[texbirds] Great Black-backed Gull, Brazoria County

From: "Susan Heath" <sheath@xxxxxxxx>
To: "texbirds" <texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sat, 12 Jan 2013 18:21:56 -0600
TexBirders,

While out trying to beef up my local patch list I stopped by a lake on 
Dixie Drive in Lake Jackson and discovered a treasure trove of gulls. The 
lake is Mammouth Lake and there is a small restaurant (Asiels) and a Scuba 
center there. Because of the scuba center (I guess) the lake is filled with 
large orange buoys and nearly every one had a Lesser Black-backed Gull on 
it. I counted 20 of them. There was also a first winter Great Black-backed 
Gull sitting on one of the buoys. It flew from one buoy to another and 
booted a Lesser Black-backed off the one where it landed. It was clearly 
larger than the Lesser Black-backed, had an all black very large bill, 
flesh colored legs and the checkerboard pattern on its wing coverts. There 
were also a small number of Laughing, Ring-billed and Herring Gulls there. 
I zipped home to get my camera and returned within 20 minutes but when I 
returned most of the Lesser Black-backs were gone and the Great 
Black-backed had flown to the far end of the lake. By the time I figured 
out how to get down there for a photo, it too was gone. I first arrived at 
about 3:30 and it was 4:20 when I returned. I don't know if the gulls were 
staging there before going to roost or if they were there all day but I do 
plan to return to check this out. The address of the restaurant is 330 
North Dixie Drive, Lake Jackson. It is located just past the Brazoswood 
High School if you are coming from SH 288/322. On the left side of the 
restaurant there is a historical marker that talks about the lake and you 
can get a pretty good view of the entire thing from there. There is ample 
parking along this side of the parking lot which doesn't interfere with 
restaurant business.

Sue


Susan A. Heath, Ph.D. 
Avian Conservation Biologist 
Gulf Coast Bird Observatory 
103 W. Hwy 332 
Lake Jackson, TX 77566 
979-480-0999 
Join us in our quest to study and conserve birds and their habitat around 
the Gulf of Mexico. 
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[texbirds] Great Black-backed Gull, Brazoria County

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