Gulls & Terns in Maryland
Our list for Maryland has 18 gulls & terns recorded regularly there: 1 resident, 3 summer visitors, 6 winter visitors and 8 passage migrants
Most likely in October
GBIF · OctShare of all bird records in Maryland in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 18, most common first
Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensisWinter visitorCommon43–54 cmRegularly Jul–May
American Herring GullLarus smithsonianusWinter visitorCommon53–65 cmRecorded all year
Great Black-backed GullLarus marinusResidentCommon64–79 cmRecorded all year
Forster's TernSterna forsteriSummer visitorUncommon33–36 cmRecorded all year
Bonaparte's GullChroicocephalus philadelphiaWinter visitorUncommon28–38 cmRegularly Aug–May
Common TernSterna hirundoSummer visitorUncommon31–35 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusWinter visitorUncommon52–64 cmRecorded all year
Black TernChlidonias nigerPassage migrantUncommon22–26 cmRegularly May–Sep
Sandwich TernThalasseus sandvicensisPassage migrantRare36–41 cmRegularly Jun–Oct
KittiwakeRissa tridactylaPassage migrantRare37–41 cmRegularly Dec–Feb
Iceland GullLarus glaucoidesWinter visitorRare52–60 cmRegularly Nov–Mar
Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundusWinter visitorRare38–44 cmRegularly Dec–Apr
Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreusPassage migrantRare62–68 cmRegularly Jan–Mar
Little GullHydrocoloeus minutusPassage migrantRare25–30 cmRegularly Mar–Apr
Franklin's GullLeucophaeus pipixcanPassage migrantRare32–36 cmRegularly Oct–Nov
Gull-billed TernGelochelidon niloticaSummer visitorRare33–42 cmRegularly May–Aug
Sabine's GullXema sabiniPassage migrantRare27–33 cmRegularly Sep
Roseate TernSterna dougalliiPassage migrantRare33–41 cmRegularly Jun–Aug
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
- 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