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gulls (1 Viewer)

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scuba0095

Well-known member
Hello

I was just wondering out of all the gull species which ones would you all nsider most aggressive? From what i have read it seems that the great bla ba ed gull is both most predatory and aggressive however other sources state that the kelp gull although smaller is much more aggressive? would you nsider any of the gull species on the same lines of the skua? let me know. Thanks for your time
 
;) I suppose most of us are more concerned with finding out "just which gull is that that I am looking at" rather than trying to determine is it more/less aggressive than other gulls.

Here in northwest Missouri we do not get a whole lot of different species of gulls so I am not able to answer you.

Perhaps someone will be along an give their view point on the question you posted.

*This will bump it back to the top again!

Good Birding!
 
Hi scuba,

I think many species of gull, in the right situation, can show quite a lot of aggression. Only yesterday i watched Black headed gulls mobbing a Lesser blacked backed gull, as it had strayed, not into a nesting area but what simply looked like an area they chose to mark as their own. Regarding predation, i reckon the Great Blacked backed Gull takes some beating. I saw a tv program some time ago showing a GBB Gull take a Puffin in mid-air for a snack. It sure was amazing to see.

Tom
 
Have to agree with tracker on this one GBBs are very aggresive,i've often watched them chasing Puffins and Auks just like Skuas .
Even saw one once catch a Water Rail as it flew off the rig i worked on ,just grabbed it in mid air and got it into the sea.

Lenny
 
id say its a tie between the great black backed and glaucous gulls. i saw a glaucous gull kill a ptarmigan on tv once
 
I would agree, the Great Black Backed Gull is the most agressive that I have seen. Wouldn't mess with them if I was a feathered birdie.

I used to consider all gulls ugly and a menace until I started birdwatching last year. I love the kittiwake it is such a glamorous wee thing.

I have been trying to source a bird book dedicated to gulls can anyone point me in the right direction ?

Thanks
Catherine :h?:
 
rin said:
I would agree, the Great Black Backed Gull is the most agressive that I have seen. Wouldn't mess with them if I was a feathered birdie.

I used to consider all gulls ugly and a menace until I started birdwatching last year. I love the kittiwake it is such a glamorous wee thing.

I have been trying to source a bird book dedicated to gulls can anyone point me in the right direction ?

Thanks
Catherine :h?:
Click to expand...

The latest book is:

Gulls of Europe, Asia and North America by Klaus Malling Olsen A & C Black ISBN 0-7136-7087-8

Be warned, though. You don't know exactly what heaving, choppy waters lie ahead if you get seriously interested.
 
When it comes to attacking people around the nest site I find Lessers very aggresive. Much more so then Herring Gulls. If you look at them when they are diving they tend not to come so close. Quite cowardly really.
 
LBBs seem to terrify Herring Gulls, even though the latter are usually bigger. Common Gulls are also much more aggressive around the nest. I've got Herring Gulls nesting near my flat and frankly they're pussycats.
 
Definitely Great Black-backs. Several years ago some friends and I observed a Great Black-back attacking and drowning a drake Goldeneye in Langstone Harbour, Hants. There wasn't a single thing the duck could do - defintitely a nasty piece of work! Makes me shudder to think about even now some 25 years down the line.

The Exmouth Birder
 
The most aggresive gulls are GBB, followed by Glaucous. Western, Yellow-Footed, Kelp and LBB, pretty much in that order. Slaty-Backed is said to be as well. Western Gulls nest at the park where I work and let me tell you, when they divebomb you it can be scary. They usually zoom just past your head so you feel the wind. Sometimes they will hit you.
 
Another aggresive gull is Heermann's Gull. It's aggresive in the sense that it often harrases other birds, chasing them to steal food. It is often mistaken for a jaeger at first.
 
hello


One gull i forgot to mention which is just as bad as a GBB IF NOT WORSE is Glaucous Gulls~ ! I recently watched them on a documentary a single gull sucessfully defended its chick from an artic fox and also attacked and prevented a P falcon from predating on its offspring. IT was an amazing site!~

I also saw them go threw a WHOLE Tern & hermans gull colony and totally devour EVERYTHING in its path

I was shocked that the gulls and terns could not combine efforts and just mop the gull. IT was only one Glaucous Gull VS HUNDREDS of hermans gulls plus royal & elegant terns
 
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