A large gull found around the Mediterranean and northwestern Africa. Adults have a gray back and yellowish legs.
Adults have a medium-gray back and yellowish legs. Immatures resemble related large gulls and can be difficult to identify.
Researchers tracked 45 adult Yellow-legged Gulls with GPS devices at nine breeding colonies along the Adriatic coast. During the breeding season, most foraging trips were about 20 to 50 km from a colony. Some birds travelled farther, especially to predictable food sources such as landfills.
The gulls used built-up areas, farmland and water bodies frequently, and forests and semi-natural habitats less. Birds from more isolated offshore colonies made longer, more prolonged trips. Neighbouring colonies had largely separate foraging ranges. In core areas, males selected artificial habitats more strongly, while females selected marine habitats. Mean trip duration was 6 to 14 hours by colony, though the longest trip exceeded eight days.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
Across multiple tracking years, some Yellow-legged Gulls reused the same foraging areas while others shifted to new locations. Twenty-four of the 45 birds were tracked for more than one year, allowing the researchers to examine changes in habitat use over time.