The suborder Lari is the part of the order Charadriiformes that includes the gulls, terns, skuas and skimmers; the rest of the order is made up of the Charadrii and Scolopaci. The auks and buttonquails are now placed into the Lari too, following recent research.
The larids are generally larger species that take fish from the sea. Several gulls and skuas will also take food items from beaches, or rob smaller species, and some have become adapted to inland environments.
The suborder Lari includes six families: Family Dromadidae – crab-plover Family Glareolidae – coursers, pratincoles (17 species) Family Laridae – gulls, terns, skimmers (103 species) Family Stercorariidae – skuas (7 species) Family Alcidae – auks (25 species) Family Turnicidae – buttonquails (18 species)
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