Skimmers, Noddies, Terns, and Gulls
Swallow-tailed Gull
Creagrus furcatus
- Family
- Skimmers, Noddies, Terns, and Gulls (Laridae)
- Order
- Charadriiformes
Overview
The swallow-tailed gull (Creagrus furcatus) is an equatorial seabird in the gull family, Laridae. It is the only species in the genus Creagrus, which derives from the Latin Creagra and the Greek kreourgos which means butcher, also from kreas, meat; according to Jobling it would mean "hook for meat" referring to the hooked bill of this species. It was first described by French naturalist and surgeon Adolphe-Simon Neboux in 1846. Its scientific name is originally derived from the Greek word for gull, "Glaros" and via Latin Larus, "gull" and furca "two-tined fork".
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Range and habitat
Breeds Galapagos and Malpelo Island (far west of Colombia); winters to Humboldt Current off Ecuador to northern Chile.
Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.
Continents
Countries
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Swallow-tailed gull
- eBird: sightings, maps and photos
- xeno-canto: sound recordings
- Birds of the World: full species account (subscription)
- BirdLife DataZone: status and threats
- IUCN Red List (threat status)
- AviList global checklist (taxonomy)
Last updated September 29, 2026.