Gull ID from Southern Pakistan (1 Viewer)

[@oriolus]

Hello,

This single photo was taken on 27 December, 2020 at Gaddani, Balochistan, Pakistan.

These two bulky gulls were separated from the rest of the active flocks of Heuglin's and Steppe gulls. Can these be Great Black-backed gulls based on the thick build and the large white mirrors on the wing tips or the different color legs rule it out completely?

Unfortunately, this is the only photograph I have.
Thanks.

 

[Alexander Stöhr]

Hello,
its one of those threads I learn from, but I can answer your question:
these are not Great black backed Gulls, please note:

• upperparts are to pale for even the palest GBBG
• the left bird has a strikingly pale eye, in GBBG they are often darker, the right bird would show a slightly paler eye than normal for a 100% ID-book GBBG (yes, within variation, but many GBBG has eyes that givesc the impression of a dark eye from medium or large distance)
• right bird has a totally wrong bill/head profile for a GBBG with slender bill and rounded, resulting in a friendly, gentle jizz out of variation for a GBBG

For the ID of your birds I wait for the experts to do so. Thank you from me, too!

 

[lou salomon]

They are adult Heuglin's Gulls, on striation concentrated on hindneck, late primary moult and - bulk. Heuglin's Gulls are known to produce very large and bulky individuals, more so than in any other subspecies of Larus fuscus. On bill structure, at least the left hand bird should be a male.

 

[@oriolus]

Thank you for the valuable inputs, much appreciated! Will keep these pointers in mind; GBBGs should be vagrants if not rare winter visitors to coasts of Pakistan in winters.

 

[lou salomon]

GBBG has never been recorded there, at least not that i know of.

 

[MJB]

GBBG has never been recorded there, at least not that i know of.

Only 5 accepted records in Iran, two (of 'one' and 'several') dating from 1938 at Bushehr, published by Løppenthin 1951. Heuglin's Gull has often been listed as GBBG in Iran. More likely on the Pakistan coast would be vagrant individual southern-hemisphere 'black-backs'...
MJB

 

[JANJ]

As Lou points out these are heuglini. Some lightning of your pic if you don't mind.

 

[@oriolus]

Thank you all, yes, I expect them to be here as vagrants. There has been a unconfirmed sighting by Roberts 1997 from Lasbela, Balochistan. I would be on the lookout for these. No worries about that JANJ, that was helpful, thanks!