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Monarch caterpillar

Mass Audubon State of the Birds

Find a Bird

Herring Gull
Larus argentatus

In Massachusetts, the Herring Gull prospered in the days of open landfills and the large-scale dumping of fish waste in the state's harbors; today, its population is stable or actually declining and its breeding range is mostly restricted to the coast.
Conservation Status
Conservation Action Urgent

Tracking This Bird In Massachusetts

Climate Vulnerability Score

Highly Vulnerable
Mass Audubon Mean likelihood of occurrence (current)
0.46
Mass Audubon Mean likelihood of occurrence (2050)
0.39
Mass Audubon Absolute change in likelihood of occurrence
-0.07
U.S. Forest Service Climate Change Bird Atlas (Hadly Hi emissions scenario)a
n/a
National Audubon Societyb
Climate Endangered
a USFS model data for Massachusetts by 2100
b National Audubon Society's Climate Change Atlas was completed on a continental scale.

Breeding Bird Atlas

Atlas I Blocks
41
Atlas II Blocks
61
Percent of state occupied - Atlas I
4
Percent of state occupied - Atlas II
5
Percent change
151

Breeding Bird Survey

Annual trend 1966-2010
-9.2%
P-value
significant, declining
Number of routes
15
Recent trend 2000-2010
-8.9%

Christmas Bird Count

Trend (1963-2008)
0
Significantly different than zero
no
Trend (1963-1979)
6
Significantly different than zero
yes
Trend (1979-2008)
-6
Significantly different than zero
yes

Habitat Usage

Breeding

Coastal, Urban and Suburban

Wintering

Coastal, Rivers, Lakes, and Ponds, Saltmarsh, Urban and Suburban

Climate Suitability Current and 2050