
Photo: Christoph Moning · CC BY 4.0
Chroicocephalus genei
Habitat
Coastal lagoons and lakes
Range
Breeds around the Mediterranean and north-western Indian Ocean; winters as far south as North Africa and India
Size
37-40cm
Wingspan
90-102cm
The slender-billed gull is a mid-sized gull, 37 to 40 cm long with a wingspan of 90 to 102 cm, slightly larger than the black-headed gull but with no black hood in summer. It has a pale grey body, white head and breast, black tips to the primaries, a long tapering head and dark red bill, dark red legs and a yellow iris. In summer the breast has a faint pink tinge (Wikipedia, general species account).
It breeds very locally on islands and coastal lagoons and lakes around the Mediterranean and the north of the western Indian Ocean, for example in Pakistan. Most birds are somewhat migratory, wintering as far south as North Africa and India. It takes two years to mature.