Little gull
Hydrocoloeus minutus (Pallas, 1776)
The little gull (Hydrocoloeus minutus) is a bird in the family Laridae and the order Charadriiformes. It is a small bird with an adult body mass of 118 g, with reported values from 98 g to 118.5 g, and a wingspan of 78 cm.
Quick facts about the little gull
The little gull is a carnivorous aquatic predator of coastal habitats and is partially migratory. It lays one clutch of 2.9 eggs per year, incubates the eggs for 22 days, and reaches sexual maturity at 1.7 years.
- Weight
- 98 g – 118.5 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Wingspan
- 78 cmsrc for Wingspan
- Lifespan
- 20.9 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 20.9 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- coastalsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 22 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2.4 – 2.88src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 18 months – 2 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Generalistsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Partialsrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
How big is the little gull?
Photos of the little gull
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the little gull live?
Not recorded
What is the little gull?
The little gull (Hydrocoloeus minutus) is a species of gull belonging to the family Laridae which is mainly found in the Palearctic with some small colonies in North America. It breeds on freshwater lakes and marshes, and spends winters at sea. It is the smallest species of gull in the world, and the only species in the monospecific genus Hydrocoloeus.
From the Wikipedia article “Little gull” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Little_gull&oldid=1354639131), 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 little gull endangered?
The little gull is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- 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 Least Concern species.
How is the little gull classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderCharadriiformes
- familyLaridae
- genusHydrocoloeus
- SpeciesHydrocoloeus minutus (Pallas, 1776)
Synonyms Larus minutus
Other names and names in other languages (84)
- نورس صغيرArabic
- النورس الصغيرArabic
- gaviota nanaAsturian
- Gavilueta NanaAsturian
- Kiçik qağayıAzerbaijani
- Малка чайкаBulgarian
- Gouelanig korrBreton
- Ar gouelanig korrBreton
- gavina menudaCatalan
- Изи колшӹреMari
- Пӗчӗк чарлӑкChuvash
- racek malýCzech
- Gwylan fachWelsh
- gwylan fechanWelsh
- Gwylanod BychainWelsh
- DværgmågeDanish
- ZwergmöweGerman
- ΝανόγλαροςGreek
- pigmea mevoEsperanto
- Gaviota enanaSpanish
- Gaviota MenorSpanish
- Gaviota mínimaSpanish
- väikekajakasEstonian
- Antxeta txikiBasque
- Antxeta txikiaBasque
- کاکایی کوچکPersian
- pikkulokkiFinnish
- DvørgmásiFaroese
- Mouette pygméeFrench
- DwergkobWestern Frisian
- Sléibhín beagIrish
- faoileag bheagScottish Gaelic
- Crann fhaoileagScottish Gaelic
- faoileagan beagaScottish Gaelic
- Gaivota pequenaGalician
- Foillan begManx
- שחף גמדHebrew
- שחף גמדיHebrew
- kis sirályHungarian
- Փոքր ՈրորArmenian
- DvergmáfurIcelandic
- gabbianelloItalian
- ヒメカモメJapanese
- პატარა თოლიაGeorgian
- Кічіг хайлахkjn
- Кіші шағалаKazakh
- 꼬마갈매기Korean
- Gwylan vyghanCornish
- ZwergméiwLuxembourgish
- mažasis kirasLithuanian
- mazais ķīrisLatvian
- мал галебMacedonian
- Gawwija ŻgħiraMaltese
- Хурган цахлай / ᠬᠣᠷᠠᠭᠠᠨ ᠴᠠᠬᠣᠯᠠᠢMongolian
- dwergmeeuwDutch
- dvergmåseNorwegian Nynorsk
- dvergmåkeNorwegian
- mewa małaPolish
- gaivota-pequenaPortuguese
- Muetta pitschnaRomansh
- Pescăruş micRomanian
- pescăruşul micRomanian
- малая чайкаRussian
- Малый рыболовRussian
- UhcabáiskiNorthern Sami
- deaggagáiruNorthern Sami
- DeaggebáiskiNorthern Sami
- čajka maláSlovak
- mali galebSlovenian
- Pulebardha e vogelAlbanian
- pulëbardha e vogëlAlbanian
- mali galeb / Мали галебSerbian
- Мали галебSerbian
- dvärgmåsSwedish
- นกนางนวลเล็กThai
- kucuk martiTurkish
- küçük martıTurkish
- Бичии ак-кускунTuvinian
- Малий мартинUkrainian
- Мартин маленькийUkrainian
- Мартин малийUkrainian
- צװערג־מײװYiddish
- 小鷗Chinese
- 小鸥Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the little gull
Other species in the same family Laridae.
Black-headed gull
Chroicocephalus ridibundus
European herring gull
Larus argentatus
Common gull
Larus canus
Common tern
Sterna hirundo
Lesser black-backed gull
Larus fuscus
Arctic tern
Sterna paradisaea
CompareLittle gull vs Black-headed gullLittle gull vs European herring gullLittle gull vs Common gullLittle gull vs Common tern
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the little gull?
The little gull is a bird in the family Laridae, order Charadriiformes. Its size class is small.
How heavy is the little gull?
An adult Little gull weighs 118 g, with reported values from 98 g to 118.5 g. Its wingspan is 78 cm.
What does the little gull eat?
The little gull is an aquatic predator and a carnivore.
What habitat does the little gull use?
The little gull uses coastal habitats. It is partially migratory.
Is the little gull endangered?
No. The little gull is listed as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.
How long does the little gull live?
The little gull has a lifespan of 20.9 years, with values reported up to 20.9 years.
How many eggs does the little gull lay?
The little gull lays 2.9 eggs per clutch and one clutch per year. Incubation lasts 22 days.
Who named the little gull?
The little gull, Hydrocoloeus minutus, was named by (Pallas, 1776).
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). Little gull (Hydrocoloeus minutus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/little-gull
“Little gull (Hydrocoloeus minutus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/little-gull.
@misc{little_gull_2026,
title = {Little gull (Hydrocoloeus minutus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/little-gull},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}