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| Photo by Jeff Stemshorn, Tempe Town Lake Pedestrian Bridge, Nov. 25th, 2011. |
For most of us ALL gulls are a mystery when it comes to I.D.ing them. As someone who spent their childhood near the ocean in southern California, seagulls were our nemeses on the school playground and on the beach - randomly bombing us with guano as they flew off with our lunches, so I tend to avoid them altogether.
But on November 25th while birding the Tempe Town Lake Pedestrian Bridge, I spotted a single bright white bird floating amid a flock of Ruddy Ducks on the lake. When it took to the sky we could see it was a gull, but what kind? Is it a Western Gull, or a Ring-billed Gull in non-breeding plumage, or a California Gull in winter plumage... or something else?
Anyone want to venture a guess as to what type of gull this is?
*** Update as of Dec. 1st ***
Suprisingly, the best ID so far of the Mystery Gull has come from the least experienced birder, my friend Don Price, an avid fisherman:
"Yes. I know this gull! His name is Richard." Don went on to say - "Well, I guess you’d say what can make me feel this way? My gull, my gull, my gull… talkin’ ‘bout my gull."
Pure genious.
This is a second-cycle Ring-billed Gull. Note the long bill and the extensive black on the undersurface of the primaries.
ReplyDeleteIt's a neat set of pictures! I talk about this plumage in a talk I wrote a while ago called "Sorry, My Mistake," about common identification errors and what I've learned from them.
Thanks Rick! There were lots of suggestions as to which gull it was - second winter Mew Gull, first or second winter Franklin's Gull, Western Gull, etc.. But you, Mark Larson, Diana Herron, Myron Scott, and Pete Moulton have all concluded that it is a second-winter Ring-Billed. Thank you to all who helped in identifying the mystery gull!
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