[TN-Bird] POSSIBLE 1st-cycle Iceland Gull at the Middlepoint Landfill
- From: "Chloe Walker" <dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> (Redacted sender "chloebelle119@xxxxxxxxx" for DMARC)
- To: "tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 3 Feb 2015 22:17:20 +0000 (UTC)
2-3-15 So after spotting the Ross's Goose at the V.A. Pond, we stopped by the
Middlepoint Landfill in Murfreesboro (Rutherford County). We both scanned the
thousands of gulls for a few minutes, hoping for something interesting, until I
spotted a completely white gull perched with Ring-bills. My heart stopped.
Unfortunately the bird was too distant to get a really good look and study it
in detail, but my brother and I both knew it was either an aberrant Herring
Gull, Iceland Gull, or Glaucous Gull. Eventually the whole group, including our
mystery gull, took off and circled for a few minutes. I figured we wouldn't be
able to re-find the bird, but incredibly my brother found it once again, this
time circling right over us. I got my camera out and was able to take some poor
flight shots. For whatever reason my email won't allow me to send a post with
photos through TN-bird, but if you are interested in seeing the photos and
giving your two cents, you can shoot me an email. Here's a brief description:
As I mentioned, this bird is basically white, but photos revealed a dirty
brownish color also. The legs were pink, but I have no idea what to say about
the bill. In some of my photos it looks pinkish, others pinkish with a dark
tip, and a couple with a completely dark bill and a pink base. This bird had
obvious translucent white primaries and secondaries. The undertail coverts show
faint dark barring. Size was close to a Herring Gull. That's pretty much the
best description I can give. I sent the photos to Chris Sloan and Mike Todd,
and so far the bird looks good for a 1st-cycle Iceland Gull, but it's hard to
tell. Re-finding this gull will be like finding a needle in a haystack, but
it's certainly worth a shot. Fingers crossed... Good birding, Chloe
WalkerMurfreesboro, TN
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