Ross's Gull illustration
Birdsong field guide

Ross's Gull

Rhodostethia rosea

A small, ethereal gull of the High Arctic, renowned for the delicate pink bloom on its plumage and its distinctive wedge-shaped tail.

What it sounds like

High-pitched, melodic 'kwa-kwa-kwa' or 'pe-weet' notes, sounding more delicate and tern-like than typical gulls.

Reference call, compare with what you heard
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Rec. Ukolov Ilya · Russian FederationCC BY-NC-SAXeno-canto

Field notes

  • Breeding adults develop a soft pink flush on the breast and belly, derived from carotenoid pigments in their crustacean-rich diet.
  • It features a narrow, black ring around the neck during the breeding season which disappears during the winter months.
  • Unlike the square or rounded tails of most gulls, this species possesses a distinctively pointed, wedge-shaped tail.
  • The bird was named after British explorer Sir James Clark Ross, who collected the first specimen in 1823 during an Arctic expedition.
  • While most gulls migrate south, many Ross's Gulls migrate further north into the Arctic Ocean to winter at the edge of the pack ice.
Habitat
Marshy tundra and river deltas for breeding; pelagic zones and the edges of pack ice during winter.
Range
Circumpolar Arctic, with primary breeding grounds in Northeastern Siberia and smaller colonies in Canada and Greenland.
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