Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Cladus: Sarcopterygii
Cladus: Rhipidistia
Cladus: Tetrapodomorpha
Cladus: Eotetrapodiformes
Cladus: Elpistostegalia
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Archosauromorpha
Cladus: Crurotarsi
Divisio: Archosauria
Cladus: Avemetatarsalia
Cladus: Ornithodira
Subtaxon: Dinosauromorpha
Cladus: Dinosauriformes
Cladus: Dracohors
Cladus: Dinosauria
Cladus: Saurischia
Cladus: Eusaurischia
Subordo: Theropoda
Cladus: Neotheropoda
Cladus: Averostra
Cladus: Tetanurae
Cladus: Avetheropoda
Cladus: Coelurosauria
Cladus: Tyrannoraptora
Cladus: Maniraptoromorpha
Cladus: Maniraptoriformes
Cladus: Maniraptora
Cladus: Pennaraptora
Cladus: Paraves
Cladus: Eumaniraptora
Cladus: Avialae
Infraclassis: Aves
Cladus: Avebrevicauda
Cladus: Pygostylia
Cladus: Ornithothoraces
Cladus: Ornithuromorpha
Cladus: Carinatae
Parvclassis: Neornithes
Cohors: Neognathae
Cladus: Neoaves
Ordo: Charadriiformes
Subordo: Lari

Familia: Laridae
Subfamilia: Larinae
Genus: Ichthyaetus
Species: Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus
Name

Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus (Temminck, 1825)
Synonyms

Larus leucophthalmus (protonym)

References

Nouveau recueil de planches coloriées d'oiseaux 62: 366.

Vernacular names
مصرى: نورس ابيض العين
العربية: نورس أبيض العين
български: Белоока чайка
brezhoneg: Gouelan lagad gwenn
català: Gavina d'ulls blancs
čeština: Racek bělooký
Cymraeg: Gwylan lygatwen
dansk: Rødehavs-måge
Deutsch: Weißaugenmöwe
English: White-eyed Gull
Esperanto: Blankokula mevo
español: Gaviota ojiblanca
eesti: Valgesilm-kajakas
euskara: Kaio begizuri
فارسی: کاکایی چشم‌سفید
suomi: Valkosilmälokki
français: Goéland à iris blanc
Gaeilge: Faoileán súilbhán
Gàidhlig: Foillan sooill-vane
עברית: שחף לבן עין
hrvatski: Crvenomorski galeb
magyar: Pápaszemes sirály
հայերեն: Սպիտակաչք որոր
íslenska: Sandmáfur
italiano: Gabbiano occhibianchi
日本語: メジロカモメ
lietuvių: Baltaakis kiras
latviešu: Baltacu kaija
Nederlands: Witoogmeeuw
norsk: Rødehavsmåke
polski: Mewa białooka
português: Gaivota-d'olho-branco
русский: Белоглазая чайка
davvisámegiella: Vilgesčalmbáiski
slovenščina: Rdečemorski galeb
svenska: Vitögd mås
Türkçe: Beyaz gözlü martı
українська: Мартин червономорський
Tiếng Việt: Mòng biển mắt trắng

The white-eyed gull (Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus) is a small gull that is endemic to the Red Sea. Its closest relative is the sooty gull. The species is classed as Least Concern by the IUCN; human pressure and oil pollution are deemed the major threats. As is the case with many gulls, it has traditionally been placed in the genus Larus.[2]
Morphology
White-eyed gull at the Red Sea

Adult white-eyed gulls have a black hood in breeding plumage, which extends down onto the upper throat, and on the neck-sides is bordered below by a narrow white bar. The upperparts and inner upperwings are medium-dark grey; the breast is mid-grey but the rest of the underparts are white. The secondaries are black with a white trailing edge, and the primaries are black. The underwing is dark and the tail white. Adults in non-breeding plumage are similar, but the hood is flecked white small white spots.

The white-eyed gull acquires adult plumage at two to three years of age. Juvenile birds have a very different plumage—chocolate brown on the head, neck and breast, and with brown, broadly pale-fringed, feathers to the upperparts and upperwings, and a black tail. In their first winter, birds acquire greyer feathering on their head, breast and upperparts; the second-winter plumage is closer to that of the adult, but lacking the hood.

A distinctive feature of white-eyed gull at all ages is its long slender bill. This is black in younger birds, but in adults it is deep red with a black tip. The legs are yellow—dullest in younger birds, brightest in breeding plumaged adults. The eye itself is not white; the bird takes its name from white eye-crescents, which are present at all ages.
Distribution

The white-eyed gull breeds on inshore islands with rocks and sandy beaches, such as the Siyal Islands, in the Red Sea from July to September. For the rest of the year it occurs throughout the Red Sea, with some birds travelling to Oman and Somalia.
References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus.

Malling Olsen, Klaus and Hans Larsson (2004) Gulls of Europe, Asia and North America
BirdLife International. 2018. Larus leucophthalmus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T22694299A132335382. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22694299A132335382.en. Accessed on 16 April 2023.ISBN 0-7136-7087-8

BirdLife International (2018). "Larus leucophthalmus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T22694299A132335382. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22694299A132335382.en. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
Pons J.M., Hassanin, A., and Crochet P.A.(2005). Phylogenetic relationships within the Laridae (Charadriiformes: Aves) inferred from mitochondrial markers. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 37(3):686–699