Herring Gull- Zilvermeeuw (argentatus & argenteus)

(last update: December 15, 2011 )

Herring Gull - 3cy March

Introduction

This website deals with the Herring Gulls of the taxa argentatus and argenteus. Argenteus is an abundant breeding species on Iceland, Britain, NW France, Belgium, the Netherlands and N Germany. The taxon argentatus breeds in NE Europe, from Denmark, the coast of the Baltic Sea, Scandinavia and coast of the White Sea. In the centre of the breeding range (Denmark and the NW German coast), birds show intermediate characteristics, indicating there is a cline in argenteus-argentatus. Argenteus in Western Europe is pale-backed, slightly smaller and with relatively much black in the wing-tip; argentatus in the NE Europe is larger, slightly darker on upper-parts and show less black in the wing-tip.
Due to the large breeding range, there is much intra-specific variation in argentatus, with most large, powerful birds in the northern populations, showing the most darkest upper-parts, longest wing and most white in the outer-wing. In this region, some populations may hold substantial number of yellow-legged argentatus. (referred to as "Finnmark yellow-legged argentatus"). In adult plumage, the black sub-terminal spot on P5 is often lacking or strongly reduced to a diffuse streak, broken at the centre. Sometimes P6 lacks black as well. 
In the Baltic region, other yellow-legged argentatus populations occur ("Baltic yellow-legged argentatus"), with adults showing even brighter yellow legs in summer and the upper-parts only slightly darker than West European argenteus, still much paler than Yellow-legged Gull (michahellis). Those Baltic argentatus often show a black sub-terminal spot on P5 in adult plumage.
On these web-pages, we largely follow P.J. Grant: "Gulls, a guide to identification" and E.K Barth's publication as Contribution No. 86, Zoological Museum, University of Oslo: "The circumpolar systematics of Larus argentatus and Larus fuscus with special reference to the Norwegian populations".

rings argenteus: U.K.
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Britain. (71370 bytes)Herring Gull 3G3 3cy (argenteus), March 16 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
1cy argenteus in November, ringed in Belgium. (25637 bytes)Herring Gull A7JG 3cy (argenteus), 2011 & March-July 2012, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E). Picture: J-M Sauvage.
rings argenteus: France
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in France. (54539 bytes)Herring Gull DA 228127 3cy (argenteus), March 16 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
rings argenteus: Belgium
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Belgium. (61218 bytes)Herring Gull H-112486 3cy (argenteus), March 16 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Belgium. (68863 bytes)Herring Gull H-113894 3cy (argenteus), March 17 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Belgium. (77228 bytes)Herring Gull H-117748 3cy (argenteus), March 15 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Belgium. (56595 bytes)Herring Gull H-117774 3cy (argenteus), March 16 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Belgium. (66449 bytes)Herring Gull H-117858 3cy (argenteus), March 16 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Belgium. (68654 bytes)Herring Gull H-120600 3cy (argenteus), March 17 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Belgium. (73713 bytes)Herring Gull H-124999 3cy (argenteus), March 29 2004, Westkapelle, the Netherlands (51.33N - 03.25E). Picture Pim Wolf.
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Belgium. (81330 bytes)Herring Gull H-127138 3cy (argenteus), March 29 2004, Westkapelle, the Netherlands (51.33N - 03.25E). Picture Pim Wolf.
rings argenteus: Netherlands
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in the Netherlands. (72801 bytes)Herring Gull 5.352.714 3cy (argenteus), March 17 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in the Netherlands. (80024 bytes)Herring Gull 5.412.501 3cy (argenteus), March 20 2004, IJmuiden, the Netherlands (52.27N 04.33E). 
rings argentatus: Helgoland / Germany
3cy argenteus in March, ringed in Germany. (70068 bytes)Herring Gull 4xxx 3cy (argenteus), March 05 2004, Amsterdam, the Netherlands (52.21N - 04.52E). Picture Ruud Altenburg.
rings argentatus: Russia
1cy argenteus in November, ringed in Belgium. (25637 bytes)Herring Gull KV48 3cy (argentatus), March 2008, Boulogne/Mer, France.
unringed 3cy Herring Gulls
3cy argentatus in January. (80207 bytes)Herring Gull 3CY, March 21 2013, Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
3cy argentatus in January. (80207 bytes)Herring Gull 3CY, March 21 2013, Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
3cy argentatus in January. (80207 bytes)Herring Gull 3CY, March 21 2013, Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
3cy argentatus in January. (80207 bytes)Herring Gull 3CY, March 13 2013, Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
3cy argentatus in January. (80207 bytes)Herring Gull 3CY, March 21 2013, Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
3cy argenteus in January, ringed in the Netherlands. (68274 bytes)Herring Gull 3cy (argenteus), March 09 2010, IJmuiden, the Netherlands (52.27N 04.33E). 
3cy argentatus in March. (62599 bytes)Herring Gull 3cy (argentatus), March 17 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).
3cy argentatus in March. (71102 bytes)Herring Gull 3cy (argentatus), March 17 2003, Boulogne/Mer, France (50.42N,1.34E).