Heringsmöwe Bremen

The lesser black-backed gull is a slender large gull with a body length of around 49 to 57 centimetres. It looks slightly more delicate than its close relative, the herring gull, and stands out due to its dark grey to slate-grey mantle and wings combined with bright yellow legs. Its breeding range covers the coasts of north-western Europe, from Iceland and the British Isles across Scandinavia to north-western Siberia. Along the German North Sea and Baltic Sea coasts it breeds in colonies that can comprise several thousand pairs.

Lesser black-backed gulls prefer flat, vegetated terrain such as heather or bracken stands for nesting and often share colonies with herring gulls. While they were historically tied almost exclusively to the coast, in recent decades they have increasingly been recorded inland, breeding at inland waters, in moorlands and on rooftops in towns and cities. Outside the breeding season they use a wide range of habitats, including harbours, landfills and farmland. The European breeding population is estimated at several hundred thousand pairs, with a notable share occurring in Germany.

The species can be told from other large gulls primarily by the combination of a dark mantle and yellow legs. The similarly sized herring gull has a pale grey mantle and pinkish legs, while the considerably larger great black-backed gull also shows a very dark mantle but has pink legs. Legally, the lesser black-backed gull is listed as a huntable species under the Federal Hunting Act, but the Federal Hunting Seasons Ordinance places it under year-round closed season. Individual federal states have additionally enacted their own full protection rules. Please always refer to the currently valid state hunting law for the applicable hunting and closed seasons.