Fabulous Fliers

FTLComm - Tisdale - May 8, 2001

We all just call them sea gulls and yet we can't help noticing the very large numbers of these birds can show up in a field or cleaning up around a garbage dump. There is no wonder why the flying of a seagull became the subject for a book and movie, the sea gull flies almost effortlessly, once airborne they are able to soar and almost stand in the sky with only a modest wind. There are two common versions of the sea gull seen here in Saskatchewan. The most common is the middle sized bird with dusty gray wings and black tips. This is the California Gull (Larus californicus). They live and breed here and as far North as the MacKenzie valley in the North West Territories and in most Western United States. They spend their winters on the coast from Southern British Columbia to Guatamala. Not nearly as common are the three shown on this page. About half the size of the California Gull the black headed Franklin's Gull (Larus pipixcan) and are distinguished with not only their black head but also by the white band that separates the black wing tips. The little agile Franklin breeds from the Canadian Prairies to Oregon. But these guys are real travellers as they spend their winter from Guatamala to Chile. So if you want to talk to one of these black headed aerial acrobats you might be best to do so in Spanish.