Common Gull - Taxonomy

Taxonomy

There are four subspecies, two of them considered distinct species by some authorities:

• Larus canus canus Linnaeus, 1758 – Common Gull. Europe and western Asia. Small; mantle medium grey (palest subspecies); wingtips with extensive black; iris dark. Wingspan 110–125 cm; mass 290–480 g.
• Larus canus heinei Homeyer, 1853 – Russian Common Gull . Central northern Asia. Medium size; mantle dark grey (darkest subspecies); wingtips with extensive black; iris dark. Mass 315–550 g.
• Larus canus kamtschatschensis (Bonaparte, 1857); syn. L. kamtschatschensis – Kamchatka Gull. Northeastern Asia. Large; mantle medium-dark grey; wingtips with extensive black; iris pale. Mass 394–586 g.
• Larus canus brachyrhynchus Richardson, 1831; syn. L. brachyrhynchus – Mew Gull or Short-billed Gull. Alaska and western Canada. Small; mantle medium-dark grey; wingtips with little black and much white; iris pale. Wingspan 96–102 cm; mass 320–550 g.