Behaviour
Kelp Gulls are omnivores like most Larus gulls, and they will scavenge as well as seeking suitable small prey. It gathers on landfills and a sharp increase in its population is therefore considered as an indicator for a degraded environment. Kelp Gulls have been observed feeding on live right whales since at least 1996. The Kelp Gull uses its powerful beak to peck down centimetres into the skin and blubber, often leaving the whales with large open sores, some of which have been observed to be half a meter in diameter. This predatory behavior has been continually documented in Argentinian waters, and continues today. At rocky sites along the southern African coast, such as at Boulders Beach in Cape Town, Kelp Gulls (Larus dominicanus vetula) can be seen picking up shellfish and repeatedly flying up several meters and dropping them onto the rocks below in order to break them open.
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