General Description: Laughing Gulls (Leucophaeus atricilla) are small gulls of the Gulf and Eastern US coasts with a black hood. They are gray above and white below, and the wingtips are black with white spots that most easily show at rest.

During summer, adult birds have a black hood, broken white eyering, red bill, and red legs. The mouth lining is also red. During winter, the adult hood becomes mottled gray, the bill is blackish, and the legs are blackish. Young birds are browner and less strikingly patterned.

Gull species take 2-4 years to mature. The plumage during the juvenile and subadult years differs from the adult breeding plumage, and the plumage also differs between summer and winter. Thus, there can be 7 or so different plumages for each species of gull, making identification difficult. Laughing Gulls take 3 years to mature.

Taxonomy: Charadriiformes, Laridae, Larinae.

Favored Habitat: Coastal areas and parking lots with human handouts.

Where to Find: Don't look for Laughing Gulls around Las Vegas. Rather, look for them on trips to the Gulf and U.S. East coasts. Florida (e.g., Ding Darling NWR, the City of Dunedin, Everglades National Park, Miami area) is a good place to find them during winter. Overseas, look for them in South and Central America, and in the Caribbean.

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