Birds Posters
Kittiwakes
The kittiwakes (genus Rissa) are two closely related seabird species in the gull family Laridae, the Black-legged Kittiwake (R. tridactyla) and the Red-legged Kittiwake (R. brevirostris).
The epithets "Black-legged" and "Red-legged" are used to distinguish the two species in North America, but in Europe, where R. brevirostris is not found,
the Black-legged Kittiwake is often known simply as Kittiwake, or more colloquially in some areas as Tickleass or Tickleace.
The name is derived from its call, a shrill kittee-wa-aaake, kitte-wa-aaake.
In North America, the Black-legged Kittiwake spans both coasts, as far north as the ice-free waters of Alaska in the west and the Great Banks of Newfoundland in the east.
It lives as far south as Baja, California in the west and the tip of Florida in the east.
Outside of America it can be found in nearly every coastal area of the world, given the proper habitat is available.
The Black-legged Kittiwake is a small gull, with a pearl gray back and wings and a stark white head and underside. The tips of the tail feathers are black.
The adult bill is uniformly greenish-yellow. In spite of its name, its legs can be orange or red, although they are most commonly black.
Unlike many gulls, the Black-legged Kittiwake does not feed at dumps. Rather, it feeds on the water surface.
An opportunistic feeder, it feeds on small surface fish and invertebrates. It prefers fish.
The Black-legged Kittiwake is the only gull that dives and swims underwater to capture food.
The name "kittiwake" is derived from the bird's peculiar cry, a shrill kittee-wa-aaake, kitte-wa-aaake.
They are not commonly seen from shore, and generally spend the entire winter on the open ocean.
They occasionally come inshore and even inland as a result of storms at sea. On 20 October 1968 large numbers moved into Halifax Harbour just ahead of hurricane Gladys.
They are the most numerous species of gull in the world and most adapted to nesting on vertical rocky sea-cliffs.
Most young gulls flee from the nest if disturbed, but the young of this species stay put no matter how close a human gets-leaving a nest on
a high ledge could result in a fatal plunge to the rocks below.
Populations of the Red-legged Kittiwake have dropped significantly at its main breeding site in the Pribilof Islands since the 1970s,
probably due to low marine food productivity over an extended period of time.
Recent development of a harbor in the Pribilofs has increased fear of the accidental introduction of the Norway rat, a nest predator, to the islands.
There is concern that commercial fishing might be one of the reasons that food supplies for kittiwakes and other animals has been reduced in the area.