[mou] Duluth Pelagic (long)
markfalcon@comcast.net
markfalcon@comcast.net
Sun, 09 Oct 2005 17:22:46 +0000
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I took part in the Duluth Pelagic the MOU organized on Saturday. Captain Dan Rau is an avid birder, knows the waters the birds that frequent them, and when there is something different. He is known for finding the state's last record of Ivory Gull.
Tom Auer did a fine job of setting this up and corraling us into the boat. $20 is cheap for this experience, the best money I have spent on birding in many years. There are three areas of the boat to view from, the bow, the stern and the upper deck. I spent the 4 hours up top, which gave me a great advantage to see clearly into distant waters. In my mind's eye fueled by a passion for Melville, it could have been Sperm Whales rather than seagulls I was spying for this day. While Cap'n Dan's tug missed some of the sleekness and grandeur of a Tall Ship, it serves well for tooling around the harbor.
I settled into the upper deck fro the trip. With Kim Eckert, Peder Svingen, Kim Risen, Jim Mattson and Mike Hendrickson aboard, we were well supported, but they were all on the lower deck, so I saw my opportunity to make my mark in the birding world by calling out discoveries to the wonder and dismay of all aboard. MOURC would probably go back through their records and reconsider the records not accepted I had submitted, what an opportunity!
I searched the 50 or so Ring-billed Gulls that lagged behind the boat as Mike tossed scoops of popcorn overboard. Juveniles are mottled brown over tan with a dark terminal band on their tail. 1st winter birds showing a grey back with the juvenile pattern still lingering on the wing feathers not molted yet; 2nd winter birds showing virtually no white mirrors on the black primaries- the wing looking to have been "dipped deeper" in blackness, covering more of the wing.
As we left the vertical bridge area, we were enveloped in silty runoff contrasting against the blue-green clearness of Superior, the current was as red as a Georgia back road, and ran visibly out for more than a mile before it dissipated. The Nemadji River colored the harbor out for a distance of at least 5 miles, (how far we went this day), and not a single diving bird was seen until t eh very end fo the trip, when we passed a Black Scoter. 2 miles out, we began to see more Herring Gulls. Chumming with popcorn gave us good looks at most birds, as when they wheel to land they fan out their wings and tail for great views. Several Bonaparte's joined in, their flight pattern so much swifter, lighter, and more buoyant than their larger cousins. Three or four times I would run to the stern and yell to Mike and tell him I saw a flock of gulls in the distance, he was always on them before I told him, and would say "7 Bonaparte's". he was right, of course.These guys are good. An imm
ature bird dropped in from a position behind us and wheeled to drop and feed. I saw the even -colored scalloping of the wings and tail with no dark contrasts like the Herrings we had been seeing, and I managed to get out "ooh! ooh!" when Peder shouted out "Thayers" and pointed up. Those birders next to me reassured me that they took my unintelligible utterings to be proof positive that I had also concluded it to be a first winter Larus thayeri, that I had already done all mental processes required to ensure it was not Glaucus or Iceland, and that I was positive of my convictions. They thanked me for my contributions. I did get to call out a sighting later, when as we rounded Minnesota point and the engine slowed to a creep, we passed every gull along a steel pier from about 50 feet in good light at eye level. I spotted an adult Herring Gull with a large unseemly black patch covering roughly a quarter of the bird's head behind its eye. I yelled very loudly, " a black headed
Herring Gull", to which twelve people said "what?" I then pointed out the bird and it turned put my ID was correct. As we passed by the spot later, someone yelled, "Hey, Mark, see any more melanistic Herring Gulls?" Since the spot was only on the left side of the bird's head, perhaps it was oil, a colored extension, or maybe a tattoo. Someone suggested it might be a kippered Herring Gull. That would explain the oil, I guess. Next year, the MOU needs to do this more often. Kudos to Tom Auer for setting this into action, and thanks to all that made this a great day! Good Birding.
