What looked like the 'not sure' in #77 also turned up. The orange tones to the legs of this bird are extreme even for taimyrensis.
But what else it could be? Taimyrensis seems like the most valid option
What looked like the 'not sure' in #77 also turned up. The orange tones to the legs of this bird are extreme even for taimyrensis.
Close to the end with these gulls now, I think. Today's birds were predictable, and in worse light than yesterday. All the birds below are taimyrensis, with the first two the same small, pale-backed individual; the third a first-winter which still looks surprisingly dark; the fourth a very aggressive male coming in to land; and the last bird another aggressive male squaring up to the 'unknown' of #80.
But what else it could be? Taimyrensis seems like the most valid option
the adult one facing right...what about mongolicus?
What looked like the 'not sure' in #77 also turned up. The orange tones to the legs of this bird are extreme even for taimyrensis.
Struggling to find many gulls now. Just four taimyrensis today, of which two would be photographed.
Looks like intermediate between mogolicus and taimyrensis. Pretty long and oval ending tongue on the underside of p10 (more mongolicus like) Can the two hybridize?
The thing that worries me the most is that long tongue on p10, reaching half the lenght of the feather. Is that a variation of taymirensis? The rest fits a taimyrensis well!
So, both heuglini and taimyrensis are present there?
Hi Alex,
Now you've now got me very confused!
The term 'taimyrensis' does not appear on either IOC or Clements Checklists, so presumably neither consider it a valid taxon. I assume the term to relate to a stable hybrid swarm between heuglini in the west and vegae in the east, and that its former lumping with heuglini followed from it having more in common in terms of morphology with that taxon than with vegae (including the short diagonal tongue on P10 I have been seeing a lot of). In short, I assumed that taimyrensis might be variable in appearance, but that most should strongly resemble heuglini (hence 'heuglini-end', meaning 'heuglini-like, and inferring some heuglini 'influence').
I may well have all this wrong; my understanding of the biology of these things is rudimentary at best! Should taimyrensis be more 'fixed' in terms of its appearance and differ markedly from heuglini? If so, I have no idea in what way these two 'forms' actually differ. And if it does differ in a consistent way, why is taimyrensis no longer considered a 'good' form? Is it just a now obsolete synonym for heuglini? (In which case, yes, heuglini would be present here.)
As my sandbar is invariably clogged up with fishermen these days, I'm going to have to dig into photos from previous years to keep this thread 'alive' in any way. Attached are a couple of vegae from late Feb 2016.
The first-winter shows contrasting pale greater coverts, a decidedly inconspicuous 'window' in its 'hand' (like taimyrensis), but no sign of feather replacement in its mantle or lesser coverts (unlike taimyrensis). With such a dark body and tail, I initially thought I might have an American Herring Gull in this individual, but the pale greater coverts effectively rule that out.
The adult shows head markings too extreme for taimyrensis, and the pale mantle and pink legs also rule that 'form' (whatever the **** it is) out. I have over time come to associate dark eyes with vegae, though this association might not be valid.
scaps and mantle seem to be replaced with 2nd gen feathers here
Taimyrensis is slightly different from nominate heuglini. Taimyr often has a slimmer and thinner bill , a smaller ans more rounded head and slightly paler upperparts. Its structure is less bulkier than heuglini's
Thanks, Alex. The post should read active feather replacement (meant to contrast with the appearance of taimyrensis which now has 'adult-type' mantle and coverts mixed in with retained juvenile ones).