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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

gulls (4 Viewers)

you probably know that some juv argentatus are very dark and resemble smith herrings. i suppose you have such a dark juv male herring gull here (large, strong bill suggests a male). i can see some window but not enough to say if typically strong like in western european HGs or more subdued/venetian blind like in some baltic HG or in smiths. tail pattern also highly variable in HG, especially darker individuals also being prone to show a very extensive one. a close look on both rectrices and utcs would have helped - and i guess you're right about the probability being very low that a yank would have made it cross the pond already. atlantis is a hard to prove bird itself but usually doesn't show an all dark tail.
 
you probably know that some juv argentatus are very dark and resemble smith herrings. i suppose you have such a dark juv male herring gull here (large, strong bill suggests a male). i can see some window but not enough to say if typically strong like in western european HGs or more subdued/venetian blind like in some baltic HG or in smiths. tail pattern also highly variable in HG, especially darker individuals also being prone to show a very extensive one. a close look on both rectrices and utcs would have helped - and i guess you're right about the probability being very low that a yank would have made it cross the pond already. atlantis is a hard to prove bird itself but usually doesn't show an all dark tail.
Many thanks Lou, definitely no conspicuous pale window, more subdued and venetian blind like, plus very little contrast to underwing, but frustratingly no obvious dark barring to under-tail, if it was a problematic dark argentatus this would still be a very early date to reach Cornwall.
Colin
 
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well, tsingy, i actually meant if you have more pics with (other individuals) large gulls, this would be interesting in th context of your geographic location. e.g. - do you know if michahellis is breeding in samsun?

edit: thanks anyway for sharing them here. it's still sort of a mystery and certainly not that easy but with a largish p10 mirror it could be either a cachinnans or a michahellis. dark eye in michahellis is pretty rare (although not unprecedented: see att.
1. july bird at beginning of 3rd cycle
2. 11.nov.2008 bucharest
3. and 4 same ind. 27.11.2010 bucharest,

all pics made by cristian mihai.
 

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Large Gull ' s in Samsun.

03.04.2011 Samsun .
 

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wow - baltic gull and heuglin's in direct comparison! both are subspecies of lesser black-backed gull, the paler mantled one being larus fuscus heuglini (from russian tundra) and the smaller and blacker mantled one nominate larus fuscus fuscus (from finland).
this is good - go ahead and take more photos, even of the "paler grey" ones (cachinnans, michahellis, barabensis). all very interesting stuff in that zone where many taxons show up, often with mixed genes etc.
thanks
 
Some gulls photo in my area.

Samsun In Turkey.
 

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tsingy - please always provide us with the date the pics are taken - it makes it easier to ID the birds, especially when talking about large gulls.

this is what i see here:

1. third winter (3cy or 4cy) caspian gull (cachi)
2. 3cy spring (late winter?) caspian, but not sure if barabensis can be excluded
3. adult female type caspian with broken wing
4. leucistic black-headed gull.

cheers
 
Vadu (CT), August 25th 2012. Same bird in the first three pics.
 

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now that's a bill on a caspian gull! (1-3) - nobody would expect...
4 shows moult stadium in adult michahellis
5 looks like a 2cy cach (but they can be hard at this time of year!)
 
Again, two pics from Vadu.
Pic 1 - Flock of Med Gulls in flight (also a putative immature Caspian Gull).
Pic 2 - Common Terns (and some Little Terns) in front and mainly Med Gulls in the background.
 

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really enjoyble, cris. i can well imagine how nice it was at the coastof vadu. how close could you get to the mixed tern flock/resting med gulls?
 
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