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Large Gull - Ethiopia (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Mark Harper
- Start date
lostinjapan
Well-known member
Hey Mark
The head shape and long drooping bill shape look good for Heuglin's , and it seems to lack the strong head streaking of winter 'graeseli' Lesser-Black backed.
I assume this is a 2nd summer moulting into 3rd winter or early 3rd winter.
Here are some links with some info on ID of Heuglin's, Lesser-black Backed, Baltic (LBB )and Caspian Gulls.
http://www.gull-research.org/heuglini-id/
http://www.gull-research.org/papers/01gibbins.pdf
http://www.gull-research.org/papers/01gibbins.pdf
http://www.geocities.com/birdsnap/barabensis_adult.htm
Sure someone will be along with more info and a better attempt at ID soon.
CheersB
Sean
The head shape and long drooping bill shape look good for Heuglin's , and it seems to lack the strong head streaking of winter 'graeseli' Lesser-Black backed.
I assume this is a 2nd summer moulting into 3rd winter or early 3rd winter.
Here are some links with some info on ID of Heuglin's, Lesser-black Backed, Baltic (LBB )and Caspian Gulls.
http://www.gull-research.org/heuglini-id/
http://www.gull-research.org/papers/01gibbins.pdf
http://www.gull-research.org/papers/01gibbins.pdf
http://www.geocities.com/birdsnap/barabensis_adult.htm
Sure someone will be along with more info and a better attempt at ID soon.
CheersB
Sean
JANJ
Well-known member
Hi Mark & Sean.
Location would play an important role for this gull. Of the two candidates possible here - Baltic and Siberian - Baltic is the best candidate due to location - Siberian is scarcer in East Africa.
The gull is most probably a 2cy - 2nd generation primaries - we can´t see if all the primaries are moulted to 2nd generation - uniformly blackish (3rd generation feathers on upperparts and coverts - mixed with second generation brownish featers) The identification of Baltic and Siberian is complicated since they have a different moult strategy than do graellsii/intermedius (so we can safely exclude these on advanced moult and location - and see the first link in Sean,s thread - where a good explanation can be found!).
My vote is Baltic Gull (fuscus) but is worthy to take a look at the sites mentioned!
JanJ
Location would play an important role for this gull. Of the two candidates possible here - Baltic and Siberian - Baltic is the best candidate due to location - Siberian is scarcer in East Africa.
The gull is most probably a 2cy - 2nd generation primaries - we can´t see if all the primaries are moulted to 2nd generation - uniformly blackish (3rd generation feathers on upperparts and coverts - mixed with second generation brownish featers) The identification of Baltic and Siberian is complicated since they have a different moult strategy than do graellsii/intermedius (so we can safely exclude these on advanced moult and location - and see the first link in Sean,s thread - where a good explanation can be found!).
My vote is Baltic Gull (fuscus) but is worthy to take a look at the sites mentioned!
JanJ
Mark Harper
World Birder
Thanks both of you I will give the links a read.
I'm very interested in gull ID and often I try to ID photos like this one.
I find this bird very good for fuscus/heuglini complex for reasons of moult and location already explained by others, but if I should decide between the two I'd rather say heuglini.
My experience is limitated to fuscus here in Italy, and it always looked quite different from this bird, with shorter legs, shorter bill, more compact head, darker mantle (same-aged, II cy, birds too), less marked head (much variable) and they didn't show that "bad looking face".
So I'm very interested in knowing from Jan why he thinks fuscus (i'm not saying you are frong, I only like learning a lot from more experienced birders!)
thank you a lot and ciao
Michele
I find this bird very good for fuscus/heuglini complex for reasons of moult and location already explained by others, but if I should decide between the two I'd rather say heuglini.
My experience is limitated to fuscus here in Italy, and it always looked quite different from this bird, with shorter legs, shorter bill, more compact head, darker mantle (same-aged, II cy, birds too), less marked head (much variable) and they didn't show that "bad looking face".
So I'm very interested in knowing from Jan why he thinks fuscus (i'm not saying you are frong, I only like learning a lot from more experienced birders!)
thank you a lot and ciao
Michele
JANJ
Well-known member
Hi Michele.
It does look long-legged and long-billed but I´m not having such problems with that - could be explained by the gull being a male. There are a certain overlap in measurement.
I wonder if the gull really is taken in November? Still think that it´s to dark for a 2cy Siberian (heuglini) - brownish blackish - although some Siberian at this age could be rather similar but usually paler with many (or less) obviously bluish-grey third generation feathers. Much variation though in both taxa and I wouldn´t put my money on the identification and not that confident with the moult variability of 2cy birds in November.
JanJ
It does look long-legged and long-billed but I´m not having such problems with that - could be explained by the gull being a male. There are a certain overlap in measurement.
I wonder if the gull really is taken in November? Still think that it´s to dark for a 2cy Siberian (heuglini) - brownish blackish - although some Siberian at this age could be rather similar but usually paler with many (or less) obviously bluish-grey third generation feathers. Much variation though in both taxa and I wouldn´t put my money on the identification and not that confident with the moult variability of 2cy birds in November.
JanJ
Mark Harper
World Birder
JANJ
Well-known member
Michele -
I don´t know if you have had a look at these?
http://www.xs4all.nl/~daarruud/fuscus2i.html
http://www.xs4all.nl/~daarruud/hilites.html
JanJ
I don´t know if you have had a look at these?
http://www.xs4all.nl/~daarruud/fuscus2i.html
http://www.xs4all.nl/~daarruud/hilites.html
JanJ
