odd looking ring-billed gull?

[lucky tern]

http://[url=https][img]https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/475/18329239401_220f5c642c_z.jpg[/img]IMG_2012a by lucky tern, on Flickr[/url]

thanks for looking, Gis

[Brian Bailey]

It appears to be a first year Great Black-backed. Note the heavy all black bill and strong contrast between the white head and dark back.  


BB

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[thouc]

To me the bill doesn't look heavy enough or the back dark enough for a Great Black-backed. Do you have any idea what size it was (compared to Herring and Ring-billed Gulls). I believe it's a 2nd cycle bird as the body feathers are starting to look more adult-like.

/Thomas

[lucky tern]

thanks guys bird looked to be RBGU size.  It was definitely not big enough to be a GBBG and the wing tips and and smallish bill size made me rule out LBBG as well. What confuses me is the white head with all dark bill.

[thouc]

My best guess would be a 2nd cycle Lesser Black-backed Gull. They still have all dark tail and could have an all-dark bill, while the body feathers are more adult-like.
See http://www.gull-research.org/lbbg1cy/0start.html for a lot of pictures at different stages. 2nd calendar year May and 3rd calendar year April looks fairly similar to your bird. Lesser Black-backed is also intermediate in size between Herring and Ring-billed, so it fits the smaller size you are reporting.

[Brian Bailey]

Well, maybe it IS an odd looking Ring-billed Gull. The head shape looks right, but the bill still looks big to me, and of course it's the wrong colour.  


BB

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[Henrique Pacheco]

I say young lesser black backed. It's not ring billed. It's a black backed gull. The streaky undertail coverts remind me of LBBG vs GBBG.