Lava gull
Leucophaeus fuliginosus (Gould, 1841)
The lava gull (Leucophaeus fuliginosus) is a species in the family Laridae, order Charadriiformes. Recorded adults weigh about 380 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Vulnerable.
Quick facts about the lava gull
- Weight
- 380 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Diet
- Omnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- coastalsrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- Not recorded
- Lifestyle
- Aerialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Sedentarysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Vulnerable (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the lava gull live?
Not recorded
What is the lava gull?
The lava gull (Leucophaeus fuliginosus), also known as the dusky gull, is a medium-sized gull and a member of the "hooded gull" group. It is most closely related to the Laughing gull and Franklin's gull and is the rarest gull in the world. It is endemic to the Galapagos Islands.
From the Wikipedia article “Lava gull” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lava_gull&oldid=1367609685), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the lava gull endangered?
The lava gull is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List: it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Vulnerable species.
How is the lava gull classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderCharadriiformes
- familyLaridae
- genusLeucophaeus
- SpeciesLeucophaeus fuliginosus (Gould, 1841)
Synonyms Larus fulginosus, Larus fuliginosus
Other names and names in other languages (45)
- نورس الحممArabic
- Тъмна чайкаBulgarian
- Gouelan kazugelBreton
- gavina de lavaCatalan
- racek lávovýCzech
- Gwylan dywyllWelsh
- LavamågeDanish
- LavamöweGerman
- lafa mevoEsperanto
- Nigreca mevoEsperanto
- Gaviota de lavaSpanish
- Gaviota fuliginosaSpanish
- Gaviota negruzcaSpanish
- laavakajakasEstonian
- کاکایی گدازهPersian
- laavalokkiFinnish
- Goéland obscurFrench
- Mouette obscureFrench
- שחף לבהHebrew
- שחף אמריקני לבהHebrew
- mrki galebCroatian
- lávasirályHungarian
- SvartmáfurIcelandic
- Gabbiano della lavaItalian
- Gabbiano fuligginosoItalian
- イワカモメJapanese
- iwakamomeJapanese
- 용암갈매기Korean
- tamsusis kirasLithuanian
- LavameeuwDutch
- LavamåseNorwegian Nynorsk
- lavamåkeNorwegian
- Gabian sornOccitan
- mewa galapagoskaPolish
- gaivota-da-lavaPortuguese
- gaivota-das-galápagosPortuguese
- Тёмная чайкаRussian
- čajka lávováSlovak
- Lavin galebSerbian
- lavatrutSwedish
- Lav MartısıTurkish
- мартин темнийUkrainian
- Mòng biển dung nhamVietnamese
- 岩鷗Chinese
- 岩鸥Chinese
Relatives of the lava gull
Other species in the same genus Leucophaeus.
Laughing gull
Leucophaeus atricilla
Franklin's gull
Leucophaeus pipixcan
Dolphin gull
Leucophaeus scoresbii
Grey gull
Leucophaeus modestus
CompareLava gull vs Laughing gullLava gull vs Franklin's gullLava gull vs Dolphin gullLava gull vs Grey gull
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the lava gull?
An adult lava gull weighs 380 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the lava gull endangered?
The lava gull is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.
What kind of animal is the lava gull?
The lava gull (Leucophaeus fuliginosus) belongs to the family Laridae in the order Charadriiformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Lava gull (Leucophaeus fuliginosus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/lava-gull
“Lava gull (Leucophaeus fuliginosus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/lava-gull.
@misc{lava_gull_2026,
title = {Lava gull (Leucophaeus fuliginosus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/lava-gull},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}