Gulls & Terns in Idaho
Our list for Idaho has 11 gulls & terns recorded regularly there: 1 resident, 3 summer visitors, 4 winter visitors and 3 passage migrants
Most likely in October
GBIF · OctShare of all bird records in Idaho in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 11, most common first
Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensisResidentCommon43–54 cmRecorded all year
Franklin's GullLeucophaeus pipixcanSummer visitorUncommon32–36 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
American Herring GullLarus smithsonianusWinter visitorUncommon53–65 cmRegularly Aug–Apr
Bonaparte's GullChroicocephalus philadelphiaPassage migrantUncommon28–38 cmRegularly Apr–Dec
Forster's TernSterna forsteriSummer visitorUncommon33–36 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Common TernSterna hirundoPassage migrantUncommon31–35 cmRegularly Aug–Oct
Sabine's GullXema sabiniPassage migrantUncommon27–33 cmRegularly Sep–Oct
Black TernChlidonias nigerSummer visitorUncommon22–26 cmRegularly May–Sep
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusWinter visitorRare52–64 cmRegularly Sep–Apr
Iceland GullLarus glaucoidesWinter visitorRare52–60 cmRegularly Oct–Mar
Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreusWinter visitorRare62–68 cmRegularly Nov–Mar
Smallest to largest
Length, cm- Black Tern 22–26 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
- 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
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