake in slender body, dark cap, dark patch at trailing base of underwing, faint dark wing-bar and shorter wings. Can, with experience, be identified by fluttering, butterfly-like flight at long distance.
Diet
Mostly insects. During summer and migration feeds mostly on insects. Also eats brine shrimp and other crustaceans, small molluscs, spiders, marine worms, and some small fish.
Longevity record
20 years (Ring read in the field in Finland, AT-35319)
Usually seen in
December - February
Occasionally seen in
March - April, September - November
Click on the image to open slideshow
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Greyish back indicative of a juvenile in its first winter. Wings still show dark feathers on the outer wings and at the end of the tail which shall turn into grey and white in a 2nd winter bird.
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
25 - 27
75 - 80
66 - 133
Franklin's Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
There is only one record of an adult gull transitioning to its summer plumage which was seen at Għadira Nature Reserve and later on at Salini Nature Reserve on the 9th May 2024.
Click link for Facebook post by Mario V. Gauci.
A true long-distance migrant, Franklin's breeds at freshwater marshes on the prairies of North America and winters along the Pacific coast of South America from Peru to southern Chile. It was previously much more abundant, with a decline of up to 90% noted between 1950 and 2000. Its world population now stands at around 350,000 pairs. This epic annual migration cycle seems to make it more susceptible to spectacular vagrancy, and it has been recorded in locations as diverse as Australasia, inland Africa and central and eastern Asia.
Franklin's is superficially similar to Laughing Gull at all ages, particularly at rest. However, it is a smaller bird, falling between Bonaparte's and Black-headed Gulls in size, and its upperparts average slightly paler (Kodak Scale 6-9). Unusually, it also undertakes two complete moults each year – once after breeding and another on reaching its wintering grounds.
At all ages, structure can be a good clue as to the identification: it tends to look 'cuter' than Laughing, with a smaller, rounder head, daintier bill and bigger eye. The white eyelids are even more pronounced than in its larger cousin.
Adults are largely similar in appearance to adult Laughing, with the greatest differences seen in flight – Franklin's has a broader-looking wing-tip that is accentuated by a striking primary pattern. The primaries are essentially white tipped, albeit with a variable amount of black subterminal markings from p6-10. This is easily discernible both at rest and in flight, with the wing-tip looking distinctly whitish.
As in Laughing, breeding-plumaged Franklin's show a glossy black hood, although the bill tends to be noticeably redder and so contrasts more. It may also retain the hood well into autumn. Winter birds show an extensive 'half-hood'. Second-winter Franklin's shows much more black in the wing-tip and thus can be trickier to separate from Laughing.
Diet
Mostly insects. During summer and migration feeds mostly on insects. Also eats brine shrimp and other crustaceans, small molluscs, spiders, marine worms, and some small fish.
Longevity record
---
Gawwija ta' Franklin
Leucophaeus pipixcan
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Vagrant
Usually seen in
---
Occasionally seen in
---
Click on the image to open slideshow
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
32 - 38
85 - 92
230 - 300
Mediterrenean Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen in flocks but can be seen individually or in small groups.
Takes three years to reach maturity.
Small, but bulky gull. Black hood with white crescents above and below eye, blood-red bill and legs in breeding plumage. The rest of the body seems all white at a distance. Wingtips pure white in adult birds. Chest deeper than in Black-headed gull, and wings fairly broad and rounded. In winter the black hood is largely lost, but dark streaking around, and at the back of the eye remains. Second year birds are similar to adult winter, but varying degrees of black markings remains on wing-tips.
Diet
An opportunistic omnivore, eating fish, worms, scraps, insects, offal and carrion.
Longevity record
22 years (Ring read in the field in Greece, E 000958)
Usually seen in
September - March
Occasionally seen in
April, August
Click on the image to open slideshow
Note white body and very pale grey back with no dark tips on the primaries indicating an adult gull. Velvety black hood with distintive white crescents above and below the eye and coral red bill and legs. The second gull is at a more advanced stage - head nearly completely black and legs are coral red. The first gull although adult still lacks a black head and feet are darker.
Note white body and very pale grey back with no dark tips on the primaries indicating an adult gull. Velvety black hood with distintive white crescents above and below the eye and coral red bill and legs. The second gull is at a more advanced stage - head nearly completely black and legs are coral red. The first gull although adult still lacks a black head and feet are darker.
Note white body and very pale grey back with no dark tips on the primaries indicating an adult gull. Velvety black hood with distintive white crescents above and below the eye and coral red bill and legs. The second gull is at a more advanced stage - head nearly completely black and legs are coral red. The first gull although adult still lacks a black head and feet are darker.
Note white body and very pale grey back with no dark tips on the primaries indicating an adult gull. Velvety black hood with distintive white crescents above and below the eye and coral red bill and legs. The second gull is at a more advanced stage - head nearly completely black and legs are coral red. The first gull although adult still lacks a black head and feet are darker.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
36 - 40
92 - 100
217 - 348
Audouin's Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually but sometimes seen in very small groups.
Takes four years to reach maturity.
A large gull found only in the Mediterranean and the western coast of Saharan Africa. It was considered one of the rarest gulls in the 1960's being said that the population was a mere 1,000 pairs. Today it had increased to an established 10,000 pairs.
Slightly smaller and more elegant than the Yellow-legged Gull with a slender bill, more elongated, sloping forehead, and longer, narrower wings. It can be distinguished from the Yellow-legged gull by its blood-red bill with black and yellow tip (sometimes hard to appreciate), very dark iris, dark grey or greenish legs (often visible in flight), much paler grey upper-wing with only a tiny white patch at the wing-tip and small white tips to the wing feathers (appears like a ‘string of pearls').
Juveniles have a paler face, a smooth unstreaked chest, unstreaked greyish neck feathers, a 'U' shaped rump patch on the tail and a strongly patterned underwing.