Mark Alt
Brooklyn Center, MN
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<DIV>I took part in the Duluth Pelagic the MOU organized on Saturday. Captain Dan Rau is an avid birder, knows the waters the birds that frequent them, and when there is something different. He is known for finding the state's last record of Ivory Gull. </DIV>
<DIV>Tom Auer did a fine job of setting this up and corraling us into the boat. $20 is cheap for this experience, the best money I have spent on birding in many years. There are three areas of the boat to view from, the bow, the stern and the upper deck. I spent the 4 hours up top, which gave me a great advantage to see clearly into distant waters. In my mind's eye fueled by a passion for Melville, it could have been Sperm Whales rather than seagulls I was spying for this day. While Cap'n Dan's tug missed some of the sleekness and grandeur of a Tall Ship, it serves well for tooling around the harbor. </DIV>
<DIV> I settled into the upper deck fro the trip. With Kim Eckert, Peder Svingen, Kim Risen, Jim Mattson and Mike Hendrickson aboard, we were well supported, but they were all on the lower deck, so I saw my opportunity to make my mark in the birding world by calling out discoveries to the wonder and dismay of all aboard. MOURC would probably go back through their records and reconsider the records not accepted I had submitted, what an opportunity! </DIV>
<DIV>I searched the 50 or so Ring-billed Gulls that lagged behind the boat as Mike tossed scoops of popcorn overboard. Juveniles are mottled brown over tan with a dark terminal band on their tail. 1st winter birds showing a grey back with the juvenile pattern still lingering on the wing feathers not molted yet; 2nd winter birds showing virtually no white mirrors on the black primaries- the wing looking to have been "dipped deeper" in blackness, covering more of the wing. </DIV>
<DIV>As we left the vertical bridge area, we were enveloped in silty runoff contrasting against the blue-green clearness of Superior, the current was as red as a Georgia back road, and ran visibly out for more than a mile before it dissipated. The Nemadji River colored the harbor out for a distance of at least 5 miles, (how far we went this day), and not a single diving bird was seen until t eh very end fo the trip, when we passed a Black Scoter. 2 miles out, we began to see more Herring Gulls. Chumming with popcorn gave us good looks at most birds, as when they wheel to land they fan out their wings and tail for great views. Several Bonaparte's joined in, their flight pattern so much swifter, lighter, and more buoyant than their larger cousins. Three or four times I would run to the stern and yell to Mike and tell him I saw a flock of gulls in the distance, he was always on them before I told him, and would say "7 Bonaparte's". he was right, of course.These g
uys are good. An immature bird dropped in from a position behind us and wheeled to drop and feed. I saw the even -colored scalloping of the wings and tail with no dark contrasts like the Herrings we had been seeing, and I managed to get out "ooh! ooh!" when Peder shouted out "Thayers" and pointed up. Those birders next to me reassured me that they took my unintelligible utterings to be proof positive that I had also concluded it to be a first winter Larus thayeri, that I had already done all mental processes required to ensure it was not Glaucus or Iceland, and that I was positive of my convictions. They thanked me for my contributions. I did get to call out a sighting later, when as we rounded Minnesota point and the engine slowed to a creep, we passed every gull along a steel pier from about 50 feet in good light at eye level. I spotted an adult Herring Gull with a large unseemly black patch covering roughly a quarter of the bird's head behind its eye. I yelled
very loudly, " a black headed Herring Gull", to which twelve people said "what?" I then pointed out the bird and it turned put my ID was correct. As we passed by the spot later, someone yelled, "Hey, Mark, see any more melanistic Herring Gulls?" Since the spot was only on the left side of the bird's head, perhaps it was oil, a colored extension, or maybe a tattoo. Someone suggested it might be a kippered Herring Gull. That would explain the oil, I guess. Next year, the MOU needs to do this more often. Kudos to Tom Auer for setting this into action, and thanks to all that made this a great day! Good Birding.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Mark Alt</DIV>
<DIV>Brooklyn Center, MN</DIV></body></html>
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