The overall distribution of this species can be assessed based
on sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to the
ebird.org
website.
The global distribution of the Black-legged Kittiwake is available
HERE
.
There are two races of the Black-legged Kittiwake, which are
a strongly migratory species of the northern hemisphere.
Nominate race
"tridactyla" is found in the northern Atlantic and the North Sea.
They breed in western and northern Europe and on islands in the
northern Atlantic and the Arctic, such as north-eastern Canada,
Greenland, Iceland and Svalbard.
Race "pollicaris" populates the northern Pacific.
In Europe Black-legged Kittiwakes,n ominate race "tridactyla", are
summer breeding migrants
along the western coastline, mostly of the Bretagne, the British
Isles and western and northern Scandinavia, as far as the Kola
peninsula. There are also a few suitable sites on the western
Iberian peninsula, Germany (Helgoland) and northern Denmark.
They are the most pelagic of the European gull-related species,
spending the winters at sea, in the northern Atlantic and the
North Sea, but they do not enter the Baltic Sea.
Black-legged Kittiwakes breed in large colonies, primarily on
steep sea cliffs, but also on man-made structures, never far
from the coastline. Outside the breeding season they are usually
found at sea, often trailing fishing vessels.