Diet
Mostly fish and cephalopods (squids, octopii, etc.), but small mammals, arthropods, birds and plant material are also taken.
Longevity record
25 years (Spain, 6005620)
Usually seen in
August
Occasionally seen in
all other months
Click on the image to open slideshow
Note coral red bills, white head and body, pale grey upperparts and white patches on black primaries indicative of a full adult moult. Third summer gulls are similar but lack the white patches on the primaries.
Note coral red bills, white head and body, pale grey upperparts and white patches on black primaries indicative of a full adult moult. Third summer gulls are similar but lack the white patches on the primaries.
Note coral red bill, white head and body, pale grey upperparts and white patches on black primaries indicative of a full adult moult. Third summer gulls are similar but lack the white patches on the primaries.
Note coral red bills, white head and body, pale grey upperparts and white patches on black primaries indicative of a full adult moult. Third summer gulls are similar but lack the white patches on the primaries.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
48 - 52
115 - 140
460 - 625
Pallas's Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
A vagrant bird that is seen individually.
A very large gull, listed as the third largest species of gull in the world, after the Great black-backed gull and the Glaucous gull. It measures 55–72 cm in length with a 142 to 170 cm wingspan. Summer adults are unmistakable since no other gull of this size has a black hood. The adults have grey wings and back, with conspicuous white "mirrors" at the wing tips. The legs are yellow and the bill is orangey-yellow with a red tip.
Diet
These birds are predatory, taking fish, crustaceans, insects and even small mammals.
Longevity record
29 years 2 months (Found dead in FInland, DT-13489)
Gawwija Imperjali
Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Vagrant
Usually seen in
----
Occasionally seen in
January, March, October, December
Click on the image to open slideshow
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
57 - 61
149 - 170
900 - 2000
Common Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually.
Takes three years to reach maturity.
A gull in smaller size, having a lighter bill and light flight. Head profile rounded, and the small bill lacks the red spot of the larger gulls. Told apart from Kittiwake by greenish legs and large white spot on wing tips.
Diet
Mostly fish, worms, insects, fish, carrion and rubbish.
Longevity record
33 years, 8 months (Ring read in the field in Denmark, 5003247)
Usually seen in
December - January
Occasionally seen in
February, November
Click on the image to open slideshow
Head and body white with brown markings. Also scaly tail. Pale bill with black tip. Heavy brown upperwing and grey saddle.
Head and body white with brown markings. Also scaly tail. Pale bill with black tip. Heavy brown upperwing and grey saddle.
Head and body white with brown markings. Also scaly tail. Pale bill with black tip. Heavy brown upperwing and grey saddle.
Head and body white with brown markings. Also scaly tail. Pale bill with black tip. Heavy brown upperwing and grey saddle.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
40 - 45
100 - 130
290 - 548
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually.
Takes four years to reach maturity.
Yellow legs, black to dark grey back (regional variations) and black primaries with only small white spots. Winter plumage with streaked head and neck. Underside of flight feathers smoky grey. Juveniles very variable, but with completely dark inner primaries and broad terminal band to tail.
There are basically four sub species in the European region, being
--> L.f. graellsi which has a slate grey back
--> L.f. intermedius which has a much darker back than 'graellsi'
--> L.f. fuscus aka 'BALTIC GULL' which has a black back
--> L.f. heuglini aka 'HEUGLIN'S GULL' which is similar to 'graellsi' but larger in proportion
Klaus Malling Olsen, author of ''Gulls of the World: A Photographic Guide'', describes the L.f. fuscus i.e. the 'Baltic Gull' and the L.f. heuglini i.e. the 'Heuglin's Gull' separately from the 'graellsi' and ' intermediate' ssp.
Diet
Feed on fish, but can also feed on invertebrates such as crustaceans, molluscs and terrestrial prey.
Longevity record
34 years, 10 months (A shot bird in the UK, GM 21509)
Gawwija Daharha Iswed
Larus fuscus
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Fairly common
Usually seen in
September - March
Occasionally seen in
April, July - August
Click on the image to open slideshow
2nd winter bird. Bill still with black marking indicating that this gull had not reached the adult stage. However the few head streaks and already all white tail are indicative that it is moulting to an adult summer plumage.
Bill neat yellow with red gonys spot features an adult. White head with few black streaks in winter plumage. The back of ssp. intermedius may in some individuals be much more grey than normal and sometimes can be as nearly as black such as in this individual.
Adult summer. Clean white head and yellow bill with red gonys spot.
2nd winter bird. Bill still with black marking indicating that this gull had not reached the adult stage. However the few head streaks and already all white tail are indicative that it is moulting to an adult summer plumage.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
49 - 57
118 - 150
452 - 1100
European Herring Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Large gull with deep chest, light grey back and heavy yellow bill with red spot (adult). Pinkish legs and black tipped primaries with white windows. Winter plumage with streaked head and neck. Develops grey mantle in 2.nd winter. Young birds may be difficult to distinguish from juvenile Greater- or Lesser Black-backed Gulls, and the species shows notable variation in both plumage and size. Juveniles generally shows darker head and less contrasting markings than Greater Black-back, and pale inner primaries (window), as opposed to the all black hand of young Lesser Black-backs.
Diet
Herring Gulls feeds primarily on fish and crustaceans, and destroys the clutches of terns, petrels and ducks. It also frequents rubbish dumps. It also consumes invertebrates, small mammals, molluscs, lizards and large insects.
Longevity record
34 years 9 months (Accidentally trapped in fishnet in Norway, 5020154)
Gawwija Prima Saqajha Roża
Larus argentatus
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Vagrant
Usually seen in
---
Occasionally seen in
November -January
Click on the image to open slideshow
Note the pinkish legs. Yellow-legged Gulls are very similar but have yellow legs.
