ML438080561

Age and sex

Adult, Unknown sex - 1

Observation details

Large and broad-shouldered gull in perfect adult plumage spotted as soon as we arrived up on top of the dump because of its size and striking coloration among the 1000s of Laughing Gulls. Black mantle (darker than GBBG), clean white head/neck and undersides, red orbital ring, greenish-yellow legs, and bright yellow bill with red spot. Wingtips entirely black other than small white spot on outermost primary, and some (worn) tiny white tips to the primaries. Much larger and beefier than LBBG and with shorter primaries. Standing around (25.9357593, -97.3837033) right up on top of the dump, and mixed in with the Laughing Gulls. Never standing very close to any of the Herrings. To access landfill get in line with the trucks. Do not enter scales until the truck before you exits. Pull on scales, exit car, and tell office staff you are birding. Sign in, and sign out on your way out. Closed Sundays. Open 7-330 other days. Closed if muddy. Follow all instructions from office and security staff. 6th record for Texas and 1st for the RGV. Probably ~20 records for the entire ABA. Amar Ayyash put together this summary of Kelp Gull records from Texas: 1-Galveston County, 15 January - 05 April 1996. Adult following southern hemisphere molt regimen. 2-Kleberg County, 04 May 1996. Adult type, no p10 mirror. 3-Galveston County, 30 November - 21 April 1997. Presumed to be same individual from 1996. 4-Brazoria County, 08 November - 24 December 2008. Adult type in active flight feather molt with new p1-p2/p3, with remaining primaries and all secondaries old. Small, broken, p10 mirror. 5-Brazoria County, 19 December 2008. 1st cycle. To date, this is the most convincing 1st cycle record in the ABA area. No obvious features point away from a pure Kelp Gull. Also noteworthy is that an adult Kelp Gull was at this site on this date. 6-Cameron County, 20 April 2022. The abraded tips to the outer primaries are what you'd expect on a mid- summer gull from the northern hemisphere. So it is indeed in line with what many adult Kelps would look like in the austral summer (just ended in central/southern South America). This appearance seems most similar to birds from southern Brazil and Argentina (definitely not Australia/New Zealand where many adults are finishing up outer p-molt). Structurally, the longer bill and longer leg look are unlike the short-legged, stout bill of austrinus around Antarctica. It's impossible to know, but my guess is this one could have failed to breed, molted primaries somewhat early... earlier than a typical Kelp in S. America.

Additional species

• Laughing Gull Leucophaeus atricilla

Technical information

Model

Canon EOS 7D Mark II

Lens

EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

ISO

1250

Focal length

400 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/5.6

Shutter speed

1/1250 sec

Dimensions

3911 pixels x 2607 pixels

Original file size

930.89 KB