ML123318061
Contributor
Date
Location
- Age
- Not specified
- Sex
- Not specified
- Behaviors
- Flying
Observation details
First island record. A third-cycle briefly on the west marine terrace in the evening, found by John Garrett. A fairly small 'large white-headed gull,' distinctly smaller than nearby Western Gulls. The eye was pale lemony-yellow, lighter than even the palest-eyed Western Gull, and surrounded by dark 'mascara' formed by dense, thin, fine flecking around the eyes. The face was mostly white, and the hind-crown and auriculars were covered in thin, fine sharp dark flecking that turned into more circular sharp markings along the nape and lower sides of the breast. The mantle/upperparts were a dark gray, slightly darker and less blue-hued than nearby Westerns, and mixed with dark brown feathers throughout the greater coverts. The upper center of the mantle was a slightly paler gray than the rest of the upperparts. The tertials were tipped with white, but there was no broad white secondary 'skirt' below the greater coverts like on Western Gulls. When folded, the primaries were mostly black with fairly small white tips. The tail had a few dark spots. The bill was fairly slim, with a pinkish-yellow base and messy black distal half. The legs/feet were a dull yellowish, somewhat mixed with pink, especially in the webbing on the right foot. The left toes were missing. The exact leg color was somewhat difficult to judge in the harsh lighting, but was certainly not bright pink. Evidently same individual as: https://ebird.org/checklist/S44905674 and https://ebird.org/checklist/S44907260 (note missing toes on left foot) In flight, the wings looked narrow and pointy. There was a dark gray bar along the secondaries. Photos show that p10 is growing in and has a white mirror; other outer primaries have no white mirror.
Technical information
- Model
- Canon EOS 7D
- Lens
- EF400mm f/5.6L USM
- ISO
- 3200
- Focal length
- 400 mm
- Flash
- Flash did not fire, auto
- f-stop
- f/5.6
- Shutter speed
- 1/2000 sec
- Dimensions
- 3233 pixels x 2156 pixels
- Original file size
- 1.18 MB