Leucophaeus scoresbii
Silhouette: Kai Caspar · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The dolphin gull (Leucophaeus scoresbii), sometimes erroneously called the red-billed gull (a somewhat similar but unrelated species from New Zealand), is a gull native to southern Chile and Argentina, and the Falkland Islands. It is a coastal bird inhabiting rocky, muddy and sandy shores and is often found around seabird colonies. They have greyish feathers, and the feathers on their wings are a darker shade. Dolphin gulls have a varied diet, eating many things ranging from mussels to carrion.
The modern scientific name Leucophaeus scoresbii, together with the obsolete common name Scoresby's gull, commemorates the English explorer William Scoresby (1789–1857). The dolphin gull is found round the coasts of Chile, Argentina and the Falkland Islands. It is a vagrant to South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. It is found on rocky coasts and in the vicinity of other colonies of seabirds, slaughterhouses, sewage outflows and farmyards.
The dolphin gull is a scavenger and opportunistic predator. It feeds on carrion, offal, bird eggs, nestlings, marine invertebrates and other natural food. When humans disturb nesting seabirds, it takes advantage of... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Península Valdés | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 2 | Tierra del Fuego National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Dolphin Gull sighting in Tierra del Fuego National Park on a given day, based on 237 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 34th most-seen of the 78 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April, July, September and November
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Dolphin Gull in Tierra del Fuego National Park on a given day, against about 10% in January–February and May, the lowest months. June has too few records to rate.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Dolphin Gull sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Dolphin Gull sightings, Tierra del Fuego National Park ranks 2nd at about 20%. The best odds are in Península Valdés (Argentina, about 40%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Dolphin Gull is recorded against all the birds logged in Tierra del Fuego National Park (237 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
