Gulls & Terns in Estonia
Our list for Estonia has 12 gulls & terns recorded regularly there: 3 residents, 7 summer visitors, 1 winter visitor and 1 passage migrant
Most likely in October
GBIF · OctShare of all bird records in Estonia in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 12, most common first
European Herring GullLarus argentatusResidentCommon55–67 cmRecorded all year
Common GullLarus canusResidentCommon40–46 cmRecorded all year
Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundusResidentCommon38–44 cmRecorded all year
Great Black-backed GullLarus marinusWinter visitorCommon64–79 cmRecorded all year
Common TernSterna hirundoSummer visitorCommon31–35 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Arctic TernSterna paradisaeaSummer visitorCommon33–39 cmRegularly Apr–Aug
Sandwich TernThalasseus sandvicensisSummer visitorCommon36–41 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Little GullHydrocoloeus minutusSummer visitorCommon25–30 cmRegularly Apr–Dec
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusSummer visitorUncommon52–64 cmRegularly Apr–Nov
Little TernSternula albifronsSummer visitorUncommon21–25 cmRegularly Apr–Aug
Black TernChlidonias nigerSummer visitorUncommon22–26 cmRegularly May–Aug
KittiwakeRissa tridactylaPassage migrantUncommon37–41 cmRegularly Oct
Smallest to largest
Length, cm- Little Tern 21–25 cm
- Black Tern 22–26 cm
- Little Gull 25–30 cm
- Common Tern 31–35 cm
- Arctic Tern 33–39 cm
- Sandwich Tern 36–41 cm
- Kittiwake 37–41 cm
- Black-headed Gull 38–44 cm
- Common Gull 40–46 cm
- Lesser Black-backed Gull 52–64 cm
- European Herring Gull 55–67 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