Utah State Bird

Utah designated the California Gull in 1955 because of its famous tie to Utah pioneer history and the way its story is anchored to the wetlands around the Great Salt Lake. It was a practical symbolic choice: familiar to residents, visible across much of the state, and easy to connect with local schools, gardens, farms, parks, or conservation culture.

A medium-large gull with pale gray upperparts, black wingtips, and a yellow bill marked near the tip, the California Gull looks clean and angular in flight. In Utah, it looks especially at home across Great Salt Lake wetlands, open water, and broad inland basins.

It feeds opportunistically on insects, fish, and shoreline scraps, and often gathers in noisy groups over wetlands, reservoirs, and open water. It uses large lakes, marshes, reservoirs, and inland wetland complexes well, which helps explain why the bird feels familiar well beyond protected areas.

In Utah, start with Antelope Island State Park, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, and Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area. Look over open water and mudflats for active flocks commuting between loafing bars and feeding areas. Migration periods and productive wetland mornings usually produce the highest numbers and the best flight views. These kinds of places match the bird's preferred mix of large lakes, marshes, reservoirs, and inland wetland complexes.

The California Gull is currently listed as LC. California Gulls remain widespread, but colony success shifts with water levels, wetland productivity, and how well nesting islands stay protected from disturbance.