Note the pinkish legs. Yellow-legged Gulls are very similar but have yellow legs.
Note the pinkish legs. Yellow-legged Gulls are very similar but have yellow legs.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
55 - 67
125 - 155
717 - 1495
Yellow-legged Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually, in groups and in flocks.
Takes four years to reach maturity.
Silvery upperparts, bright yellow legs and more black and less white in wing-tips. Orbital ring red, not orange. Big, red gonys spot, often extending to upper mandible. Marked gonys angle. Primary feather P5 (counted from innermost feather in gulls) usually with broad, black band. In winter plumage head is less streaked and often completely white. Immatures first winter: Pale belly and head. Dark underwings with blotchy markings. Only vague pale window of inner primaries, and well defined, wedge-shaped tail-band. Dark base of bill.
Diet
Yellow-legged Gull feeds primarily on fish and crustaceans, and destroys the clutches of terns, petrels and ducks. It also frequents rubbish dumps. It also consumes invertebrates, small mammals, molluscs, lizards and large insects.
Longevity record
20 years (Ring read in the field in Portugal, 16678)
Usually seen in
November - February
Occasionally seen in
all other months for residents
Click on the image to open slideshow
Contrasting white and brown plumage. Dark eye mask on whitish head. Bill is black and have a pronounced gonydeal angle.
A strongly worn plumage. Bill is getting lighter.
The combination of brown and grey patterned coverts and the extensive black mark on the bill indicates a 2nd year gull. Some brown feathers near the eye and a bright white head, breast and belly indicating the gull is moulting to a summer plumage.
Contrasting white and brown plumage. Dark eye mask on whitish head. Bill is black and have a pronounced gonydeal angle.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
52 - 58
120 - 140
550 - 1600
Caspian Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually.
Takes four years to reach maturity.
The Caspian Gull has a long, slender bill with lacking pronounced gonys angle, accentuated by the sloping forehead. One has to note that most individuals with a narrower bill will probably be females. Males may have a somehow stronger bill but still slightly drooping and a less pronounce gonys- angle than in Yellow-legged Gulls.
The legs, wings, and neck are longer than those of the Yellow-legged Gull. The eye is small and often dark (in circa 75% of adult individual). However 1st and 2nd year gulls have a black iris, possibly brownish in 3rd years (in 25% probability) and a mid-yellow iris in adults (25% probability), and the legs vary from pale pink to a pale yellowish colour. The back and wings are a slightly paler than the Yellow-legged Gull. The outermost primary feather has a large white tip and a white tongue running up the inner web.
First-winter birds have a pale head with dark streaking on the back of the neck. The underparts are pale and the back is greyish. The greater and median wing coverts have whitish tips forming two pale lines across the wing.
Diet
They are scavengers and predators with a very varied diet. During the breeding season, they often eat rodents such as ground squirrels, flying some distance into the steppes to find them.
Longevity record
-
Usually seen in
November - February
Occasionally seen in
September, March - April
Click on the image to open slideshow
Small clean rectangular shaped white head with a very narrow darker eye mask. Black eye and pale grey saddle. Bill is narrower and gonydeal is less protruding. Slender look. The greater coverts have dark bases with a greyish tip that form a light wing-bar pattern. Mottled pattern in the greater coverts.
Small clean rectangular shaped white head with a very narrow darker eye mask. Black eye and pale grey saddle. Bill is narrower and gonydeal is less protruding. Slender look. The greater coverts have dark bases with a greyish tip that form a light wing-bar pattern. Mottled pattern in the greater coverts.
Small clean rectangular shaped white head and breast with a very narrow darker eye mask. Black eye and pale grey saddle. Bill is narrower and gonydeal is less protruding. Slender look. Worn coverts with watered and out-washed pattern.
Small clean rectangular shaped white head with a very narrow darker eye mask. Black eye and pale grey saddle. Bill is narrower and gonydeal is less protruding. Slender look. The greater coverts have dark bases with a greyish tip that form a light wing-bar pattern. Mottled pattern in the greater coverts.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
56 - 58
137 - 145
680 - 1590
Long-tailed Jaeger
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually and off the coast in open waters.
Formerly known as the 'Long-tailed Skua'.
Breeding plumaged adults with streamers unmistakable (streamers comprising two thirds of total tail length). Adult plumage shows less variation than in other skuas. No hint of breast band, and transition between pale belly and darker vent very diffuse. No white patches at base of primaries of underwing in adults. Juveniles easily confused with juvenile Arctic Skua, but are more slender. Wings narrower and primaries and tail longer. Juvenile Arctic Skua shows white patches at base of primaries on both sides of wings, juvenile Long-tailed only on underwing, and on first few primaries of upper. Barred rump and tail coverts in juveniles. Flight elegant and buoyant.
Diet
Small mammals and when at sea, small fish, offal and carrion.
Longevity record
17 years 11 months (Sweden,6164551)
Usually seen in
-
Occasionally seen in
September - January, March
Click on the image to open slideshow
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
51 - 62
94 - 104
230 - 350
Parasitic Jaeger
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually and off the coast in open waters.
Formerly known as the 'Arctic Skua'.
Dark, pale and intermediate morphs. Elongated middle tail feathers (projection comprising about half the total tail length), but not as long as in adult Long-tailed skua. White patches at base of primaries, both on upper and underside of wings. Dark morph chocolate brown with darker hood. Pale morph with white throat and belly and incomplete breast band. Relatively marked transition from pale belly to dark vent (as opposed to Long-tailed). Size close to Common Gull. Flight powerful, elegant and falcon-like. Juveniles with short but pointed middle tail-feathers. Confusion with other juvenile skuas very likely. Differs from Long-tailed in prominent white base of most primaries on upper side of wing (not just the first few feathers). Lacks the double white patch of Pomarine Skua's underwing, and shows less contrast between back and rump. Wings broader than Long-tailed but narrower than Pomarine. Approximately equal to distance from wing rear edge to tail-tip (projections excluded).
