gulls (1 Viewer)

Howard King · Mar 6, 2008

have returned

Got my lense back but its still not working properly however - I tried it out yesterday on the local beach in yet another sandstorm - we have had more this winter than in the last twenty years. Have been busy fighting other peoples battles elsewhere on the formum - Thanks JanJ for you assistance on that.

Came across just one group of gulls - I have them down as all of one species fairly easy but with a good age range with some interesting features to pick on

AStevenson · Mar 6, 2008

Gentoo - those Alaskan birds are interesting, graellsii is the default subsp. here, they can be variable in grey shade - number 6 is at the pale end though from those pics.

My not very detailed thoughts would be.....

1. probably LBB

2. probably LBB but it does look just a little odd structure-wise heavyish in that pic.

3. Looks good for LBB, although is the white trailing edge a little on the broad side?

4. Wouldn't think twice about that bird here - LBB

6. As stated above rather pale but not outwith graellsii.

7. LBB

8. last bird looks quite dark (maybe lighting) but still LBB.

Not qualified enough on 'siberian' types to argue in detail, but as Lou says you'd have to rule them out.

Cheers,
Andrew

lou salomon · Mar 6, 2008

howard,

these are incredibly exciting pics, always wanted: heuglini, esp. the last one is so beautiful, a 3cy with rel. new looking brown primaries, bill not as snouty as most of the (very dark looking!) adults - don't know if it's like in other sp. that bill would change and grow in shape further? prob. not , looks like it would keep it like this, nice bicoloured stadium.

Howard King · Mar 7, 2008

Have more pictures - taken at the same time - love the eyes -- will post them later today - going birding shortly (w/e here) - if you want a larger version of any photo please ask

Gentoo · Mar 7, 2008

AStevenson said:
Gentoo - those Alaskan birds are interesting, graellsii is the default subsp. here, they can be variable in grey shade - number 6 is at the pale end though from those pics.

My not very detailed thoughts would be.....

1. probably LBB

2. probably LBB but it does look just a little odd structure-wise heavyish in that pic.

3. Looks good for LBB, although is the white trailing edge a little on the broad side?

4. Wouldn't think twice about that bird here - LBB

6. As stated above rather pale but not outwith graellsii.

7. LBB

8. last bird looks quite dark (maybe lighting) but still LBB.

Not qualified enough on 'siberian' types to argue in detail, but as Lou says you'd have to rule them out.

Cheers,
Andrew

Thanks Asteve. There's another site somewhere as well that show pictures of LBBG in the Yukon of Canada as well. Wonder if some of the west coast vagrants are simply heading north with flocks of Herring and Glaucous-Winged Gulls?

lou salomon · Mar 7, 2008

Howard King said:
Have more pictures - taken at the same time - love the eyes -- will post them later today - going birding shortly (w/e here) - if you want a larger version of any photo please ask

howard, do you have another pic of the last bird, the 3cy heuglini, possibly standing? also the young bird in pic 4 looks worth looking at it more closely. curious about your other pics :t:

lou salomon · Mar 7, 2008

Gentoo said:
Wonder if some of the west coast vagrants are simply heading north with flocks of Herring and Glaucous-Winged Gulls?

the arctic flyway seems shorter? east coast canada, great lakes or northbound and finally reaching alaska, west coast. on the other hand LBBG could reach california via florida too. and why not just cross the continent, being so "good on the wings"?

JANJ · Mar 7, 2008

They look dark those - most probably heuglini gulls Howard but that´s only in the images I suppose - the one at the left in the first image and again in the third image looks almost fuscus (Baltic) like, and seems to be the darkest of them all. with it´s non dark-peppered yellowish eye (common in heuglini but not always) looking big-eyed with a 'surpriced ' look. However structure seems more in line with heuglini. Note in the flying 2nd winter type (3cy type) the moulted third generation grey median (and lesser) followed also by grey lesser primary coverts, brownish greater coverts and greater primary coverts together with second generation primaries.
The 2cy mentioned by Lou is barabensis or heuglini - the impression is - with retained juvenile coverts and somehow jizz - heuglini. However, best left unidentified.

