Gulls & Terns in Ontario
Our list for Ontario has 16 gulls & terns recorded regularly there: 2 residents, 6 summer visitors, 6 winter visitors and 2 passage migrants
Most likely in October
GBIF · OctShare of all bird records in Ontario in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 16, most common first
Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensisResidentCommon43–54 cmRecorded all year
American Herring GullLarus smithsonianusWinter visitorCommon53–65 cmRecorded all year
Great Black-backed GullLarus marinusWinter visitorCommon64–79 cmRegularly Aug–May
Bonaparte's GullChroicocephalus philadelphiaSummer visitorCommon28–38 cmRegularly Mar–Jan
Common TernSterna hirundoSummer visitorUncommon31–35 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Iceland GullLarus glaucoidesWinter visitorUncommon52–60 cmRegularly Nov–Apr
Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreusWinter visitorUncommon62–68 cmRegularly Nov–Apr
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusWinter visitorUncommon52–64 cmRecorded all year
Black TernChlidonias nigerSummer visitorUncommon22–26 cmRegularly May–Sep
Forster's TernSterna forsteriSummer visitorUncommon33–36 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Little GullHydrocoloeus minutusResidentRare25–30 cmRecorded all year
Sabine's GullXema sabiniPassage migrantRare27–33 cmRegularly Sep–Oct
KittiwakeRissa tridactylaWinter visitorRare37–41 cmRegularly Sep–May
Franklin's GullLeucophaeus pipixcanSummer visitorRare32–36 cmRegularly May–Oct
Arctic TernSterna paradisaeaSummer visitorRare33–39 cmRegularly May–Oct
Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundusPassage migrantRare38–44 cmRegularly May
Smallest to largest
Length, cm- Black Tern 22–26 cm
- Little Gull 25–30 cm
- Sabine's Gull 27–33 cm
- Bonaparte's Gull 28–38 cm
- Common Tern 31–35 cm
- Franklin's Gull 32–36 cm
- Forster's Tern 33–36 cm
- Arctic Tern 33–39 cm
- Kittiwake 37–41 cm
- Black-headed Gull 38–44 cm
- Ring-billed Gull 43–54 cm
- Iceland Gull 52–60 cm
- Lesser Black-backed Gull 52–64 cm
- American Herring Gull 53–65 cm
- Glaucous Gull 62–68 cm
- Great Black-backed Gull 64–79 cm
Body length, bill to tail. Rare birds in grey.
Data: EOD – eBird Observation Dataset (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), accessed via GBIF.org, CC BY 4.0. Records from 2019–2024, aggregated and filtered by Birdfact. How these lists are made