Diet
This bird will feed on rodents, insects, eggs, chicks and small birds in the breeding season, but the majority of its diet (especially in winter and on migration) is made up of food that it acquires by robbing other birds (primarily gulls and terns) of their catches in an act called kleptoparasitism.
Longevity record
31 years 1 months (Found dead in Finland, ST-24110)
Usually seen in
September, November - February
Occasionally seen in
April, July, October
Click on the image to open slideshow
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
41 - 54
110 - 125
330 - 610
Pomarine Jaeger
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually and off the coast in open waters.
Identification of this jaeger is complicated by its similarities to Parasitic Jaeger and the existence of three morphs. Pomarine Jaegers are much bulkier, broader-winged and less falcon-like than the Parasitic Jaeger, but show the same wide range of plumage variation. The flight is more measured than that of the smaller species.
Light-morph adult Pomarine Jaegers have a brown back, mainly white underparts and dark primary wing feathers with a white "flash". The head and neck are yellowish-white with a black cap. Dark morph adults are dark brown, and intermediate morph birds are dark with somewhat paler underparts, head and neck. All morphs have the white wing flash, which appears as a diagnostic double flash on the underwing. In breeding adults of all morphs, the two central tail feathers are much longer than the others, spoon-shaped, and twisted from the horizontal. Juveniles are even more problematic to identify, and are difficult to separate from parasitic jaegers at a distance on plumage alone.
Diet
During breeding, Pomarine Jaegers specialize on eating brown lemmings, with smaller numbers of other rodents like tundra voles and collared lemmings. They catch shorebirds, ducks, and ptarmigan infrequently during summer, but the constant threat of predation seems to lower shorebird nest success when jaegers are around. During the nonbreeding season the diet is much more varied, including lemmings, birds, eggs, carrion, insects, fish, squid, and crabs. At sea, they harry kittiwakes, shearwaters, petrels, puffins, terns, boobies, gulls, and other seabirds to steal their catches.
Longevity record
30 years
Usually seen in
March - April, October - December
Occasionally seen in
February, May, July - September
Click on the image to open slideshow
Long tail spoon shaped as in Summer. White collar and belly.
Long tail spoon shaped as in Summer. White collar and belly.
Long tail spoon shaped as in Summer. White collar and belly.
Long tail spoon shaped as in Summer. White collar and belly.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
46 - 51
125 - 138
550 - 850
Great Skua
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually and off the coast in open waters.
Large and heavy skua with broad wings and short tail. The white patches at base of primaries are more striking than in the other skuas, and are visible both on upper and underside of wings. Size comparable to Yellow Legged Gull, but build more compact. Seemingly black at a distance, but white wing-patches usually visible. Confusion with juvenile Pomarine Skua possible, but body is heavier (not just the chest), wings rounder, bill longer, neck thicker and tail shorter.
Diet
They eat mainly fish, birds, eggs, carrion, offal, rodents, rabbits, and occasionally berries.
Longevity record
35 years 11 months (Iceland, 215553)
Usually seen in
February - March, October - December
Occasionally seen in
January, April
Click on the image to open slideshow
Colour is pale, barrel shaped body and pale underwing secondaries to primaries bar.
Colour is pale, barrel shaped body and pale underwing secondaries to primaries bar.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (kg):
53 - 61
127 - 146
1.1 - 1.7
*Some information was sourced from ''BirdID Nord University''.
Little Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually but may be seen in very small groups.
Takes three years to reach maturity.
Very small gull with rounded wings and almost tern-like appearance. Underwing black, with broad white trailing edge. Lacks Black-headed Gull's conspicuous white outer primaries. Adult summer plumage with black (not chocolate) hood, that reaches far down on hind-neck. Winter plumage without hood, but with dark cheek-patch and dark cap. Juveniles differs from juvenile Kittiwake in slender body, dark cap, dark patch at trailing base of underwing, faint dark wing-bar and shorter wings. Can, with experience, be identified by fluttering, butterfly-like flight at long distance.
Diet
Mostly insects. During summer and migration feeds mostly on insects. Also eats brine shrimp and other crustaceans, small molluscs, spiders, marine worms, and some small fish.
Longevity record
20 years (Ring read in the field in Finland, AT-35319)
Usually seen in
December - February
Occasionally seen in
March - April, September - November
Click on the image to open slideshow
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Greyish back indicative of a juvenile in its first winter. Wings still show dark feathers on the outer wings and at the end of the tail which shall turn into grey and white in a 2nd winter bird.
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
25 - 27
75 - 80
66 - 133
Black-legged Kittiwake
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually.
Takes two/three years to reach maturity.
A small and agile gull with all black wing-tips, black legs (adults) and yellow bill. Area close to wing-tips much paler than rest of wings, and often visible at surprisingly long range (more so than the black tips). Adult winter with grey neck and black half-collar. Juveniles with black zig-zag pattern to wings, resembling pattern seen in Little Gull, Ross's Gull and Sabine's Gull. Differs from those in; no dark bar on secondaries, underparts of wing white, back grey, black on primaries reaches wing-tip. Flight action different from larger gulls; fast, stiff wing-beats and elegant manoeuvring even in strong winds.
Diet
The black-legged kittiwake eats marine invertebrates, plankton, and fish. It feeds in flocks and catches food at the surface of the water. It also dives just below the surface of the water to catch its prey, in fact, it is the only gull that dives and swims underwater!
Longevity record
28 years (Found dead in the UK, EC 26662)
Usually seen in
January - February
Occasionally seen in
March, October - December
Click on the image to open slideshow
Note distinctive black neck patch & plain grey back in the Black-legged Kittiwake.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
38 - 40
93 - 120
305 - 525
Slender-billed Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually but occasionally in small groups.
