Ring-billed Gull

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Ring-billed Gull in the UK

The Ring-billed Gull is a scarce visitor from North America, in Category A of the British List. The first was found among Common Gulls at Blackpill, Swansea, on 14 March 1973. Records then rose so fast that it was dropped from the national rarities list after 1987, by which time there were nearly 600. It has declined since. New birds averaged 77 a year in the 1990s, 54 in the 2000s and 17 a year from 2010 to 2017. A fall in the North American breeding population is the likely cause. Individuals often return to the same site for many winters.

Where and when to see a Ring-billed Gull

Wales, south-west England, the south coast and north-west England get most, with far fewer on the east coast. Look from November to April, with a peak in late winter and early spring when birds are on the move. Check flocks of Common and Black-headed Gulls on beaches, estuaries, park lakes, playing fields and reservoir roosts. Some have become local fixtures: one known as "Rossi" wintered at Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, for 12 years running. Birds coming to bread at close range are the easiest to confirm.

Habitat, diet and field notes

Habitat: Reservoirs, coast (scarce visitor).
Diet: Scavenger.
Field note: Like a large Common Gull; bill ring.

How to identify a Ring-billed Gull

Slightly larger and bulkier than a Common Gull, with a flatter crown and a thicker, blunter bill. Adults have a pale grey back, close to Black-headed Gull in tone and clearly paler than Common Gull. The bill is yellow with a sharp black band near the tip, the eye is pale yellow (dark in Common Gull), and the legs are yellow. The white crescent at the rear of the folded wing is thin and the white spots in the black wingtip are small. First-winters have a pink bill with a black tip and a pale grey back with dark spotting.

Call and song

Similar to a Common Gull's mewing but a little lower and more nasal. It is seldom the way one is found. In Britain, identify it on plumage, bill and eye colour. Heard something you cannot place? Bird Hear identifies UK birds from a 10 second recording, free in your browser.

Confusion species

• Common Gull: Common Gull has a darker grey back, a thinner bill with at most a faint smudgy band in winter, a dark eye and a broad white tertial crescent.
• European Herring Gull: Herring Gull is far larger with pink legs and a heavy bill with a red spot; a young one with a dark bill band is much bulkier.

Related guide British seabirds.

Conservation status and Birdedex points

In the Birdedex the Ring-billed Gull is a Rare tier bird, worth +8 points when you log one. It is not on the Red or Amber lists in Birds of Conservation Concern 5.

Recent UK sightings

Similar birds

• Yellow-legged GullRare · South coast
• Common GullCommon · Reservoirs
• Caspian GullRare · Reservoirs
• Iceland Gull (kumlieni)Rare · Coast (winter)
• European Herring GullCommon · Coast
• Great Black-backed GullUncommon · Coast

Ring-billed Gull: quick answers

Has a Ring-billed Gull been seen in the UK?

Yes, well over a thousand times since the first in Swansea in 1973. It went from unknown to annual within a decade, partly because birders learned what to look for. It is seen in every month but mostly in winter.

Is the Ring-billed Gull rare in the UK?

It is scarce and getting scarcer. Annual totals of new birds have dropped to a fraction of the 1990s figures, and several long-staying birds have not been replaced as they died. Most now go to county records committees for confirmation, not the national one.

What does a Ring-billed Gull eat?

Almost anything. It takes worms from wet grass, small fish, insects, scraps and bread, and feeds alongside other small gulls. Birds in Britain often learn to come to people feeding ducks, which is why park lakes and seafronts produce so many.

Kit that helps

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