page_title: List of birds of Iowa
section_title: Gulls, terns, and skimmers
hierarchical_section_title: List of birds of Iowa / Gulls, terns, and skimmers
caption_attribution_description: Larus argentatus; adult Herring Gull Български: Сребриста чайка Brezhoneg: Gouelan gris Čeština: Racek stříbřitý Cymraeg: Gwylan y Penwaig Dansk: Sølvmåge Deutsch: Silbermöwe English: Herring Gull Esperanto: Arĝentmevo Español: Larus argentatus Eesti: Hõbekajakas Suomi: Harmaalokki Français&#160;: Goéland argenté Frysk: Sulvermiuw Hrvatski: Srebrnasti galeb Magyar: Ezüstsirály Italiano: Gabbiano Reale 日本語: セグロカモメ Limburgs: Zèlvermiew Lietuvių: Sidabrinis kiras Nederlands: Zilvermeeuw Norsk nynorsk: Gråmåse Norsk bokmål: Gråmåke Polski: Mewa srebrzysta Português: Gaivota prateada Scots: Whitemaas Slovenščina: Srebrni galeb Svenska: Gråtrut 中文: 银鸥
context_page_description: This list of birds of Iowa includes species documented in the U.S. state of Iowa and accepted by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union. As of July 2020, there are 430 species included in the official list. Of them, 92 are classed as accidental, 25 are classed as casual, eight have been introduced to North America, three are extinct, and one has been extirpated.
  Only birds that are considered to have established, self-sustaining, wild populations in Iowa are included on this list. This means that birds that are considered probable escapees, although they may have been sighted flying free in Iowa, are not included.
  This list is presented in the taxonomic sequence of the Check-list of North and Middle American Birds, 7th edition through the 61st Supplement, published by the American Ornithological Society. Common and scientific names are also those of the Check-list, except that the common names of families are from the Clements taxonomy because the AOS list does not include them.
  The following codes are used to designate some species:
  Accidental - "seen once to several times, but less than 4 of last 10 years" per the IOU
context_section_description: Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Laridae
  Laridae is a family of medium to large seabirds and includes gulls, terns, kittiwakes, and skimmers. They are typically gray or white, often with black markings on the head or wings. They have stout, longish bills and webbed feet. Twenty-eight species have been recorded in Iowa.
  Black-legged kittiwake, Rissa tridactyla
  Ivory gull, Pagophila eburnea (A)
  Sabine's gull, Xema sabini
  Bonaparte's gull, Chroicocephalus philadelphia
  Black-headed gull, Chroicocephalus ridibundus (A)
  Little gull, Hydrocoloeus minutus (C)
  Ross's gull, Rhodostethia rosea (A)
  Laughing gull, Leucophaeus atricilla
  Franklin's gull, Leucophaeus pipixcan
  Black-tailed gull, Larus crassirostris (A)
  Heermann's gull, Larus heermanni (A)
  Mew gull, Larus canus (C)
  Ring-billed gull, Larus delawarensis
  California gull, Larus californicus (C)
  Herring gull, Larus argentatus
  Iceland gull, Larus glaucoides
  Lesser black-backed gull, Larus fuscus
  Slaty-backed gull, Larus schistisagus (A)
  Glaucous-winged gull, Larus glaucescens (A)
  Glaucous gull, Larus hyperboreus
  Great black-backed gull, Larus marinus (C)
  Least tern, Sternula antillarum
  Caspian tern, Hydroprogne caspia
  Black tern, Chlidonias niger
  Common tern, Sterna hirundo
  Arctic tern, Sterna paradisaea (A)
  Forster's tern, Sterna forsteri
  Royal tern, Thalasseus maxima (A)
caption: Herring gull
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