Gulls & Terns in Latvia
Our list for Latvia has 12 gulls & terns recorded regularly there: 3 residents, 6 summer visitors, 1 winter visitor and 2 passage migrants
Most likely in October
GBIF · OctShare of all bird records in Latvia 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
Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundusResidentCommon38–44 cmRecorded all year
Common GullLarus canusResidentCommon40–46 cmRecorded all year
Common TernSterna hirundoSummer visitorCommon31–35 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Great Black-backed GullLarus marinusWinter visitorCommon64–79 cmRegularly Jul–May
Sandwich TernThalasseus sandvicensisSummer visitorUncommon36–41 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Little GullHydrocoloeus minutusSummer visitorUncommon25–30 cmRegularly Oct–Jul
Black TernChlidonias nigerSummer visitorUncommon22–26 cmRegularly May–Aug
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusSummer visitorUncommon52–64 cmRegularly Mar–Nov
Arctic TernSterna paradisaeaSummer visitorUncommon33–39 cmRegularly May–Aug
Little TernSternula albifronsPassage migrantUncommon21–25 cmRegularly May–Aug
White-winged TernChlidonias leucopterusPassage migrantUncommon20–27 cmRegularly May–Jun
Smallest to largest
Length, cm- Little Tern 21–25 cm
- White-winged Tern 20–27 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
- 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