Larus hyperboreus
Silhouette: Sharon Wegner-Larsen · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The glaucous gull (Larus hyperboreus) is a large gull, the second-largest gull in the world. The genus name is from Latin larus, which appears to have referred to a gull or other large seabird. The specific name hyperboreus is Latin for "northern" from the Ancient Greek Huperboreoi people from the far north "Glaucous" is from Latin glaucus and denotes the grey colour of the gull. An older English name for this species is burgomaster.
This gull breeds in Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and winters south to shores of the Holarctic. It is migratory, wintering from in the North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans as far south as the British Isles and northernmost states of the United States, also on the Great Lakes. A few birds sometimes reach the southern USA and northern Mexico.
This is a large and powerful gull, second-largest of all gull species and very pale in all plumage, with no black on either the wings or the tail. Adults are pale grey above, with a thick, yellow bill. Juveniles are very pale grey with a pink and black bill. This species is considerably larger, bulkier, and thicker-billed than the similar Iceland gull, and can sometimes... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Svalbard | 🇳🇴 Norway | |
| 2 | Vatnajokull National Park | 🇮🇸 Iceland | |
| 3 | Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Gros Morne National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Redwood National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Great Bear Rainforest | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 7 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 8 | Point Pelee National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montreal | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Moscow | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 3 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 5 | Vancouver | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 7 | Calgary | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 8 | Seoul | 🇰🇷 South Korea | |
| 9 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Tokyo | 🇯🇵 Japan |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Caldwell Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Glaucous Gull sighting in Vatnajokull National Park on a given day, based on 50 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 40th most-seen of the 73 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January and March
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Glaucous Gull in Vatnajokull National Park on a given day, against under 5% in October, the lowest month.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Glaucous Gull sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 8
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Glaucous Gull sightings, Vatnajokull National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Svalbard (Norway, about 90%).
Same genus: Larus
The closest relatives of the Glaucous Gull that you can see in Vatnajokull National Park (genus Larus, Large White-headed Gulls) are Lesser Black-backed Gull (about 40%), European Herring Gull (about 30%) and Great Black-backed Gull (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Glaucous Gull is recorded against all the birds logged in Vatnajokull National Park (50 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.
