• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

great Black backed Gull attacking and killing ring billed gull (1 Viewer)

steveo

steveo

King Midas in reverse
United States
Today on lunch break at Wollaston beach in Quincy Massachusetts. I observed a great Black backed Gull killing a ring billed gull. It was a bit shocking to see gull on gull predation but then again great black backs are known to be brutes. Out of curiosity has anyone else seen a great Black backed Gull killing an unusual bird or animal.
 
steveo said:
Today on lunch break at Wollaston beach in Quincy Massachusetts. I observed a great Black backed Gull killing a ring billed gull. It was a bit shocking to see gull on gull predation but then again great black backs are known to be brutes. Out of curiosity has anyone else seen a great Black backed Gull killing an unusual bird or animal.
Click to expand...

Fwiw, the Cape May Bird Observatory had a resident GBBG that habitually killed and ate Coots and thus earned the nickname 'Cooter'.
It seems the Coots were often found on a shallow body of water where they could not escape by diving, as they normally would.
Gulls in general are ruthless predators, as some WW2 shipwreck survivors have testified.
 
On Skomer this year I witnessed a LBB attack another LBB. Ruthless sums it up as one gets into a dominant hold on the other and just holds it to exhaustion and death...pretty nasty to watch.
 
Saw a LBB Gull kill (eventually) a Ruddy Duck at Rutland Water several years ago.

Can also recall seeing pics of a Pom Skua killing a Common Gull by standing its back and pecking at the rear of its head (Norfolk or possibly Chasewater?).
 
Reminded me of watching a Corvid heading in off the sea after a long flight only to be mobbed and drowned by a Herring Gull before it made land (literally held in under water)..they don't seem to be shy when it comes to a victim.
 
coots are not unsual prey for a GBB gull they are common prey items for this bird. GBB gulls are the coots biggest predator next to eagles.

Ring billed gull is unsual actually I have never heard of a GBB gull killing an adult ring billed gull. NOT saying that it cant do it. Just never heard it. From what i heard the ring billed gull would be too agile and just get away easy. Adult Kittiwakes are common though. They take them off of nests during nesting season.

Mallards and coots are common prey for GBB gulls.

Western gulls will kill crows during breeding season if they get a hold of one. When a non water bird flys over water some gulls species will take advantage. Like they will toss a heron into the water. Sometimes even raptors.

GBB gull is a serious predator though taking all kinds of birds as common prey. But taking adult larus gulls is strange even for this gull.

Pom skuas kill all non larus gull species and small larus gulls (adults) Great skuas kill ALL gulls including larus gulls.
 
Last edited:
Thirty years ago I saw a LBB gull (again at Rutland Water!) pick a beautiful male smew off the water and simply swallow it. Left about twenty birders with scopes scratching their heads..
Paul
 
It had to have been a GBB gull because a LBB gull and a male smew weigh almost the same there is no way it could swallow it whole.
 
At Carsington Water in Derbyshire UK we have a resident (winter) Yellow legged Gull that kills and eats Little Grebes. It has also killed and eaten Coots and adult Tufted Ducks.
 
Last edited:
Large mixed colony with a bathing pool - one skua chick swimming in the pool, suddenly attacked and drowned by several gulls, one of which then swallowed the chick whole. Several adult skuas around, some dived at the gulls, but outnumbered. No evidence that any of the skuas were the actual parents.
 
I saw some pictures from the dump (never visited it myself), and some quite small gulls were standing basically shoulder to shoulder with much larger gulls, and I wondered if they are not aware they could be swallowed whole. It looked basically the same as if lions, hyenas and jackals were feeding off the same carcass at the same time - it would take the larger bird just a shake of head to grab the smaller one.
 
Warning! This thread is more than 11 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Similar threads

M
Great or lesser black backed gull? Poland
Replies
5
Views
593
misikuru
M
G
  • Article
GreenSand's 2023
Replies
3
Views
429
Stonefaction
Stonefaction
M
Mystery Murder: Who done it? Adult Red Shouldered Hawk preyed upon in nest by . . .
Replies
3
Views
2K
McHeath
McHeath
rollingthunder
Malaga Jan 2023.....
Replies
4
Views
2K
rollingthunder
rollingthunder
wolfbirder
GRAN CANARIA - 2- 6th February 2024
2
Replies
34
Views
2K
Mike Crawley
Mike Crawley

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Back
Top