Northern Fulmar
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Fulmarus glacialis
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How to recognize it
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Gull-sized, 45–50 cm
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Compact body, short thick yellow bill
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Light morph: white head and underparts, grey wings and tail; dark morph uniformly grey
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Gliding flight with gently downcurved wings; low hooting call
About the species
Most northern fulmars are grey and white, with a thick yellow bill and bluish legs. Some are dark all over, while others show a paler head and body with grey wings and tail.
They fly with stiff wingbeats and usually move more like a petrel than a gull, but on land they are awkward walkers. Their call is a low, rough honk, and around nesting colonies they also give guttural sounds and sharp croaks when disturbed.
They breed on coastal cliffs in large colonies, and now also on rooftops and buildings. Their diet includes fish, squid, shrimps, plankton, jellyfish, carrion, and even refuse. They stay near breeding colonies in the season, while outside it they range through cold northern seas.
Where to find
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Around port quays and fishing piers — where boats are unloading scraps, Northern Fulmar shows up in smooth gliding loops over the water and a low, throaty honk.
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In harbors and by breakwaters after a blow — especially near weed rafts and fish waste, where it lands on the sea and lifts off again almost at once.
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Along exposed northern coasts — over the grey surf line, noticeable by long wing sweeps with hardly any flapping.
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In ice-free stretches of water near busy ports — often mixed into gull flocks following a working boat and picking food from the surface.
