Red-legged Kittiwake Identification

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Red-legged Kittiwake Photos and Videos

Adult

A small, cliff-nesting gull that breeds only in the Bering Sea. Adult has dark gray upperparts, a short yellow bill, and bright red legs.

Adult

At rest, note the short legs, short bill, large eye, rounded head, and long wingtips extending well beyond the short tail.

Adult

A small, short-legged gull. Nests on steep cliffs on a handful of remote islands in the Bering Sea.

Immature

Immature has orange-red legs, a greenish-yellow bill, and a blackish ear spot.

Adult

In flight, note all-black wingtips bordered on the underwing by gray outer primaries.

Adult

Adult has a stubby yellow bill, short red legs, and dark gray upperparts.

Immature

Immature has an all-white tail, unlike other immature gulls, and a large white triangle on the upperwings.

Immature

First-year immature has a black bill, black neck collar, white tail, grayish underwings, and broad white trailing edge to the wing.

Adult

Flies strongly on rapid wingbeats. As these birds land, note the all-black wingtips and gray primaries on the underwings.

Adult (with Black-legged Kittiwakes)

Smaller than Black-legged Kittiwake, with shorter legs, a shorter bill, and darker gray upperparts.

Adult (with Black-legged Kittiwakes)

Breeds in mixed-species colonies with Black-legged Kittiwake and other seabirds.

See more images of this species in Macaulay Library

Compare with Similar Species

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Black-legged KittiwakeAdult

Black-legged KittiwakeImmature

Sabine's Gull

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Identification

Crisp small gull with very limited range; breeds on rocky cliffs on islands in the Bering Sea, from Alaska to Russia; winters on open ocean. Size and plumage most similar to Black-legged Kittiwake, but back is darker gray, yellow bill is shorter, legs are shorter and bright red, and underwing is darker gray. Nonbreeding birds have a dark smudge around eye and a thin gray ear patch. Young birds are similar to nonbreeding adults but with black bill, duller legs, and more contrasting wing pattern.