ML620491727

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

After missing almost certainly this same gull at Waukegan Beach in Lake County Illinois (found and continued 5/29-31/2024, 260 miles directly to the SSW of Manistique) on the morning of May 31st, by only a few hours, I couldn’t resist trying for this bird (a first for this species in Michigan) as soon as possible, and so left at 7pm yesterday from NE metro Atlanta and arrived here at session start this evening at 7:20pm (and good thing I did too). This gull, if the same individual as the recent Illinois bird, is the only Black-tailed Gull to be eBird documented in the ABA Area, or in the Western Hemisphere for that matter, this year so far! - - - MICHIGAN ABA CODE 4 GOODNESS DAY 3, continuing here since 6/8, amazingly with Ring-billed and Herring Gulls out at about 45.9473305, -86.2301616 when I made it to the boardwalk opposite the coordinates at 7:27. The gull put on a good show, with vocalization, at the edge of the water, about 200 feet out from our vantage point (45.9477231, -86.2307004, on the paved path), but took wing at 8:25 heading inland and NW (the bird has not been seen again anywhere after taking this flight, as of 6/15/2024). It was really great to meet, thank, and congratulate Chris Vogel (the finder of the gull here in Michigan) out here this evening as well. - - - Medium-sized breeding plumaged adult gull with white head, neck, breast and underparts. Larger than Ring-billed Gull but smaller than Lesser Black-backed Gull. Pale yellow eyes with red orbital ring. Large and long yellow red tipped bill with somewhat messy black subterminal ring. Slaty charcoal-gray mantle and upperwing. Long wings with black primaries with only small white tips (wingtips appear virtually all dark in flight), with white-tipped secondaries for white trailing edge of wings there. Short white tail with a broad black subterminal band (white-edged all around). Shortish yellow legs and feet. - - - Screenshots from the handheld phonescoped videos, and the gull can best be heard in seconds 1-6, and especially in the last loud call at second 11, in the audio recording converted from one of the iPhone MOV video files. Screenshots of the gull calling from the video are included as well. Late evening light video shot optically with a 50x wide angle eyepiece in the 2007 Nikon 82mm ED Fieldscope plus a 1-3x iPhone 13 Pro Max optical for up to about a 150x optical equivalent at the about 200 feet of range (need all the help I can muster).

Technical information

Dimensions

1491 pixels x 1284 pixels

Original file size

287.18 KB