ML304651051

Age and sex

Adult, Unknown sex - 1

Media notes

Ross's Gull

Observation details

Ross’s Gull 1978 Chronological Timeline* November 19th: Seen at Wilmette Gillson Park by Andy Sigler, mid-morning, sunny conditions. Field marks seen on this sunny morning included the diagnostic pink breast and wedge-shaped tail. Bird was feeding with 12 Bonaparte’s Gulls in the small harbor and entrance channel, wheeling and diving to the surface to pick from the water. Later observers within the hour were not able to relocate it, even searching up to two miles south where other Bonaparte’s were known to frequent. A black mark behind the eye was seen and its underwings were reported as gray, same color as upper wing, both of these marks leading to speculation that perhaps the bird seen was actually a Little Gull (which had been frequenting this harbor on days prior to this sighting. November 29th: Seen at Chicago’s Fullerton Avenue Beach by Lucy Gemlo and Walter Hopkins, shortly before dusk, skies heavily overcast. Gull with pink breast, very short bill and dark feathering around eye was seen floating with Bonaparte’s. November 30th: Seen at Chicago’s North Ave. Beach (a mile south of Fullerton sighting the prior eve) by 7 observers (including David Bohlen and Gerald Rosenband), post sunrise, bright sunlight. Gull floated off beach with Bonaparte’s Gull for most of the hour, but twice stood on beach for short periods with Herring, Ring-billed and Bonaparte’s Gulls. Photos were taken here this morning by Richard Biss, through a 1400mm telescope (see https://ebird.org/checklist/S80492308). Photos showed the Ross’s paler mantle, small size, peaked crown, very short black bill and in flight it’s wedge-shaped tail and pale white secondaries and inner primaries. After that hour, it flew alone to the northwest. Documentation notes were taken and all fields marks seen, including bright red legs, peaked crown, small black bill with heavy feathering at base, dark mark behind eye (noticed also later in 10 out of 20 Chicago Field Museum winter specimens), white trailing edge of wing on secondary and inner primaries, wedge shaped tail, paler mantle and longer wingers than adjacent Bonapartes and in flight more stocky/chunky look compared to Bonapartes. Also on the 30th, seen at Chicago’s Montrose Harbor area (four miles north of North Ave earlier morning sighting) by Larry Balch, in the 9 o’clock hour, bright sunlight. Seen flying up off the water with several Bonaparte’s Gulls near the beach. December 1st: Seen briefly between North and Fullerton Ave. lakefront, during the morning. Gull flew off to the south. This was the last confirmed sighting. Attempts during at least November 30th-December 2nd to find the gull along the North Shore Channel, which had 1-2000 Bonaparte Gulls hunting there, were unsuccessful. A possible sighting occurred on December 2nd three miles south of the Fullerton Ave. area. Only 16 out of about 75 birders were able to get a view of this vagrant. Subsequent analysis by the article writers led them to believe this bird came directly south from the arctic, compared to a trans-atlantic bird that flew west over all the Great Lakes, suggesting a recently discovered Ross’ Gull nest colony at Bathurst Island (in the Canadian arctic) and the June 1978 Churchill sighting (1200 miles north of Chicago) as evidence that this bird could have come directly south. As well, this bird appeared in the same migration window time this month that other pelagic/arctic birds that migrant over land, noting that a Brant, three Harlequin Ducks, two Red Phalaropes, two Red Phalaropes, Purple Sandpiper and a Black-legged Kittiwake were seen in the area during this Ross’s Gull timeframe. This Ross’ was Illinois’ first state record, the first historical inland record outside of Siberia and farthest record ever from salt water! *Balch, Lawrence G., Bohlen, H. David, Rosenband, Gerald B. “The Illinois Ross’ Gull”. American Birds, March 1979, vol 33, No.2, pp 140-142.

Technical information

Model

SM-G975U1

ISO

320

Focal length

4.3 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/2.4

Shutter speed

1/120 sec

Dimensions

2873 pixels x 1483 pixels

Original file size

1.69 MB