Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis

Yellow-legged Gull with seafood catch

The Yellow-legged Gull is native to much of Western Europe (including southern UK), the Mediterranean and coastal parts of North Africa (including the Canary Islands, Madeira, Azores).

Breeding adult Yellow-legged Gulls have bright orange-yellow legs and a red beak spot. Young adults have paler yellow legs and a black and red beak spot.

Young adults also have a grey-streaked head. Most of the birds on this page are the Atlantic subspecies (mainly Canary Islands) with slightly darker grey but the one above right is the paler Mediterranean subspecies.

Immature and non-breeding gulls have a black rather than red spot on the beak and very pale yellow legs.

Younger still, but with plumage on the turn to adulthood, the yellow-legged gull has yellow-grey legs and a fully black beak.

Very young yellow-legged gulls have pinky-grey legs, a fully black beak and speckled grey-brown plumage.

The black-barred tail