Gulls & Terns in Virginia
Our list for Virginia has 19 gulls & terns recorded regularly there: 4 residents, 4 summer visitors, 6 winter visitors, 3 passage migrants and 2 scarce visitors
Most likely in October
GBIF · OctShare of all bird records in Virginia in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 19, most common first
Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensisWinter visitorCommon43–54 cmRegularly Jul–May
American Herring GullLarus smithsonianusResidentCommon53–65 cmRecorded all year
Great Black-backed GullLarus marinusResidentUncommon64–79 cmRecorded all year
Forster's TernSterna forsteriResidentUncommon33–36 cmRecorded all year
Bonaparte's GullChroicocephalus philadelphiaWinter visitorUncommon28–38 cmRegularly Oct–May
Common TernSterna hirundoSummer visitorUncommon31–35 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusWinter visitorUncommon52–64 cmRecorded all year
Sandwich TernThalasseus sandvicensisSummer visitorUncommon36–41 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Black TernChlidonias nigerPassage migrantRare22–26 cmRegularly May–Sep
Gull-billed TernGelochelidon niloticaSummer visitorRare33–42 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Iceland GullLarus glaucoidesWinter visitorRare52–60 cmRegularly Dec–Apr
Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreusWinter visitorRare62–68 cmRegularly Dec–Mar
Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundusWinter visitorRare38–44 cmRegularly Dec–Feb
Little GullHydrocoloeus minutusScarceRare25–30 cm
Roseate TernSterna dougalliiSummer visitorRare33–41 cmRegularly May–Jul
KittiwakeRissa tridactylaResidentRare37–41 cmRegularly Nov
Franklin's GullLeucophaeus pipixcanPassage migrantRare32–36 cmRegularly Nov
Sabine's GullXema sabiniPassage migrantRare27–33 cmRegularly Sep
Arctic TernSterna paradisaeaScarceRare33–39 cmRegularly May
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
- Arctic Tern 33–39 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