Western Gulls are sleek, dark-backed masters of the air. They can be found year-round from British Columbia down to Baja California, where my daughter-in-law took these photos. They are the most common large gull on almost every pier and beach in California. We don't see them here in the Midwest.
While they primarily eat fish and drop hard-shelled prey like clams or sea urchins from high altitudes onto rocks to break them open.
Western Gulls are professional food thieves. They are highly intelligent and have adapted to see humans as a reliable food source.
They don't just wait for scraps; they often plan their "heists."They usually attack from behind or the side to stay out of your line of sight. They are more likely to target an item if they see a person actively handling or eating it, as it signals the item is high-quality food.
Sometimes they work in pairs—one gull will distract you or land nearby while another swoops in from the opposite direction to snatch the food
These Juvenile Western Gulls are brown, mottled "teenagers" hanging out on the beach in Baja.
photos from my family albums
