ML209950151

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

Large, extremely pale gull sleeping on sandbar by Spermaceti cove. Size appeared similar to, if not a bit larger than, nearby Herring Gulls. The bird was sleeping in strong sun, so it’s possible some of the mantle and wing paleness is due to sun lightening, however, after looking at the pictures and comparing to nearby gulls I don’t believe the brightness of the sun sufficiently explains just how pale - nearly purely white - this gull appeared. The portion of the head that was visible looked unstreaked. Unfortunately the gull remained asleep during the full observation period. It’s not in itself diagnostic, but this bird stuck out enough that when I moved off it to look at other birds I had no trouble refinding it. I think there was a good change this was a Glaucous but I can't be certain.

Technical information

Original file size

1.44 MB