The Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) has a white head and yellow bill with a black ring near the tip. In the late 19th century, this bird was hunted for its plumage. Its population has since rebounded and it is probably the most common gull in North America. A gull commonly seen in parking lots, the ring-billed gull breeds mostly inland. Although some live along the coast - salt marshes, coastal bays, beaches, piers - most of these gulls go their entire lives without stepping foot in the ocean, preferring dumps, parking lots, shopping malls, fast food restaurants. Most Ring-billed Gulls come back to breed at the same colony where they were hatched. Once they have bred the first time, they are likely to return to that colony year after year, and also nest within a few meters of their last nesting site.
