Nombre en español: Gaviota Andina
Nombre en ingles: Andean Gull
Nombre científico: Chroicocephalus serranus
Familia: Laridae
Foto: Humberto Montes
Canto: Andrew Spencer
La gaviota andina (Chroicocephalus serranus) es una especie de ave Charadriiforme de la familia Laridae.
Características
El macho adulto es blanco, con un parche negro en las sobre los oídos y un borde negro rodeando los ojos y con las puntas de las alas negras. Tiene las patas y el pico de color rojo oscuro. En la época reproductiva la cabeza del macho se torna negra con medias lunas blancas detrás de los ojos.
Historia natural
La gaviota andina es la única gaviota que se encuentra en la sierra.[c
Generalmente se le ve en grupos chicos, usualmente cerca al agua pero vuela sobre páramos y quebradas. Se alimenta de insectos que atrapa en sembríos y praderas, también de insectos que atrapa al vuelo y en basurales.
Habita en lagunas, ríos y bofedales entre los 3000 a 4500 msnm, pero en invierno puede bajar a zonas de 2000 msnm o inclusive al nivel del mar. Anida en colonias dispersas y aisladas, a veces cerca a lagunas pequeñas y alejadas. Su distribución es desde el norte de Ecuador, por toda la sierra peruana, el oeste de Boliviay el norte de Chile hasta el noroeste de la Argentina. La población total se estima en 50 000 parejas.
Andean gull
The Andean gull (Chroicocephalus serranus) is a species of gull in the family Laridae. As is the case with many gulls, it has traditionally been placed in the genus Larus. It is found in the Andes in mountainous regions of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. It is unusual for a gull in that it breeds inland in mountain areas. It may be variously found around rivers, freshwater lakes, saline marshes, and pastureland.
Description
At 45–48 cm (18–19 in) long, it is large for a black-headed gull (it is the largest gull with that kind of plumage in the Americas). It is the largest species in the genus Chroicocephalus and has a dark hood, a pale grey back and a pattern of black and white on its primaries.[
Distribution and habitat
The Andean gull is known from Chile, Peru, Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Colombia where it breeds in mountainous areas, usually at elevations of over 3,000 metres (9,800 ft). In areas with harsh winters it migrates to lower elevations in winter, sometimes as far as the coast. Flocks of these gulls are common on the coast in southern Peru and northern Chile, but It has yet to be established where these particular birds breed. In the wetlands of the Altiplano it is resident and breeds at 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) while in southern Argentina it may breed at as little as 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) but this is in similar habitats to the birds further north. The Andean Gull nests in small scattered colonies, sometimes even as solitary pairs, in small, isolated ponds. Unusually for a gull of this size, it becomes sexually mature at the age of two years rather than three.[
It feeds on a variety of prey items, including insects and worms taken on fields and grasslands; it also sometimes catches aerial insects and eats some garbage when available.
Wikipedia/eBird/xeno-canto