Takes two/three years to reach maturity.
This scarce gull breeds in colonies, nesting on the ground and laying up to three eggs. Like most gulls, it is gregarious in winter, both when feeding or in evening roosts. It is not a pelagic species, and is rarely seen at sea far from coasts.
The head and dark red bill have an elongated tapering appearance, and this bird also appears long-necked. The legs are dark red, and the iris is yellow. In summer, the breast has a pink coloration. This bird takes two years to reach maturity. First year birds have a black terminal tail band, and dark areas in the wings.
Diet
Mainly feeds on fish. Occasionally feeds on marine invertebrates and catches insects in flight.
Longevity record
16 years (Russia, E 271491)
Usually seen in
March, October
Occasionally seen in
all other months
Click on the image to open slideshow
The dark bill indicates an adult in summer plumage.
Light orange bill and legs characteristics of 1st winter gull.
Note a more pink tinge on breast, belly, tail and primaries and a small ear spot in the ear coverts. Bill and legs are redder. This is considered as a complete winter moult. In summer the beak and legs will be darker.
The dark bill indicates an adult in summer plumage.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
40 - 44
100 - 112
223 - 375
Bonaparte's Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
A small gull that is a North American resident and breeder. A vagrant to see in Europe.
The Bonaparte's gull takes two years to reach maturity. It is slightly larger than the Little Gull and resembles also a similar flight although it has a jizz more likely of a Black-headed gull but with narrower wings.
At all ages, it has whitish translucent primaries with a black trailing edge, a slender body, pale pinkish legs and a shortly slender dark bill.
Diet
Mainly feeds on fish. Occasionally feeds on marine invertebrates and catches insects in flight.
Longevity record
18 years
Gawwija ta' Bonaparti
Chroicocephalus philadelphia
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Vagrant
Usually seen in
---
Occasionally seen in
November, January
Click on the image to open slideshow
Whitish head with broad dark ear spot. Pale pinkish legs. Dark markings on back indicate a 1st year bird.
Whitish head with broad dark ear spot. Pale pinkish legs. White outer primaries with black trailing edge. Dark markings on back indicate a 1st year bird.
Whitish head with broad dark ear spot. Pale pinkish legs. White outer primaries with black trailing edge. Dark markings on back indicate a 1st year bird.
Whitish head with broad dark ear spot. Pale pinkish legs. Dark markings on back indicate a 1st year bird.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
28 - 30
75 -90
170 - 235
Black-headed Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen in flocks, small groups or individually.
Takes two years to reach maturity.
Chocolate-brown hood in adult plumage (seemingly black at a distance), but head only with dark markings in winter and juvenile plumages. Underparts of inner primaries dark grey. First few primaries white with black tip, both on upper side of wing and under. Last character conspicuous in all plumages, but slightly less obvious in juveniles due to larger dark area of wing-tip.
.
Diet
This gull is omnivorous. It eats mostly animal material, including wide variety of insects, also earthworms, marine worms, molluscs, crustaceans, small fish, carrion. During summer may eat many seeds and small fruits.
Longevity record
32 years (Ring read in the field in the Netherlands, 3275396)
Usually seen in
November - February
Occasionally seen in
March - April, September - October
Click on the image to open slideshow
Clean grey upperwings, black head. The white eye rings are still not complete and the bill and legs are yet to get darker for a Summer plumage.
Clean grey upperwings, black head. The white eye rings are still not complete and the bill and legs are yet to get darker for a Summer plumage.
Clean grey upperwings, black head. The white eye rings are still not complete and the bill and legs are yet to get darker for a Summer plumage.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
34 - 39
100 - 110
161 - 400
Little Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually but may be seen in very small groups.
Takes three years to reach maturity.
Very small gull with rounded wings and almost tern-like appearance. Underwing black, with broad white trailing edge. Lacks Black-headed Gull's conspicuous white outer primaries. Adult summer plumage with black (not chocolate) hood, that reaches far down on hind-neck. Winter plumage without hood, but with dark cheek-patch and dark cap. Juveniles differs from juvenile Kittiwake in slender body, dark cap, dark patch at trailing base of underwing, faint dark wing-bar and shorter wings. Can, with experience, be identified by fluttering, butterfly-like flight at long distance.
Diet
Mostly insects. During summer and migration feeds mostly on insects. Also eats brine shrimp and other crustaceans, small molluscs, spiders, marine worms, and some small fish.
Longevity record
20 years (Ring read in the field in Finland, AT-35319)
Usually seen in
December - February
Occasionally seen in
March - April, September - November
Click on the image to open slideshow
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Greyish back indicative of a juvenile in its first winter. Wings still show dark feathers on the outer wings and at the end of the tail which shall turn into grey and white in a 2nd winter bird.
Similar to the 1st winter but tail is completely white, upperwings are grey and have a two-toned underwing with pale axillaries and coverts against dark primaries.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
25 - 27
75 - 80
66 - 133
Mediterrenean Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen in flocks but can be seen individually or in small groups.
Takes three years to reach maturity.
Small, but bulky gull. Black hood with white crescents above and below eye, blood-red bill and legs in breeding plumage. The rest of the body seems all white at a distance. Wingtips pure white in adult birds. Chest deeper than in Black-headed gull, and wings fairly broad and rounded. In winter the black hood is largely lost, but dark streaking around, and at the back of the eye remains. Second year birds are similar to adult winter, but varying degrees of black markings remains on wing-tips.
Diet
An opportunistic omnivore, eating fish, worms, scraps, insects, offal and carrion.
