ML64112511
Sandwich x Elegant Tern (hybrid) Thalasseus sandvicensis x elegans
Contributor
Date
Location
- Age
- Not specified
- Sex
- Not specified
Observation details
Adult tern - no spotting on scapulars or tertials. Observed sitting on boom by 1st lookout. Dull yellow bill caught my eye. Noticeably duller in color than Forster's and other Elegants present. Seen by naked eye had an odd dingy appearance. No sign of oiling on the feathering. On closer observation with binoculars blackish areas evident in bill pigment. The area around nares on both the left and right side were black. The bottom of the lower mandible was black which ran about 2/3rds the length of the bill from the base. Only time I have ever observed black on the bill of an Elegant. The black in the bill suggests Sandwhich Tern influence. This bird shows considerably less black in the bill than some purported hybrids photographed in recent years. The limited extent of the black could be the result of offspring of a hybrid backcrossing with Elegants. Hard to be certain with this bird but definitely interesting to think about.
Technical information
- Model
- E-510
- ISO
- 200
- Focal length
- 500 mm
- Flash
- Flash did not fire
- f-stop
- f/8.0
- Shutter speed
- 1/320 sec
- Dimensions
- 600 pixels x 450 pixels
- Original file size
- 92.53 KB