Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of North Carolina
35 gulls, terns and skimmers recorded in North Carolina on the eBird network and profiled in the Birbs encyclopedia — the full list, with photos, sounds and ID notes, plus what's near you now.
35 gulls, terns and skimmers have been recorded in North Carolina on eBird, the global citizen-science database run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and carry a full profile in the Birbs encyclopedia. Every bird below is a member of this group — the family Laridae. Start with the well-known species, browse the complete list, then check which are being reported near you right now.
See birds reported near you → Get rare-bird alerts
Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of North Carolina to know first
American Herring GullLarus smithsonianus
Arctic TernSterna paradisaea
Black SkimmerRynchops niger
Black TernChlidonias niger
Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus
Black-legged KittiwakeRissa tridactyla
Black-tailed GullLarus crassirostris
Bonaparte’s GullChroicocephalus philadelphia
Bridled TernOnychoprion anaethetus
Brown NoddyAnous stolidus
California GullLarus californicus
Caspian TernHydroprogne caspia
Common GullLarus canus
Common TernSterna hirundo
Elegant TernThalasseus elegans
Forster’s TernSterna forsteri
Franklin’s GullLeucophaeus pipixcan
Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreus
The full list — 35 gulls, terns and skimmers of North Carolina in our library
- American Herring Gull
- Arctic Tern
- Black Skimmer
- Black Tern
- Black-headed Gull
- Black-legged Kittiwake
- Black-tailed Gull
- Bonaparte’s Gull
- Bridled Tern
- Brown Noddy
- California Gull
- Caspian Tern
- Common Gull
- Common Tern
- Elegant Tern
- Forster’s Tern
- Franklin’s Gull
- Glaucous Gull
- Great Black-backed Gull
- Gull-billed Tern
- Heermann’s Gull
- Iceland Gull
- Laughing Gull
- Least Tern
- Lesser Black-backed Gull
- Little Gull
- Ring-billed Gull
- Roseate Tern
- Royal Tern
- Sabine’s Gull
- Sandwich Tern
- Short-billed Gull
- Slaty-backed Gull
- Sooty Tern
- White-winged Tern
Keep exploring
- Birds of North Carolina
- Ducks, Geese & Swans of North Carolina (55 species)
- New World Warblers of North Carolina (42 species)
- Sandpipers & Allies of North Carolina (38 species)
- New World Sparrows of North Carolina (28 species)
- Tyrant Flycatchers of North Carolina (22 species)
Gulls, Terns & Skimmers in other regions
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of California (43 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Florida (42 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Texas (42 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of New York (40 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Massachusetts (39 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of New Jersey (39 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Maryland (37 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Virginia (36 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Alaska (35 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Delaware (35 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Hawaii (34 species)
- Gulls, Terns & Skimmers of Illinois (34 species)
Species and counts come from the eBird network; "recorded" means reported by birders to eBird. Family grouping follows the IOC World Bird List. Tap any bird for its full profile.
Frequently asked questions
How many gulls, terns and skimmers are found in North Carolina?
35 gulls, terns and skimmers that we profile appear on North Carolina's eBird-reported checklist. The full A–Z list is on this page; the real total can shift as eBird records are added.
Are all of these gulls, terns and skimmers really found there?
Yes — each one is on North Carolina's eBird checklist (reported by birders to the Cornell Lab's eBird), and each of these gulls, terns and skimmers belongs to the family group named on this page. We don't rank them by abundance, because that varies by season and locale.
Where can I see gulls, terns and skimmers in North Carolina right now?
Use Birds Near You for live, location-based reports, or turn on rare-bird alerts to hear when a notable one shows up close to you.