Sooty Gull

Ichthyaetus hemprichii (Bruch, 1855)

Sooty Gull, Ichthyaetus hemprichii, is a gull in the family Laridae that breeds around the islands of the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, Socotra, the north-west Indian Ocean, north-east Kenya, the Persian Gulf and the north-west Arabian Sea to south Pakistan. Outside the breeding season it reaches the Gulf of Aqaba in south Israel and also Tanzania and Zanzibar. It was described by Bruch in 1855. The species is part of Charadriiformes.

Order

Charadriiformes

Family

Laridae — Gulls, Terns, Skimmers

Breeding range

Africa, Palearctic: islands of Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Socotra, nw Indian Ocean to ne Kenya, Persian Gulf and nw Arabian Sea to s Pakistan

Nonbreeding range

to Gulf of Aqaba (se Israel) and c Tanzania and Zanzibar