Iceland Gull in St. Louis County
2009-11-26

'Rare Regular' in Minnesota

First-cycle Iceland Gull at Canal Park, Duluth, 26 November 2009. Note bill size and shape, pinkish color visible on proximal portion of bill, uniformly pale plumage with folded wing tips similar in shade to tertials and upper wing-coverts, and relatively long extension of wing tips beyond the tail tip. The internal portion of each tertial is mottled and whorled, which also helps eliminate Thayer's Gull. In flight, this bird showed uniformly pale upper wings, with no evidence of thayeri's secondary bar or darker outer primaries. It also lacked the darker trailing edge to the ventral surface of the outer wing. A subtle "tail band" was visible in flight. Based on plumage and bill characteristics, this individual appears to be one of the three first-cycle Iceland Gulls observed at the Superior Entry over the past several weeks.

Peder H. Svingen, Nikon Coolpix P80, f4.5, ISO 219.