Mediterranean Gull
Larus melanocephalus
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Distribution Britain 7 (+600%) Ireland 0
Numbers breeding: Britain 53 RBBP Ireland 0 European status: 250,000 (0% in Britain and Ireland) British population trend: new and increasing quite rapidly How likely are you to record it? 1 square (0.0%) Ranked 190= |
After rapid expansion from the Black Sea this gull first bred in Hampshire in 1968 and proper pairs and hybrids with Black-headed Gulls were then recorded from more and more sites — reaching 10 in 1990 and up to 53 pairs at 24 sites in 1997. Birds have now been recorded in Black-headed Gull colonies in Scotland and the first successful breeding in Ireland was in Wexford in 1996 , although eggs were laid in Antrim in 1995. Here to stay.
Allen, D. & Tickner, M. 1996 Irish Birds: 5, 435-436.
From
The
State of the Nations Birds
Copyright © 2000 by Chris Mead