ML94807751
Beitragende/r
Datum
Ort
- Alter
- nicht spezifiziert
- Geschlecht
- nicht spezifiziert
Beobachtungsdetails
***mega; first or second photo documented state record first found by Vin Zollo at 8:30 this morning. Few along beach in several zones, including the high seaweed wrack where Ring-billeds and others may have been eating sand flies etc., along the edge of the waves almost Sanderling like, and in the foam washed up by the strongest waves, where lots of gulls seemed to be finding food. It never fed in the actual surf, although a couple times when it flew offshore to bathe or join other gulls it seemed to drop down and maybe pick something off the water and a few times when flying over the ocean along the beach it seemed to be kiting and looking for food to drop in on. note the behavioral differences in feeding behavior as compared the the L. c. canus. Species ID obvious by small size, thin bill without ring, dark eye (dark chocolate iris contrasting with pupil only at best views at close range). Bright red orbital ring starting to show. Head still with some blotchy streaking on rear of head and nape and finer brown streaking around cheek. Olive cast to bill with some smudgy subterminal marks and egs olive-yellow and noticeably duller than nearby Ring-billeds. Compare to L. c. canus which was in high plumage with white head and brighter yellow soft parts. Subspecies ID straightforward from the photos by: 1) small size relative to Ring-billeds, probably 15-20% smaller, apparent in multiple image below; 2) relatively short and fine bill, noticeably thinner and shorter proportionally than Common Gull narby; 3) mantle 2-3 shades darker than Ring-billed Gull with strongly contrasting tertial crescent which made it easy to pick out by mantle shade alone. The nearby Common Gull was maybe 1-2 shades darker and noticeably paler than the brachyrhynchus in direct comparison (see comparison shots under Herring and Ring-billed Gull below); 4) wing pattern with strong "string of pearls" effect and large white tongue tip on p8 which had black on the outer web reaching about 2/3 to primary coverts; 5) broad white tips to secondaries that extends to inner primaries (unlike L. c. canus). While sometimes a detailed analysis of wing pattern is required, the ID of this one was straightforward by the small size (eliminating Kamchatka) and traits such as mantle shade, structure, and broad white inner primary tips that easily eliminated canus. This record would be the second photo documented state record following Will Sweet's record of an adult photographed at Race Point Beach, Barnstable County, 15 Apr 2017 that was initially identified by several folks as a probable Kamchatka, but now appears to be a better fit for brachyrhynchus. Veit and Petersen (1993) mention two records of American Mew Gull, a first-cycle at Newburyport Harbor, 10 Oct 1980 (Veit, Perkins) and a first-cycle at Nantucket, 28-29 Sep 1981 (Perkins); the MARC has not received any documentation and both are quite unseasonal, so maybe better considered hypothetical. There are just three other New England record (adult Aug 2013 at Thomaston and first-cycle Jan-Feb 2016 at Owls Head Harbor, both in Knox Co., plus 20-21 Mar 2016 at Hammonasset SP, Connecticut); small and dainty, back 2-3 shades darker, some streaking still on head; photos of wing pattern confirm subspecies; more notes to be added.
Technische Angaben
- Modell
- Canon EOS 7D
- Objektiv
- EF400mm f/5.6L USM
- ISO
- 800
- Brennweite
- 400 mm
- Blitz
- Flash did not fire, auto
- Blende
- f/5.6
- Belichtungszeit
- 1/2500 sec
- Abmessungen
- 4205 pixels x 2652 pixels
- Größe der Originaldatei
- 2.4 MB