Longevity record
22 years (Ring read in the field in Greece, E 000958)
Usually seen in
September - March
Occasionally seen in
April, August
Click on the image to open slideshow
Note white body and very pale grey back with no dark tips on the primaries indicating an adult gull. Velvety black hood with distintive white crescents above and below the eye and coral red bill and legs. The second gull is at a more advanced stage - head nearly completely black and legs are coral red. The first gull although adult still lacks a black head and feet are darker.
Note white body and very pale grey back with no dark tips on the primaries indicating an adult gull. Velvety black hood with distintive white crescents above and below the eye and coral red bill and legs. The second gull is at a more advanced stage - head nearly completely black and legs are coral red. The first gull although adult still lacks a black head and feet are darker.
Note white body and very pale grey back with no dark tips on the primaries indicating an adult gull. Velvety black hood with distintive white crescents above and below the eye and coral red bill and legs. The second gull is at a more advanced stage - head nearly completely black and legs are coral red. The first gull although adult still lacks a black head and feet are darker.
Note white body and very pale grey back with no dark tips on the primaries indicating an adult gull. Velvety black hood with distintive white crescents above and below the eye and coral red bill and legs. The second gull is at a more advanced stage - head nearly completely black and legs are coral red. The first gull although adult still lacks a black head and feet are darker.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
36 - 40
92 - 100
217 - 348
Audouin's Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually but sometimes seen in very small groups.
Takes four years to reach maturity.
A large gull found only in the Mediterranean and the western coast of Saharan Africa. It was considered one of the rarest gulls in the 1960's being said that the population was a mere 1,000 pairs. Today it had increased to an established 10,000 pairs.
Slightly smaller and more elegant than the Yellow-legged Gull with a slender bill, more elongated, sloping forehead, and longer, narrower wings. It can be distinguished from the Yellow-legged gull by its blood-red bill with black and yellow tip (sometimes hard to appreciate), very dark iris, dark grey or greenish legs (often visible in flight), much paler grey upper-wing with only a tiny white patch at the wing-tip and small white tips to the wing feathers (appears like a ‘string of pearls').
Juveniles have a paler face, a smooth unstreaked chest, unstreaked greyish neck feathers, a 'U' shaped rump patch on the tail and a strongly patterned underwing.
Diet
Mostly fish and cephalopods (squids, octopii, etc.), but small mammals, arthropods, birds and plant material are also taken.
Longevity record
25 years (Spain, 6005620)
Usually seen in
August
Occasionally seen in
all other months
Click on the image to open slideshow
Note coral red bills, white head and body, pale grey upperparts and white patches on black primaries indicative of a full adult moult. Third summer gulls are similar but lack the white patches on the primaries.
Note coral red bills, white head and body, pale grey upperparts and white patches on black primaries indicative of a full adult moult. Third summer gulls are similar but lack the white patches on the primaries.
Note coral red bill, white head and body, pale grey upperparts and white patches on black primaries indicative of a full adult moult. Third summer gulls are similar but lack the white patches on the primaries.
Note coral red bills, white head and body, pale grey upperparts and white patches on black primaries indicative of a full adult moult. Third summer gulls are similar but lack the white patches on the primaries.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
48 - 52
115 - 140
460 - 625
Pallas's Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
A vagrant bird that is seen individually.
A very large gull, listed as the third largest species of gull in the world, after the Great black-backed gull and the Glaucous gull. It measures 55–72 cm in length with a 142 to 170 cm wingspan. Summer adults are unmistakable since no other gull of this size has a black hood. The adults have grey wings and back, with conspicuous white "mirrors" at the wing tips. The legs are yellow and the bill is orangey-yellow with a red tip.
Diet
These birds are predatory, taking fish, crustaceans, insects and even small mammals.
Longevity record
29 years 2 months (Found dead in FInland, DT-13489)
Gawwija Imperjali
Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Vagrant
Usually seen in
----
Occasionally seen in
January, March, October, December
Click on the image to open slideshow
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
57 - 61
149 - 170
900 - 2000
Common Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually.
Takes three years to reach maturity.
A gull in smaller size, having a lighter bill and light flight. Head profile rounded, and the small bill lacks the red spot of the larger gulls. Told apart from Kittiwake by greenish legs and large white spot on wing tips.
Diet
Mostly fish, worms, insects, fish, carrion and rubbish.
Longevity record
33 years, 8 months (Ring read in the field in Denmark, 5003247)
Usually seen in
December - January
Occasionally seen in
February, November
Click on the image to open slideshow
Head and body white with brown markings. Also scaly tail. Pale bill with black tip. Heavy brown upperwing and grey saddle.
Head and body white with brown markings. Also scaly tail. Pale bill with black tip. Heavy brown upperwing and grey saddle.
Head and body white with brown markings. Also scaly tail. Pale bill with black tip. Heavy brown upperwing and grey saddle.
Head and body white with brown markings. Also scaly tail. Pale bill with black tip. Heavy brown upperwing and grey saddle.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
40 - 45
100 - 130
290 - 548
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually.
Takes four years to reach maturity.
Yellow legs, black to dark grey back (regional variations) and black primaries with only small white spots. Winter plumage with streaked head and neck. Underside of flight feathers smoky grey. Juveniles very variable, but with completely dark inner primaries and broad terminal band to tail.
There are basically four sub species in the European region, being
--> L.f. graellsi which has a slate grey back
--> L.f. intermedius which has a much darker back than 'graellsi'
--> L.f. fuscus aka 'BALTIC GULL' which has a black back
--> L.f. heuglini aka 'HEUGLIN'S GULL' which is similar to 'graellsi' but larger in proportion
Klaus Malling Olsen, author of ''Gulls of the World: A Photographic Guide'', describes the L.f. fuscus i.e. the 'Baltic Gull' and the L.f. heuglini i.e. the 'Heuglin's Gull' separately from the 'graellsi' and ' intermediate' ssp.