See Toms Tams gulls here from Goa India Feb. this year. He´s suggestions are 1-11 heuglini - 12 barabensis.

http://www.tomtamsbirdimages.co.uk/Pages, Goa/Heuglin's Gull Goa.htm

I think 7-9 & 11 is heuglini, structure and darkness, with 12 barabensis, paleness and structure, short-legged.
The 2cy are best left - although I have a barabensis feel on the first and heuglini on the second and third. I don´t trust the pattern since variable in both.

http://www.magikbirds.com/image.asp?title_id=644&show_thumbnails=False

JanJ

Howard King · Mar 8, 2008

Bird in picture 5 landing and at rest
JanJ - the birds do look very dark - but the weather was awful very dull -- see last picture nothing to do with birds but gives you an idea of what the afternoon was like

lou salomon · Mar 8, 2008

remember this from austria in january - looks much more "undeveloped", earlier in moult

http://www.birdforum.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=120988&d=1199918076

http://www.birdforum.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=120990&d=1199918091

Howard King · Mar 8, 2008

""Toms Tams gulls from Goa India Feb""

personal opinion ID on birds number 1 is not heuglini facial expression all wrong - 4 5 don't look right either undecided - but 10 poss barabensis and 12 yes would suggest most likely barabensis -

lou salomon · Mar 10, 2008

another 2cy from israel: why is this mich and not armenicus???

http://www.netfugl.dk/pictures/birds_user_uploads/20370_UU_6469_P2141289b.jpg

wing: species and time of year?

JANJ · Mar 10, 2008

Around August for the Caspian Gull Lou.

I have also been looking at the Israel gull and thinking armenicus, mainly due to short looking stubby black bill. But it would be nice to see anoter image with open wings.

JanJ

JANJ · Mar 10, 2008

Just to show Joseph Kennedys fabulous gull images, among others on his site:

http://www.pbase.com/joseph_kennedy_36/1210_jaegers_gulls

JanJ

Howard King · Mar 11, 2008

wow - thanks for the link J will have to spend hours - rather days looking through this lot what a great resource -shall put a link to these up on my web page soon

PS - have you looked at the sandplovers in Goa

lou salomon · Mar 11, 2008

bleached canus

is such a bleached bird also called leucistic? because it has the colours in the right place, just extremely bleached - or is this form of loss of pigmentation called differently? scapulars are newest, thus they are normal grey. foto c. manci, beginning of march, geneve.

lou salomon · Mar 12, 2008

some michahellis' from venice (beg. of march, c. manci):

- the 2cy is not the typical michahellis plumage (rather pale scapulars with little dark markings and a lot of white in lessers and medians)

- the first of the 2 portraits has 2 larger dark "pepper" smudges in the iris

lou salomon · Mar 12, 2008

JANJ said:
Around August for the Caspian Gull Lou.
JanJ

an easy task :eat: with the inner webs visible and the moult gap in the middle primaries (p5 and 6 missing): it was 11.08.07 :t:

this is the whole bird and a similarly moulting yellow-legged at the same place:

cosmln · Mar 12, 2008

lou salomon said:
some michahellis' from venice (beg. of march, c. manci):

- the 2cy is not the typical michahellis plumage (rather pale scapulars with little dark markings and a lot of white in lessers and medians)

- the first of the 2 portraits has 2 larger dark "pepper" smudges in the iris

last one is from Marseille (France)

cosmln

lou salomon · Mar 12, 2008

cosmln said:
last one is from Marseille (France)

cosmln

thanks cosmin, i already thought, that beach could not be in venice

gulls (1 Viewer)

Well-known member

Attachments

Well-known member

the birdonist

Well-known member

Guest

the birdonist

the birdonist

Well-known member

Well-known member

Attachments

the birdonist

Well-known member

the birdonist

Attachments

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

the birdonist

Attachments

the birdonist

Attachments

the birdonist

Attachments

Member

the birdonist

Similar threads

Users who are viewing this thread