By Tony Gazso, Interpretive Naturalist

“Hey! That seagull ate my food!” It’s a common occurrence at our parks and beaches in the summer. The seagull, however, doesn’t actually exist. It’s not a figment of your imagination, rather there is simply no such bird known as a “seagull.” The term is actually a catch-all for any seabird, and can be used to describe a gull, a tern, or even an albatross! So if that’s the case, just what are those “seagulls” we see on the shores of Lake Erie anyway? Well, there are actually a number species that call Lake Erie home for at least part of the year. Today, I’m going to introduce you to four of the most common gulls seen along our shore.

Our first two are the smallest ones–the ring-billed and Bonaparte’s gulls. The Bonaparte’s is the smallest of our common gulls and can be identified by its black head. Their backs are light gray, and their feet are red. In flight, they have a distinct white edge to the wings. The ring-billed is one of our most plentiful gulls. They are largely white with a light gray back and sport a yellow bill with a black ring around it, hence their name. Although this feature can be hard to see, or absent entirely from juvenile birds.

Bonaparte's Gull

Next up is probably the quintessential gull–the herring gull. Medium to large in size, the herring has a medium gray back, yellow bill (with a red spot on it) and pink legs. Those legs are the key, strangely enough, to many a gull identification. Many gulls look very similar but have different color legs. The lesser black-backed gull is an occasional visitor to our area, and can look very similar to the herring, but their yellow legs are one good way to tell the two apart.

Ring-billed gull

Finally, we have the great black-backed gull. These gulls are huge–larger than the red-tailed hawk–and have a dark gray to black back. In fact, the great black-backed gull is the largest gull species in the world and has a wingspan of about five feet! They call Lake Erie home for much of the year, but typically are seen in smaller numbers than the herring and ring-billed.

In winter, even more gull species find their way to our waters. Although the variation in these species is easy to overlook, as they all have many of the same habits and eat pretty much anything, so-called "seagulls" offer a true master class in the subtle differences from one species to another. Take a closer look next time you’re near Lake Erie and see if you can spot some of the differences for yourself.

Great black-backed gull