Yesterday I spent a most enjoyable afternoon viewing the now famous gull at
the construction site adjacent to the Boeing facility (212th and 59th).
Weather conditions were most cooperative though at times with high glare and
difficult back-lighting. Still, a small group of us got great looks and
engaged in much spirited discussion over the identity of this bird. Many
thanks to Marv Breece and Patrick and Ruth Sullivan for sharing thoughts,
incites and companionship on a great afternoon.

I spent a fair amount of time observing the bird between 1245 and 315 in the
afternoon and came away with some real misgivings. This particular bird
presented an identification problem that I either did not expect or did not
fully appreciate before I arrived. I did not leave the site yesterday
convinced that I was looking at an Iceland Gull. Quite frankly, while
viewing the bird I was surprised that this bird had not elicited more
discussion than it has to this point. I seem to remember a post a few weeks
back asking the question, why is this not a Glaucous Gull? I have to say
that is a great question, no matter how the final consensus or conclusion
turns out. Whoever pitched it out there, kudos for questioning the
prevailing thought. Fortunately Patrick and Ruth were able to obtain some
great photos (check out the web link on Patricks earlier post) and I believe
Marv may have as well. This matter may be settled yet.

As for my impressions, here are some clips from my notes: The bird stood out
as a very pale mantled gull with white primary tips, associating with a
group of Glaucous-winged and GW x W hybrids. My first impression, viewing
from a distance was this bird is simply too large for an Iceland. The head
appeared rather flat, but the bill, while largish was not that big. The
group of gulls then flew and quickly settled at the pond where it bathed and
preened at a much closer distance. At this point the bird often presented a
rather rounded crown, bright yellow eye, and a bill smaller than I have come
to expect from Glaucous Gulls. At that point I felt better. Still, the
bill size seemed too large for Iceland, in particular it seemed long. The
gony angle and the depth of the bill at the gonys was not substantial, and
small I thought for Glaucous. I never did get a decent look at the orbital
ring. The head often appeared rather small for a body size that always
appeared large and rather bull chested. The length of the primaries with
respect to the tail (beyond the tail) seemed fairly long but not remarkably
so. Longer than many but not all Glaucous I have seen. They seemed long
enough for Iceland, but not as long as I would have liked to see.

The bird mainly associated with Glaucous-winged and hybrids. Single
Herring, Thayers, and Ring-billed were present in the group. This bird was
in the size range of the GW's and hybrids appearing larger than some, but
not all. It appeared larger than Herring or Thayers, but side-by-side
comparisons of these species were not obtained. The head did not appear as
large, the eye not as small, and the bill never appeared as deep or massive
as the GW or hybrids. In flight this bird gave the impression of a large
gull. Certainly in the size range of the Glaucous wings and rather wide at
the base of the wing. An interesting aspect that we commented on several
times, was that this bird presented a range of overall impressions and head
shapes depending on posture, stance, etc. However, it never gave the
impression of a particularly small, slight, or diminutive bird. Checking
references this AM I came across the following in Olsen and Larssons Gull
Book (pg 194): Re: "barrovianus (Alaska NW America), smaller compressed
bill. Size, long wings and poor tertial step create jizz similar to Iceland
Gull, especially in females So again, why not a female Glaucous?

Bill Shelmerdine
Olympia
Mailto: georn1 at hotmail

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