I spent three hours at the Prince William Co. Landfill today and was joined
by Sue Heath this afternoon. Saw some good gulls, but they took their time
showing up. The Glaucous Gull was a first winter bird, very pale, with a
bicolored
bill. The bird looked so funny when I first saw it...looked like a hunchback.
Must have eaten something very big! After I called Sue about the Glaucous, a
first winter Iceland Gull stopped by briefly. This bird was also pale and
starting to sport a two-toned bill. Unfortunately those two birds headed
elsewhere
before Sue arrived.
Before Sue arrived, I spotted a different gull across the way that really
caught my attention. I'm tentatively calling it a possible Thayer's...a fourth
year/adult? The first thing I noticed was the dark eyes and dark streaking
around the eyes. Next thing that really stood out...the smaller, rounded head.
I
watched that bird for ten minutes and the head shape never changed with the
different positions. Next field mark that stood out...smaller, thinner yellow
bill
with a dark red spot. Bill definitely smaller than the nearby Herrings. The
bird was just a bit smaller overall than the Herrings. I did not see the bird
in flight, unfortunately. The dark folded primaries didn't show much in the way
of white tips yet and that was throwing me. The mantle was a solid pale gray
as in an adult bird, similar to Herring. In that light, I wasn't able to
determine if the gray was a shade darker. There was a fair amount of streaking
on
the nape. I wasn't able to get a good fix on the leg color because of where the
bird was positioned.
I plan to hit the landfill again for the next couple of days to try to
relocate this bird.
Laura Catterton
Manassas, Virginia
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