"Karoro" redirects here. For the suburb of Greymouth, see Karoro, New Zealand.
"Mollyhawk" redirects here. Not to be confused with Mollymawk.
The kelp gull (Larus dominicanus), also known as the Dominican gull, is a gull that breeds on coasts and islands through much of the Southern Hemisphere. The nominateL. d. dominicanus is the subspecies found around South America, parts of Australia (where it overlaps with the Pacific gull), and New Zealand (where it is known as the black-backed gull, the southern black-backed gull, mollyhawk[2] – particularly the juveniles,[3] or by its Māori name karoro). L. d. vetula (known as the Cape gull) is a subspecies occurring around Southern Africa.
The kelp gull superficially resembles two gulls from further north in the Atlantic Ocean, the lesser black-backed gull and the great black-backed gull and is intermediate in size between these two species. This species ranges from 54 to 65 cm (21 to 26 in) in total length, from 128 to 142 cm (50 to 56 in) in wingspan and from 540 to 1,390 g (1.19 to 3.06 lb) in weight. Adult males and females weigh on average 1,000 g (2.2 lb) and 900 g (2.0 lb) respectively. Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 37.3 to 44.8 cm (14.7 to 17.6 in), the bill is 4.4 to 5.9 cm (1.7 to 2.3 in) and the tarsus is 5.3 to 7.5 cm (2.1 to 3.0 in).[5][6][7] The adult kelp gull has black upper parts and wings. The head, underparts, tail, and the small "mirrors" at the wing tips are white. The bill is yellow with a red spot, and the legs are greenish-yellow (brighter and yellower when breeding, duller and greener when not breeding). The call is a strident ki-och. Juveniles have dull legs, a black bill, a dark band in the tail, and an overall grey-brown plumage densely edged whitish, but they rapidly get a pale base to the bill and largely white head and underparts. They take three or four years to reach maturity.
Subspeciesedit
There are five subspecies of kelp gull. The African subspecies L. d. vetula is sometimes split as the Cape gull, L. vetula. It has a more angular head and a smaller shorter bill. The adult has a dark eye, whereas the nominate kelp gull usually has a pale eye. Young Cape gulls have almost identical plumage to similarly aged kelp gulls.
The kelp gull is a rare vagrant to the United States, with the first record in 1989 on Chandeleur Islands in Louisiana. They have interbred with American herring gull on these islands, leading to intermediate birds that may backcross to one another. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, breeding populations of the two species and their hybrids were displaced from the island, though putative hybrids have been reported elsewhere and may be the result of other offshore colonies. [8]
Behaviouredit
Kelp gulls are omnivores like most Larus gulls, and they will scavenge as well as seek suitable small prey. They gather on landfills and a sharp increase in population is therefore considered as an indicator for a degraded environment.[9] Kelp gulls have been observed feeding on living right whales since at least 1996.[10] The kelp gull uses its powerful beak to peck down centimetres into the skin and blubber, often leaving the whales with large open sores, some of which have been observed to be half a meter in diameter. This predatory behavior has been documented in Argentinian waters.[11] At rocky sites along the Southern African coast, such as at Boulders Beach in Cape Town, kelp gulls (Larus dominicanus vetula) can be seen picking up shellfish and repeatedly flying up several meters and dropping them onto the rocks below in order to break them open.[12] They have also been reported pecking the eyes out of seal pups on the coast of Namibia before attacking the blind seals in a group.[13]
The nest is a shallow depression on the ground lined with vegetation and feathers. The female usually lays 2 or 3 eggs. Both parents feed the young birds.
The Cape gull differs from other forms of kelp gulls by its darker iris and larger body and bill size. The Southern African population is estimated to include 11,000 breeding pairs, and is expanding.[14]
Referencesedit
^BirdLife International (2018). "Larus dominicanus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T22694329A132542863. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22694329A132542863.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
^"Southern black-backed gull | New Zealand Birds Online".
^"Mollyhawk definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary".
^"Shelly Farr Biswell", "Southern Black-Backed Gulls", New Zealand Geographic, number 73, May–June 2005
^Gulls: Of North America, Europe, and Asia by Klaus Malling Olsen & Hans Larsson. Princeton University Press (2004). ISBN978-0691119977.
^CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (1992), ISBN978-0-8493-4258-5.
^Ayyash, Amar. "Another Presumed Chandeleur Gull in Indiana". Retrieved 2021-08-23.