Diet
Feed on fish, but can also feed on invertebrates such as crustaceans, molluscs and terrestrial prey.
Longevity record
34 years, 10 months (A shot bird in the UK, GM 21509)
Gawwija Daharha Iswed
Larus fuscus
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Fairly common
Usually seen in
September - March
Occasionally seen in
April, July - August
Click on the image to open slideshow
2nd winter bird. Bill still with black marking indicating that this gull had not reached the adult stage. However the few head streaks and already all white tail are indicative that it is moulting to an adult summer plumage.
Bill neat yellow with red gonys spot features an adult. White head with few black streaks in winter plumage. The back of ssp. intermedius may in some individuals be much more grey than normal and sometimes can be as nearly as black such as in this individual.
Adult summer. Clean white head and yellow bill with red gonys spot.
2nd winter bird. Bill still with black marking indicating that this gull had not reached the adult stage. However the few head streaks and already all white tail are indicative that it is moulting to an adult summer plumage.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
49 - 57
118 - 150
452 - 1100
European Herring Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Large gull with deep chest, light grey back and heavy yellow bill with red spot (adult). Pinkish legs and black tipped primaries with white windows. Winter plumage with streaked head and neck. Develops grey mantle in 2.nd winter. Young birds may be difficult to distinguish from juvenile Greater- or Lesser Black-backed Gulls, and the species shows notable variation in both plumage and size. Juveniles generally shows darker head and less contrasting markings than Greater Black-back, and pale inner primaries (window), as opposed to the all black hand of young Lesser Black-backs.
Diet
Herring Gulls feeds primarily on fish and crustaceans, and destroys the clutches of terns, petrels and ducks. It also frequents rubbish dumps. It also consumes invertebrates, small mammals, molluscs, lizards and large insects.
Longevity record
34 years 9 months (Accidentally trapped in fishnet in Norway, 5020154)
Gawwija Prima Saqajha Roża
Larus argentatus
Charadriiformes
Laridae
Vagrant
Usually seen in
---
Occasionally seen in
November -January
Click on the image to open slideshow
Note the pinkish legs. Yellow-legged Gulls are very similar but have yellow legs.
Note the pinkish legs. Yellow-legged Gulls are very similar but have yellow legs.
Note the pinkish legs. Yellow-legged Gulls are very similar but have yellow legs.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
55 - 67
125 - 155
717 - 1495
Yellow-legged Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually, in groups and in flocks.
Takes four years to reach maturity.
Silvery upperparts, bright yellow legs and more black and less white in wing-tips. Orbital ring red, not orange. Big, red gonys spot, often extending to upper mandible. Marked gonys angle. Primary feather P5 (counted from innermost feather in gulls) usually with broad, black band. In winter plumage head is less streaked and often completely white. Immatures first winter: Pale belly and head. Dark underwings with blotchy markings. Only vague pale window of inner primaries, and well defined, wedge-shaped tail-band. Dark base of bill.
Diet
Yellow-legged Gull feeds primarily on fish and crustaceans, and destroys the clutches of terns, petrels and ducks. It also frequents rubbish dumps. It also consumes invertebrates, small mammals, molluscs, lizards and large insects.
Longevity record
20 years (Ring read in the field in Portugal, 16678)
Usually seen in
November - February
Occasionally seen in
all other months for residents
Click on the image to open slideshow
Contrasting white and brown plumage. Dark eye mask on whitish head. Bill is black and have a pronounced gonydeal angle.
A strongly worn plumage. Bill is getting lighter.
The combination of brown and grey patterned coverts and the extensive black mark on the bill indicates a 2nd year gull. Some brown feathers near the eye and a bright white head, breast and belly indicating the gull is moulting to a summer plumage.
Contrasting white and brown plumage. Dark eye mask on whitish head. Bill is black and have a pronounced gonydeal angle.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
52 - 58
120 - 140
550 - 1600
Caspian Gull
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually.
Takes four years to reach maturity.
The Caspian Gull has a long, slender bill with lacking pronounced gonys angle, accentuated by the sloping forehead. One has to note that most individuals with a narrower bill will probably be females. Males may have a somehow stronger bill but still slightly drooping and a less pronounce gonys- angle than in Yellow-legged Gulls.
The legs, wings, and neck are longer than those of the Yellow-legged Gull. The eye is small and often dark (in circa 75% of adult individual). However 1st and 2nd year gulls have a black iris, possibly brownish in 3rd years (in 25% probability) and a mid-yellow iris in adults (25% probability), and the legs vary from pale pink to a pale yellowish colour. The back and wings are a slightly paler than the Yellow-legged Gull. The outermost primary feather has a large white tip and a white tongue running up the inner web.
First-winter birds have a pale head with dark streaking on the back of the neck. The underparts are pale and the back is greyish. The greater and median wing coverts have whitish tips forming two pale lines across the wing.
Diet
They are scavengers and predators with a very varied diet. During the breeding season, they often eat rodents such as ground squirrels, flying some distance into the steppes to find them.
Longevity record
-
Usually seen in
November - February
Occasionally seen in
September, March - April
Click on the image to open slideshow
Small clean rectangular shaped white head with a very narrow darker eye mask. Black eye and pale grey saddle. Bill is narrower and gonydeal is less protruding. Slender look. The greater coverts have dark bases with a greyish tip that form a light wing-bar pattern. Mottled pattern in the greater coverts.
Small clean rectangular shaped white head with a very narrow darker eye mask. Black eye and pale grey saddle. Bill is narrower and gonydeal is less protruding. Slender look. The greater coverts have dark bases with a greyish tip that form a light wing-bar pattern. Mottled pattern in the greater coverts.
Small clean rectangular shaped white head and breast with a very narrow darker eye mask. Black eye and pale grey saddle. Bill is narrower and gonydeal is less protruding. Slender look. Worn coverts with watered and out-washed pattern.
