World’s smallest gull spotted in Gurugram, third known sighting in NCR

The species was spotted by Akshit Dua, when a group of birders set out to try and locate a slender-billed gull in the Chandu-Budhera area

Birders on Friday made a rare, exciting sighting in Gurugram, spotting a little gull (Hydrocoloeus minutus) near Chandu-Budhera, with experts stating that this is possibly only the third recorded sighting of the bird in the National Capital Region (NCR).

The little gull (right) near Chandu Budhera. It was last spotted in NCR in 2014, and before that in 1992. (Photo: Rohit Sharma)

The little gull — the world’s smallest gull species – is a shore bird that tends to migrate along the coasts of the Mediterranean, Black and Caspian seas. Birders said its foray into India, that too as deep inland as NCR, is a rarity.

The species was spotted by Akshit Dua, when a group of birders set out to try and locate a slender-billed gull in the Chandu-Budhera area.

“We were birding along the Sahibi floodplains near Chandu-Budhera. This was along the Mankrola road, when a little gull was spotted among the gull species there. The last known sighting of a little gull in NCR was in 2014, at the Okhla bird sanctuary. Prior to that, it was spotted in 1992, so this could possibly be the third such sighting in the region,” Dua said.

Birder Jaswinder Waraich, who was part of the group, said the bird was spotted around 9 am, and stood out due to its tiny size.

“We had come looking for a slender-billed gull, when Akshit spotted this gull. It stood out, simply because of its size. The fact that it was so tiny, our first thought was it could only be a little gull and after clicking pictures and verifying it with other birders, this appears to be the same species, he said.

A little gull generally measures between 25 and 30 cm and weighs between 90 and 160 grams. Its wingspan is around 70 to 80 cm. In the summer, an adult little gull has a full black hood that covers its head, crown and throat. However, in the winter months, the adult loses this black hood, leaving it with a dark grey crown.

The bird’s upper wing is grey, its underwing is slightly darker, and it has a blackish rear half.

Birder Nikhil Devasar said the last two sightings of a little gull in NCR were both at Okhla. “For the bird to be spotted in India too is rare. It could possibly be the sixth or so sighting across the country. The bird migrates along the Mediterranean and Caspian seas, so seeing it so far from there makes this bird a vagrant,” he said.

“It is an extremely rare sighting not just for NCR, but for India too as the bird does not come to this part of the world generally,” Waraich said.