Great Black-backed Gull

Overview
Great Black-backed Gull: World's largest gull. White head, black upperparts, white underparts, large yellow bill with red spot on lower mandible, pale-eyed with red orbital ring, pink legs, feet. Flight is direct and powerful with deep, slow wing beats. Soars on thermals or updrafts.

Range and Habitat
Great Black-backed Gull: Northeast North America (and northwestern Europe). Atlantic Coast (expanding southward), Maritimes, Saint Lawrence River and Great Lakes except Lake Superior.

INTERESTING FACTS
The Great Black-backed Gull was originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th century work, Systema Naturae, and it still bears its original name of Larus marinus. In winter, large numbers eat fish driven to the surface by humpback whales. They can swallow a puffin or a small wild duck whole. It's feathers were used for fashionable clothing in the 1800s. After the demise of the feather trade in the early 1900s, their population increased. A group of gulls has many collective nouns, including a "flotilla", "gullery", "screech", "scavenging", and "squabble" of gulls.