Likely yes, but I do not feel certainty is possible here.
Niels
Likely yes, but I do not feel certainty is possible here.
Niels
Potentially Gull-billed Tern
To me, bill also looks too thin for Forster's (likely something to do with quality of the photo) and in June they should have at least some red to orange in the bill.
Niels
A vagrant Snowy-crowned Tern . . . ? 3So I'm trying to say it is 100% Forster's, no other possibilities.
A vagrant Snowy-crowned Tern . . . ? 3
I have just checked against a number of my own images all showing Forster's tern with a black bill (earlier in the year so not directly comparable otherwise). These all looked to have considerably larger bills then the OP images show. I will therefore stick to my notion and not sign off on these images being id-able with certainty.
Niels
I have just checked against a number of my own images all showing Forster's tern with a black bill (earlier in the year so not directly comparable otherwise). These all looked to have considerably larger bills then the OP images show. I will therefore stick to my notion and not sign off on these images being id-able with certainty.
Niels
The common sense approach
A
but in case you refuse, you have tell what else could it be!
That's just the point, we don't 'have' to say what it might be, you already did that. It probably is a Forsters's but you cannot be certain, you make an ID based on probability, is that safe or scientific, what does it achieve?
It goes back to the argument that there are some people who just 'have' to put a name to everything.
A