^Cf. José Felipe M. Pereira, Aves e Pássaros Comuns do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro: Technical Books, ISBN978-85-61368-00-5, pg.55
^Increased harassment of Right Whales (Eubalaena australis) by Kelp Gulls (Larus dominicanus) at Península Valdés, Argentina. Rowntree, V.J., P. MacGuiness, K. Marshall, R. Payne, J. Seger, and M. Sironi, 1998. Marine Mammal Science. 14(1): 99 - 115. doi:10.1111/j.1748-7692.1998.tb00693.x
^Gulls' vicious attacks on whales. BBC News, June 24, 2009.
^Siegfried WR (1977) Mussel dropping behaviour of Kelp Gulls. S Afr J Sci 73:337 - 341
^Bittel, Jason (17 August 2015). . National Geographic. Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
Ian Sinclair, Phil Hockey and Warwick Tarboton, SASOL Birds of Southern Africa (Struik 2002) ISBN1-86872-721-1
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Larus dominicanus.
Wikispecies has information related to Larus dominicanus.
External linksedit
Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
Kelp gull pictures on jostimages.com
Specimens of Larus dominicanus in the collection of Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
January 01, 1970
kelp, gull, karoro, redirects, here, suburb, greymouth, karoro, zealand, mollyhawk, redirects, here, confused, with, mollymawk, kelp, gull, larus, dominicanus, also, known, dominican, gull, gull, that, breeds, coasts, islands, through, much, southern, hemisphe. Karoro redirects here For the suburb of Greymouth see Karoro New Zealand Mollyhawk redirects here Not to be confused with Mollymawk The kelp gull Larus dominicanus also known as the Dominican gull is a gull that breeds on coasts and islands through much of the Southern Hemisphere The nominate L d dominicanus is the subspecies found around South America parts of Australia where it overlaps with the Pacific gull and New Zealand where it is known as the black backed gull the southern black backed gull mollyhawk 2 particularly the juveniles 3 or by its Maori name karoro L d vetula known as the Cape gull is a subspecies occurring around Southern Africa Kelp gull Adult in Livingston Island South Shetland Islands Conservation status Least Concern IUCN 3 1 1 Scientific classification Domain Eukaryota Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Aves Order Charadriiformes Family Laridae Genus Larus Species L dominicanus Binomial name Larus dominicanusLichtenstein MHC 1823 The specific name comes from the Dominican Order of friars who wear black and white habits 4 Contents 1 Description 2 Subspecies 3 Behaviour 4 Gallery 5 Cape gull Larus dominicanus vetula or Larus vetula 6 References 7 External linksDescription editThe kelp gull superficially resembles two gulls from further north in the Atlantic Ocean the lesser black backed gull and the great black backed gull and is intermediate in size between these two species This species ranges from 54 to 65 cm 21 to 26 in in total length from 128 to 142 cm 50 to 56 in in wingspan and from 540 to 1 390 g 1 19 to 3 06 lb in weight Adult males and females weigh on average 1 000 g 2 2 lb and 900 g 2 0 lb respectively Among standard measurements the wing chord is 37 3 to 44 8 cm 14 7 to 17 6 in the bill is 4 4 to 5 9 cm 1 7 to 2 3 in and the tarsus is 5 3 to 7 5 cm 2 1 to 3 0 in 5 6 7 The adult kelp gull has black upper parts and wings The head underparts tail and the small mirrors at the wing tips are white The bill is yellow with a red spot and the legs are greenish yellow brighter and yellower when breeding duller and greener when not breeding The call is a strident ki och Juveniles have dull legs a black bill a dark band in the tail and an overall grey brown plumage densely edged whitish but they rapidly get a pale base to the bill and largely white head and underparts They take three or four years to reach maturity Subspecies editThere are five subspecies of kelp gull The African subspecies L d vetula is sometimes split as the Cape gull L vetula It has a more angular head and a smaller shorter bill The adult has a dark eye whereas the nominate kelp gull usually has a pale eye Young Cape gulls have almost identical plumage to similarly aged kelp gulls L d dominicanus Lichtenstein 1823 South America Falklands South Georgia Australia amp New Zealand L d vetula Bruch 1853 Southern Africa L d judithae Jiguet 2002 subantarctic islands in the Indian Ocean L d melisandae Jiguet 2002 southern amp southwestern Madagascar L d austrinus Fleming 1924 Antarctica amp Antarctic islands The kelp gull is a rare vagrant to the