Size matters when it comes to identifying this gull, the smallest of those to be seen on the Iberian Peninsula. In its summer plumage it is a small white gull, with a light grey back and a black hood covering its head, and it has a dark red bill and legs, the latter being unusual in gulls. In winter, the back becomes darker chocolate brown, and the hood disappears, leaving some dark feathers behind its eye and on its head. In flight, the underside of its wings is dark to black, with white rear edges.
Species 1
Little Gull
Scientific name
Hydrocolueus minimus
Family 2
Laridae
Taxonomic Affinity Group 3
Gulls and Terns
Phenology 4
It is an eminently wintering bird on the Iberian Peninsula, which is shown in Roquetas de Mar, where it is a rare bird, only appearing in winter in small numbers.
The graph represents the probability of seeing a species during the year, grouped into months. The vertical axis indicates the percentage value. Each of the bars expresses its value. The horizontal axis represents the months: I = January, II = February, III = March, IV = April, V = May, VI = June, VII = July, VIII = August, IX = September, X = October, XI = November and XII = December.
Observation recommendations
Its size is key to its identification, and a challenge for observation is to identify it among the winter flocks. It has been observed at La Gravera on its own.
Observation areas where we can find it
Notes
[1] The names used are from the list of birds of Spain, drawn up by SEO/BirdLife and updated to 2019 (https://seo.org/listaavesdeespana/). The reference is: Rouco, M., Copete, J. L., De Juana, E., Gil-Velasco, M., Lorenzo, J. A., Martín, M., Milá, B., Molina, B. & Santos, D. M. 2019. Checklist of the birds of Spain. 2019 edition. SEO/BirdLife. Madrid.
[2] The taxonomic family to which it belongs is indicated.
[3] Traditionally, waterbirds have been grouped according to their taxonomy or “taxonomic affinity”, i.e., when some birds coincide in certain features that allow them to be classified scientifically, but without leaving the rigour of science, they are put together in these groups so that they can be easily recognised. These groups are the following: Greves (belonging to the Podicipedae family), Herons and Similar (includes the families: Ardeidae -Herons- Ciconiidae -Storks- and Threskiornithidae -Ibises and spoonbills-), Ducks (the whole Anatidae family), Coots and Similar (the family Rallidae corresponding to Rails, Gallinules and Coots), Cranes (also with only one family, the Gruidae), Waders , a heterogeneous group, the most diverse of this classification, includes the families Burhinidae (Stone-curlews), Haematopodidae (Oystercather), Recurvirostridade (Avocets and Stilts), Glareolidae (Pranticole), Charadriidadea (Plovers), Scolapacidae and finally Gulls and Similar (the recently unified family Laridae, i.e. Gulls and Terns).
[4] Phenology studies the relationship between the cycles of living beings and meteorological factors, and in our latitude these factors manifest themselves as variations throughout the year, thus relating the seasons to the birds’ cycles (breeding, migratory journeys, etc.) The graph shows the probability of seeing a bird depending on the month. It uses data from 48 bird censuses carried out between October 2016 and September 2018. The method used is that of a census route with sampling stations, with a total count on the sheet of water.