Wednesday morning our “hearts” won out over our “sensibility” and we loaded the car and headed for Quincy, Illinois, to look for the Ivory Gull. We left so late that the 8 hour drive ended after dark so we were up early Thursday morning and down to the Mississippi River. We first walked down to the river bank as we saw a couple of birders headed that way and another couple in the parking lot said they were going. The temperature was twenty below zero and with the howling wind off the water it must have been forty below so we didn’t stay there long and it didn’t look too promising anyway because the river at that area was frozen with no good feeding spots for the gull. We did exchange cell phone numbers with the other two couples and all of us spread out to cover more area. We drove several miles south to the dam and it was worth the drive to see all the eagles below the dam – more than 50 of these beautiful birds feeding there. Then a phone call sent us racing back to the marina where the gull had been seen recently and there it was – sitting on top of a building no more than 100 feet away. What a gorgeous little bird – so white that it almost blended into the snow. We watched as it ate a fish as we took some pictures and marveled at how ivory white it was. We left there elated at finding this bird we had wanted to see so long. As we drove toward St. Louis our friend there sent a text reminding us she knew a reliable spot to see a Eurasian Tree Sparrow if we were interested so we took an extra hour to find and photograph this bird also. Two lifers in one day is a great day for us and kept us talking and alert for the long drive home. Our thanks to those of you who contacted us after our original post about the gull and encouraged us to make the trip; one of those who sent an encouraging note went there on Wednesday and called to tell us the gull was at the marina right then. We talked about how birders are so friendly and helpful as we drove back home. We certainly ought to be as some of the beauty we see in birds ought to make us nicer people. Tommy & Virginia Curtis Smithville, TN DeKalb County
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