Laughing Gull
Learn to identify the Laughing Gull by ear. Master the "ha-ha-ha-ha-HAH-ha" phrase and tell it apart from similar species.
What the Laughing Gull sounds like
Nasal kow notes trade places with loud, strident bursts that sound uncannily like a laugh.
How to tell it apart
Lessons featuring the Laughing Gull
Ready to test your ear? Practice identifying the Laughing Gull's sounds in these interactive in-app lessons.
Where you'll hear it
Breeds along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America, from Maine to Texas, as well as the Caribbean and northern South America. Winters mainly from the U.S. Southeast southward through the Caribbean to coastal Peru and Brazil.
Sandy beaches, salt-marsh islands, estuaries, mudflats, harbors, coastal landfills, and urban waterfronts.
Colonial nesting begins in late spring. Post-breeding dispersal peaks late summer. Most northern breeders migrate southward in autumn; some remain year-round in the Gulf and southern Atlantic states.
How to recognize it by sight
A medium-sized, coastal gull easily recognized by its raucous, laugh-like calls and, in summer, a crisp black hood. Sleek and agile, it often patrols beaches, marshes, piers, and parking lots in noisy flocks, deftly snatching food from the surf—and from other birds.
Similar species
Franklin’s Gull
Smaller with shorter bill.
Bonaparte’s Gull
Noticeably smaller and daintier.
Black-headed Gull (vagrant)
Slightly smaller, with paler gray mantle.