Grey gull (Larus canus) is, in pattern and plumage color, similar to the yellow-legged gull (Larus michahellis), but it is considerably smaller and has a completely black eye. It is 38 to 44 cm long, and its wingspan is 106 to 125 cm. The head, neck, tail and ventral side of the grey gull are snow-white. The upper side of the wings is ash gray, the wing tips are black and along the edge speckled with a few white spots. The eye of the grey gull is, as mentioned, completely black. Its legs and quite thin bill are greenish-yellow in color. In winter it develops brownish-gray longitudinal streaks on the head and nape, the bill darkens and usually gains a dark ring at the tip.
The grey gull is active during the day. In winter it mostly feeds on earthworms, which is why it is most often observed on plowed fields. In summer its diet is more varied and mainly includes various insects and other aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, for example crayfish and mollusks, to a lesser extent it preys on fish and small mammals, and it also scavenges carrion and organic waste.
Individual pairs or colonies of grey gulls from May onwards nest on rocky cliffs, steep grassy slopes, on sandy or shingle shores and dunes by the sea. For nesting they also like to choose inland areas, where they are found on islets or shingle shores of rivers and lakes, as well as on bogs, swamps or marsh meadowlands. The nest is a shallow hollow on the ground, which they line with vegetation.
The grey gull is a migratory bird, which in winter mostly stays near the sea, but it cannot resist cultivated fields inland either. In Slovenia it can be regularly observed in winter, and nesting has not yet been observed here.
