American Herring Gull - Ross Feldner

If you seen a large gull at the beach, in a parking lot, or even at a land fill, chances are it’s an American Herring Gull. This is the most familiar “seagull” in the United States and its range covers all of North America.

American Herring Gulls are not picky eaters and will dine on fish, invertebrates and scraps they find in parking lots, picnic grounds and garbage dumps. They will steal food from other birds and humans. So, if you’re at the beach you may have to guard your lunch from these opportunist gulls. They also feed on clams and mussels by dropping them from a height on hard surfaces such as roads or rocks to break their shells. It is considered a learned behavior.

This gull was first described as a new species in 1862 by Elliott Coues based on a series of specimens from the Smithsonian Institution. The species name smithsonianus commemorates English chemist James Smithson whose initial bequest enabled the founding of the Smithsonian Institution.

The species became quite rare during the 19th century when it was hunted for its eggs and feathers. From the 1930s to the 1960s, it increased rapidly due to protection from hunting, increased waste from fisheries to feed on, and less competition for small fish and invertebrates as humans reduced the populations of large fish, whales, and seals. It was one of many birds impacted by DDT usage, and was the target of the study that first linked DDT to eggshell thinning.