Great black-backed gull
Scientific name: Larus marinus Linnaeus, 1758
Overview
The great black-backed gull is the largest member of the gull and tern family Laridae. It is a very aggressive hunter, pirate and scavenger which breeds on the North Atlantic coasts and islands of northern Europe and northeastern North America. Southern populations are generally sedentary, while those breeding in the far north migrate farther south in winter. A few also move inland to large lakes and reservoirs. The adult has a white head, neck and underparts, dark blackish-grey wings and back, pink legs and the bill yellow with a red spot.
From the Wikipedia article “Great black-backed gull”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Least concern on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021.3.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: Caribbean; Europe & Northern Asia (excluding China); North America.
Common names
Also known in English as Greater Black-backed Gull.
Names in other languages (10)
- Arabic
- نورس أسود الظهر كبير
- Chinese
- 大黑背鸥
- French
- Goéland marin
- German
- Mantelmöwe
- Japanese
- オオカモメ
- Persian
- کاکایی پشت سیاه بزرگ
- Portuguese
- Alcatraz-comum, gaivotão-real
- Russian
- морская чайка
- Spanish
- Gavión atlántico
- Turkish
- Büyük kara sırtlı martı
Related animals
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, names in other languages. Q26629, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “Great black-backed gull”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — Andreas Trepte, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
- Range map — Cephas, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026