Kittiwake

This article is about the two species of gull. For other uses, see Kittiwake (disambiguation).

Kittiwake
Rissa tridactyla in Vardø, Norway
The call of a kittiwake, recorded on Skomer Island, Pembrokeshire, Wales
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Laridae
Subfamily: Larinae
Genus: Rissa
Stephens, 1826
Type species
Rissa brunnichii[1] = Larus tridactylus
Stephens, 1826
Species
Black-legged kittiwake colony on Big Koniuji, Shumagin Islands

The kittiwakes (genus Rissa) are two closely related seabird species in the gull family Laridae, the black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) and the red-legged kittiwake (Rissa brevirostris). The epithets "black-legged" and "red-legged" are used to distinguish the two species in North America, but in Europe, where Rissa brevirostris is not found, the black-legged kittiwake is often known simply as kittiwake. The name is derived from its call, a shrill 'kittee-wa-aaake, kitte-wa-aaake'.[2] The genus name Rissa is from the Icelandic name Rita for the black-legged kittiwake.[3]

  1. ^ "Laridae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-26.
  2. ^ "Kittiwake". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  3. ^ Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 336. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.