Gulls & Terns in Delaware
Our list for Delaware has 16 gulls & terns recorded regularly there: 4 residents, 4 summer visitors, 5 winter visitors and 3 passage migrants
Most likely in October
GBIF · OctShare of all bird records in Delaware in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 16, most common first
Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensisWinter visitorCommon43–54 cmRecorded all year
American Herring GullLarus smithsonianusResidentCommon53–65 cmRecorded all year
Great Black-backed GullLarus marinusResidentCommon64–79 cmRecorded all year
Forster's TernSterna forsteriSummer visitorCommon33–36 cmRegularly Mar–Jan
Bonaparte's GullChroicocephalus philadelphiaWinter visitorCommon28–38 cmRegularly Nov–Aug
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusWinter visitorUncommon52–64 cmRecorded all year
Common TernSterna hirundoSummer visitorUncommon31–35 cmRegularly May–Nov
KittiwakeRissa tridactylaPassage migrantUncommon37–41 cmRegularly Dec–Feb
Iceland GullLarus glaucoidesWinter visitorUncommon52–60 cmRegularly Dec–Feb
Black TernChlidonias nigerSummer visitorUncommon22–26 cmRegularly May–Sep
Gull-billed TernGelochelidon niloticaPassage migrantUncommon33–42 cmRegularly Jun–Aug
Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundusWinter visitorRare38–44 cmRegularly Dec–Mar
Sandwich TernThalasseus sandvicensisPassage migrantRare36–41 cmRegularly Jul–Sep
Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreusResidentRare62–68 cmRegularly Dec–Mar
Roseate TernSterna dougalliiSummer visitorRare33–41 cmRegularly May–Jul
Little GullHydrocoloeus minutusResidentRare25–30 cmRegularly Apr–May
Smallest to largest
Length, cm- Black Tern 22–26 cm
- Little Gull 25–30 cm
- Bonaparte's Gull 28–38 cm
- Common Tern 31–35 cm
- Forster's Tern 33–36 cm
- Roseate Tern 33–41 cm
- Gull-billed Tern 33–42 cm
- Sandwich Tern 36–41 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