Laughing Gull

Leucophaeus atricilla (Linnaeus, 1758)

Laughing Gull, Leucophaeus atricilla, breeds on islands from the north-west Atlantic coast of Maine to Florida, across the Gulf of Mexico to south Texas, in the Yucatan Peninsula, from the Gulf of California to Colima, and through the West Indies, islands off the Yucatan Peninsula, and islands north of Venezuela, Trinidad, Tobago and French Guiana. It is a gull of North, Middle and South America. Its breeding grounds are on low-lying coastal islands, often in large colonies. The bird is known for its raucous call, which gave it its English name.

Order

Charadriiformes

Family

Laridae — Gulls, Terns, Skimmers

Breeding range

North America, Middle America, South America: islands off w North Atlantic coast of Maine to Florida, Gulf of Mexico to s Texas; Yucatan Pen.; Gulf of California to Colima; West Indies, islands off Yucatan Pen., and islands n of Venezuela, Trinidad, Tobago and to French Guiana