United States with the first record in 1989 on Chandeleur Islands in Louisiana They have interbred with American herring gull on these islands leading to intermediate birds that may backcross to one another After Hurricane Katrina in 2005 breeding populations of the two species and their hybrids were displaced from the island though putative hybrids have been reported elsewhere and may be the result of other offshore colonies 8 Behaviour editKelp gulls are omnivores like most Larus gulls and they will scavenge as well as seek suitable small prey They gather on landfills and a sharp increase in population is therefore considered as an indicator for a degraded environment 9 Kelp gulls have been observed feeding on living right whales since at least 1996 10 The kelp gull uses its powerful beak to peck down centimetres into the skin and blubber often leaving the whales with large open sores some of which have been observed to be half a meter in diameter This predatory behavior has been documented in Argentinian waters 11 At rocky sites along the Southern African coast such as at Boulders Beach in Cape Town kelp gulls Larus dominicanus vetula can be seen picking up shellfish and repeatedly flying up several meters and dropping them onto the rocks below in order to break them open 12 They have also been reported pecking the eyes out of seal pups on the coast of Namibia before attacking the blind seals in a group 13 The nest is a shallow depression on the ground lined with vegetation and feathers The female usually lays 2 or 3 eggs Both parents feed the young birds Gallery editKelp gull nbsp At Concon Chile nbsp Adult and two chicks in New Zealand nbsp Juvenile in New Zealand nbsp Kelp gull in flight nbsp Subspecies L d dominicanus stealing a meal of shellfish from blackish oystercatchers in Bahia Inglesa ChileCape gull Larus dominicanus vetula or Larus vetula editCape gull nbsp Cape gull L d vetula Boulders Beach South Africa nbsp Hout Bay South Africa nbsp Hout Bay South Africa nbsp Cape gulls searching for food in South Africa The Cape gull differs from other forms of kelp gulls by its darker iris and larger body and bill size The Southern African population is estimated to include 11 000 breeding pairs and is expanding 14 References edit BirdLife International 2018 Larus dominicanus IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018 e T22694329A132542863 doi 10 2305 IUCN UK 2018 2 RLTS T22694329A132542863 en Retrieved 12 November 2021 Southern black backed gull New Zealand Birds Online Mollyhawk definition and meaning Collins English Dictionary Shelly Farr Biswell Southern Black Backed Gulls New Zealand Geographic number 73 May June 2005 Gulls Of North America Europe and Asia by Klaus Malling Olsen amp Hans Larsson Princeton University Press 2004 ISBN 978 0691119977 Harrison Peter Seabirds An Identification Guide Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 1991 ISBN 978 0 395 60291 1 CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses by John B Dunning Jr Editor CRC Press 1992 ISBN 978 0 8493 4258 5 Ayyash Amar Another Presumed Chandeleur Gull in Indiana Retrieved 2021 08 23 Cf Jose Felipe M Pereira Aves e Passaros Comuns do Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro Technical Books ISBN 978 85 61368 00 5 pg 55 Increased harassment of Right Whales Eubalaena australis by Kelp Gulls Larus dominicanus at Peninsula Valdes Argentina Rowntree V J P MacGuiness K Marshall R Payne J Seger and M Sironi 1998 Marine Mammal Science 14 1 99 115 doi 10 1111 j 1748 7692 1998 tb00693 x Gulls vicious attacks on whales BBC News June 24 2009 Siegfried WR 1977 Mussel dropping behaviour of Kelp Gulls S Afr J Sci 73 337 341 Bittel Jason 17 August 2015 Seagulls Have a Gruesome New Way of Attacking Baby Seals National Geographic Archived from the original on May 16 2021 Retrieved 4 September 2015 Underhill Les Cooper John Kelp Gull Larus Dominicanus Vetula Cape Gull UCT Animal Demography Unit Retrieved 2020 12 22 Ian Sinclair Phil Hockey and Warwick Tarboton SASOL Birds of Southern Africa Struik 2002 ISBN 1 86872 721 1 nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Larus dominicanus nbsp Wikispecies has information related to Larus dominicanus External links editSpecies text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds Kelp gull pictures on jostimages com Specimens of Larus dominicanus in the collection of Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Kelp gull amp oldid 1226517103, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
