Franklin’s Gull

LC - Least Concern

N4B - Apparently Secure Breeding

S3B - Vulnerable Breeding

Special Concern

Species in Greatest Conservation Need

During breeding season the head is black with a broken white eye ring. In nonbreeding season the head is white with a dark gray patch that extends around the eyes and the back of the head. The back of the neck is white. The bill and legs are orangish-red.

The back and uppersides of the wings (mantle) is dark gray. The underparts are white. The primary wing feathers have a white band and limited black tips which appear as a black crescent on white wingtips when in flight. When at rest the wingtips appear black with large white spots. The underside of the wing white and unmarked except for the limited black wingtips and white band.

13″ to 15″in length

36″ wingspan

Bonaparte’s Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia) wing upperside has a conspicuous white wedge near the tip, visible when in flight. The bill is black

Laughing Gull (Larus atricilla) is larger. The legs are black. Non-breeding adults lack the dark gray patch around the eyes and head.

Breeding: Large prairie marshes with areas of open water

Migration: Agricultural fields, pastures, landfills, marshes, shores of rivers and lakes

Late March to mid-May and late July to late November

Grasshoppers, dragonflies, earthworms; mice; small fish; crustaceans; and sometimes seeds.

Common and at times abundant migrant in the western and central counties, rare to uncommon or irregular migrant elsewhere.

The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map

This species was formerly placed in the genus Larus. Mitochondrial DNA analysis of all gull (family Laridae) species in 2005 (Pons J.M.; Hassanin, A.; Crochet P.A. [2005]) supported rearranging the Laridae into ten species. Franklin’s Gull and four other gulls were placed in the “hooded” species genus Leucophaeus.

Several hundred of these were in our bay this afternoon. They are not the typical Gull we see on the lake, so possibly migrating through?

Location: Gull Lake, Lake Shore, MN

Several hundred of these were in our bay this afternoon. They are not the typical Gull we see on the lake, so possibly migrating through?

According to The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map, Franklin’s Gull is rare or absent in Cass County except in the fall, when they are uncommon. According to Birds of Minnesota and Wisconsin (Jannssen et al., 2003), it is a common migrant through most of the state from late March to mid-May.

Location: Gull Lake, Lake Shore, MN

I've been on Gull Lake for nearly 60 yrs.  Gulls are common, so don't pay too much attention to them.  I was out in our pontoon this past weekend. I pointed out a gull with a black head to my husband because I dont recall seeing one before.  It was floating around near us before taking off.  Happen to see the name on your web site.  It's also my son's name.  Do you always visit state parks?  Would you visit Fritz Loven Park? Or do they have to be larger?

I sometimes visit city and county parks when they are recommended to me...

If this is one of your favorite parks, consider uploading some photos of the park (signs, facilities, lakes, trails, scenery, etc.), and I will create a page for it on MinnesotaSeasons.com.