ML181437131

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

For the most part, the SOTE was sitting on the ground, preening, and walking around its “spot,” but it also got up and made several flights with the other terns. We lost it a few times, but it always returned within a few minutes to the same spot. It also made some short flight/jumps where it only got a few feet off the ground. Also of interest was that it was vocalizing as indicated by its bill movements. I obtained some distant and probably very fuzzy digi-scoped photos, but I also recorded some voice notes on my new Blackberry: 0723: distant views black and white tern…stretching wings showing underside of wing: blackish flight feathers and white coverts…medium sized tern, size of Elegant Terns, but longer… black crown, black loral stripe, black nape, black upperparts – not contrasting shades of black on upperparts…white on forehead basically a roughly triangular shaped patch with suggestion of white supercilium but this does not extend posterior to eye… white underparts including throat and cheeks and suggestion of white collar but black nape interrupts this collar…I think its supposed to have suffusion of gray on belly area but I have not seen it from views up to this point… 0823: seen in flight but not observed gray suffusion on belly or white in outer rectrices…underside view of wings showing black primaries and secondaries contrasting with white coverts but there is some gray between the two colors as the contrast is not sharp…clearly showed white on outer edge of tail when it jumped up a few feet before returning to ground…distinct but narrow white outer edge to rectrix observed while bird preened… 0839: shorter legs than Elegant Tern…similar size but longer wings, tail, so longer appearance, but overall size is similar… 0922: while preening, the black nape connection between black on head and mantle is quite narrow so in some angles it can look like it has a white collar but it does NOT connect…

Technical information

Model

Canon PowerShot SD880 IS

ISO

200

Focal length

20 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire, auto

f-stop

f/5.8

Shutter speed

0.02 sec

Dimensions

1600 pixels x 1200 pixels

Original file size

243.16 KB