Are capital gains and losses the same as capital gain distributions

From the standpoint of your income tax return, the answer is "Yes", except that short term capital gains distributions are reported as "dividends" instead of "capital gain."  Why?  Ask Congress.

Tom Young

A capital gains distribution is a payment to shareholders that is prompted by a fund manager's liquidation of underlying stocks and securities in a mutual fund, or derived from dividend and interest earned by the fund's holdings minus the fund's operating expenses.