Grey-headed gull
| Grey-headed gull | |
|---|---|
| Breeding adult C. c. cirrocephalus, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil | |
| Breeding adult C. c. poiocephalus, Lake Naivasha, Kenya | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Charadriiformes |
| Family: | Laridae |
| Genus: | Chroicocephalus |
| Species: | C. cirrocephalus |
| Binomial name | |
| Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus (Vieillot, 1818) | |
| range resident vagrant | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Larus cirrocephalus | |
The grey-headed gull (Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus), also known as the grey-hooded gull, is a small species of gull which breeds patchily in South America and Africa south of the Sahara. It is not truly migratory, but is dispersive, becoming more widespread in winter. This species has occurred as a rare vagrant to the United States, Italy, and Spain. As is the case with many gulls, it had traditionally been placed in the genus Larus. Recent evidence suggests the South American and African populations may represent two separate cryptic species.