Small clean rectangular shaped white head with a very narrow darker eye mask. Black eye and pale grey saddle. Bill is narrower and gonydeal is less protruding. Slender look. The greater coverts have dark bases with a greyish tip that form a light wing-bar pattern. Mottled pattern in the greater coverts.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
56 - 58
137 - 145
680 - 1590
Long-tailed Jaeger
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually and off the coast in open waters.
Formerly known as the 'Long-tailed Skua'.
Breeding plumaged adults with streamers unmistakable (streamers comprising two thirds of total tail length). Adult plumage shows less variation than in other skuas. No hint of breast band, and transition between pale belly and darker vent very diffuse. No white patches at base of primaries of underwing in adults. Juveniles easily confused with juvenile Arctic Skua, but are more slender. Wings narrower and primaries and tail longer. Juvenile Arctic Skua shows white patches at base of primaries on both sides of wings, juvenile Long-tailed only on underwing, and on first few primaries of upper. Barred rump and tail coverts in juveniles. Flight elegant and buoyant.
Diet
Small mammals and when at sea, small fish, offal and carrion.
Longevity record
17 years 11 months (Sweden,6164551)
Usually seen in
-
Occasionally seen in
September - January, March
Click on the image to open slideshow
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
51 - 62
94 - 104
230 - 350
Parasitic Jaeger
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually and off the coast in open waters.
Formerly known as the 'Arctic Skua'.
Dark, pale and intermediate morphs. Elongated middle tail feathers (projection comprising about half the total tail length), but not as long as in adult Long-tailed skua. White patches at base of primaries, both on upper and underside of wings. Dark morph chocolate brown with darker hood. Pale morph with white throat and belly and incomplete breast band. Relatively marked transition from pale belly to dark vent (as opposed to Long-tailed). Size close to Common Gull. Flight powerful, elegant and falcon-like. Juveniles with short but pointed middle tail-feathers. Confusion with other juvenile skuas very likely. Differs from Long-tailed in prominent white base of most primaries on upper side of wing (not just the first few feathers). Lacks the double white patch of Pomarine Skua's underwing, and shows less contrast between back and rump. Wings broader than Long-tailed but narrower than Pomarine. Approximately equal to distance from wing rear edge to tail-tip (projections excluded).
Diet
This bird will feed on rodents, insects, eggs, chicks and small birds in the breeding season, but the majority of its diet (especially in winter and on migration) is made up of food that it acquires by robbing other birds (primarily gulls and terns) of their catches in an act called kleptoparasitism.
Longevity record
31 years 1 months (Found dead in Finland, ST-24110)
Usually seen in
September, November - February
Occasionally seen in
April, July, October
Click on the image to open slideshow
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
41 - 54
110 - 125
330 - 610
Pomarine Jaeger
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually and off the coast in open waters.
Identification of this jaeger is complicated by its similarities to Parasitic Jaeger and the existence of three morphs. Pomarine Jaegers are much bulkier, broader-winged and less falcon-like than the Parasitic Jaeger, but show the same wide range of plumage variation. The flight is more measured than that of the smaller species.
Light-morph adult Pomarine Jaegers have a brown back, mainly white underparts and dark primary wing feathers with a white "flash". The head and neck are yellowish-white with a black cap. Dark morph adults are dark brown, and intermediate morph birds are dark with somewhat paler underparts, head and neck. All morphs have the white wing flash, which appears as a diagnostic double flash on the underwing. In breeding adults of all morphs, the two central tail feathers are much longer than the others, spoon-shaped, and twisted from the horizontal. Juveniles are even more problematic to identify, and are difficult to separate from parasitic jaegers at a distance on plumage alone.
Diet
During breeding, Pomarine Jaegers specialize on eating brown lemmings, with smaller numbers of other rodents like tundra voles and collared lemmings. They catch shorebirds, ducks, and ptarmigan infrequently during summer, but the constant threat of predation seems to lower shorebird nest success when jaegers are around. During the nonbreeding season the diet is much more varied, including lemmings, birds, eggs, carrion, insects, fish, squid, and crabs. At sea, they harry kittiwakes, shearwaters, petrels, puffins, terns, boobies, gulls, and other seabirds to steal their catches.
Longevity record
30 years
Usually seen in
March - April, October - December
Occasionally seen in
February, May, July - September
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Long tail spoon shaped as in Summer. White collar and belly.
Long tail spoon shaped as in Summer. White collar and belly.
Long tail spoon shaped as in Summer. White collar and belly.
Long tail spoon shaped as in Summer. White collar and belly.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (g):
46 - 51
125 - 138
550 - 850
Great Skua
Maltese name/s
Scientific binomen
Order
Family
Sighting occurrence
Info*
Usually seen individually and off the coast in open waters.
Large and heavy skua with broad wings and short tail. The white patches at base of primaries are more striking than in the other skuas, and are visible both on upper and underside of wings. Size comparable to Yellow Legged Gull, but build more compact. Seemingly black at a distance, but white wing-patches usually visible. Confusion with juvenile Pomarine Skua possible, but body is heavier (not just the chest), wings rounder, bill longer, neck thicker and tail shorter.
Diet
They eat mainly fish, birds, eggs, carrion, offal, rodents, rabbits, and occasionally berries.
Longevity record
35 years 11 months (Iceland, 215553)
Usually seen in
February - March, October - December
Occasionally seen in
January, April
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Colour is pale, barrel shaped body and pale underwing secondaries to primaries bar.
Colour is pale, barrel shaped body and pale underwing secondaries to primaries bar.
Length (cm):
Wingspan (cm):
Weight (kg):
53 - 61
127 - 146
1.1 - 1.7
*Some information was sourced from ''BirdID Nord University''.