The red-billed gull (Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae scopulinus), also known as the tarāpung, is a member of the gull family, Laridae. Endemic to New Zealand, it is found throughout the country and on outlying islands including the Chatham Islands and the New Zealand Subantarctic Islands. Formerly considered a separate species, it is now usually treated as a subspecies of the silver gull. It regularly feeds on small fish, shell fish and worms, and sometimes berries, lizards and insects; it scavenges among urban waste in coastal towns. This red-billed gull was photographed in Christchurch.Photograph credit: Michal Klajban
 | This picture of the day has been featured on Portal:Birds. |