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Australian Wildlife

  Pacific Gull (Larus pacificus)





Pacific Gull | Larus pacificus photo
Pacific Gull (Larus pacificus), Derwent River Estuary, Tasmania, Australia

Image by JJ Harrison (http://www.noodlesnacks.com/) - Some rights reserved.    (view image details)

Pacific Gull | Larus pacificus photo
Adult Pacific Gull, Larus pacificus in breeding plumage at Squeaky Beach, Wilsons Promontory, Victoria, Australia.

Image by David Brewster - Some rights reserved.    (view image details)

Pacific Gull | Larus pacificus photo
Larus pacificus juvenile

Image by Adam Jenkins from Adelaide, Australia - Some rights reserved.    (view image details)







PACIFIC GULL FACTS

Description
The Pacific Gull is a gull with black back and large yellow bill with red tip. The upper wings and wingtips are black. The tail is white with black band near the end. The legs are yellow. Juveniles are mottled dark brown with pale face and the bill is pink or yellowish with a black tip. There are two forms of the Pacific Gull - the eastern form has a white eye and a complete red tip to the bill, and the western form has a red eye and tip of bill is only partly red.

Size
55-65cm

Habitat
sandy coasts and beaches. Rarely found inland or in built up areas although can be seen on wharves and jetties near suitable habitat.

Food
molluscs, fish, birds and other marine animals.

Breeding
Nest is a scrape in the ground lined with small stones or gravel. Some built a shallow bowl of sticks, grass, seaweed or feathers

Range
southern Australia and occurs mostly on south and west coasts, Tasmania and infrequently on the east coast.

distribution map showing range of Larus pacificus in Australia

Credits:
Map is from Atlas of Living Australia website at https://biocache.ala.org.au licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.



Classification
Class:Aves
Order:Charadriiformes
Family:Laridae
Genus:Larus
Species:pacificus
Common Name:Pacific Gull

Relatives in same Genus
  Laughing Gull (L. atricilla)
  Black-tailed Gull (L. crassirostris)
  Kelp Gull (L. dominicanus)
  Silver Gull (L. novaehollandiae)
  Franklins Gull (L. pipixcan)
  Black-headed Gull (L. ridibundus)