Brown-headed gull

Brown-headed gull

Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)^[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Charadriiformes
Family:	Laridae
Genus:	Chroicocephalus
Species:	C. brunnicephalus
Binomial name
*Chroicocephalus brunnicephalus* (Jerdon, 1840, west coast of Indian Peninsula)
Synonyms
Larus brunnicephalus

The brown-headed gull (Chroicocephalus brunnicephalus) is a small gull which breeds in the high plateaus of central Asia from Tajikistan to Ordos in Inner Mongolia. It is migratory, wintering on the coasts and large inland lakes of tropical southern Asia. As is the case with many gulls, was traditionally placed in the genus Larus.

This gull breeds in colonies in large reedbeds or marshes, or on islands in lakes, nesting on the ground. Like most gulls, it is highly gregarious in winter, both when feeding or in evening roosts. It is not a pelagic species, and is rarely seen at sea far from coasts.

This is a bold and opportunist feeder, which will scavenge in towns or take invertebrates in ploughed fields with equal relish.

The brown-headed gull is slightly larger than black-headed gull. The summer adult has a pale brown head, lighter than that of black-headed, a pale grey body, and red bill and legs. The black tips to the primary wing feathers have conspicuous white "mirrors". The underwing is grey with black flight feathers. The brown hood is lost in winter, leaving just dark vertical streaks.

This bird takes two years to reach maturity. First year birds have a black terminal tail band, more dark areas in the wings, and, in summer, a less homogeneous hood.

This is a noisy species, especially at colonies.

Brown-headed gull in flight - Bang Poo, Bangkok
At Pangong Tso
At Pangong Tso
At Pangong Tso
In Western India

References

↑ BirdLife International (2004). Larus brunnicephalus. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 5 May 2006.

Birds of India by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, ISBN 0-691-04910-6
Pons J.M., Hassanin, A., and Crochet P.A.(2005). Phylogenetic relationships within the Laridae (Charadriiformes: Aves) inferred from mitochondrial markers. Molecular phylogenetics and evolution 37(3):686-699

Gulls (family: Laridae)

Genus	Species

Larus	Pacific gull Belcher's gull Olrog's gull Black-tailed gull Heermann's gull Common Gull (or Mew Gull) Ring-billed gull California gull Great black-backed gull Kelp gull (or Cape gull) Glaucous-winged gull Western gull Yellow-footed gull Glaucous gull Iceland gull Kumlien's gull Thayer's gull European herring gull Heuglin's gull American herring gull Yellow-legged gull Caspian gull Vega gull (or East Siberian gull / Mongolian gull) Armenian gull Slaty-backed gull Lesser black-backed gull

Ichthyaetus	White-eyed gull Sooty gull Great black-headed gull (or Pallas's gull) Audouin's gull Mediterranean gull Relict gull

Leucophaeus	Dolphin gull Laughing gull Franklin's gull Lava gull Grey gull

Chroicocephalus	Silver gull Red-billed gull Huahine gull Hartlaub's gull Brown-hooded gull Grey-headed gull (or Grey-hooded gull) Andean gull Black-billed gull Brown-headed gull Black-headed gull Slender-billed gull Bonaparte's gull

Saundersilarus	Saunders's gull

Hydrocoloeus	Little gull

Rhodostethia	Ross's gull

Rissa	Black-legged kittiwake Red-legged kittiwake

Pagophila	Ivory gull

Xema	Sabine's gull

Creagrus	Swallow-tailed gull

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