So There Was This Gull...

I know I'm probably asking for it putting this post up, but I've been up since 4, [the wrong 4, the one you shouldn't see] and am highly vexed by this, so here goes;


 Out with the Folks on Sunday, and a large gull hoves into view. As they do.

This one had a jizz that screamed out for attention though, with an elegance of flight and obviously long pointy wings, so I put bins on it and went 'huh?' then 'huh?!??' then scrambled for the camera.

Looking at the boc, I got the horrible feeling that I had failed to get anything usable, and went 'well, it's always a Herring Gull, probably'. Then life got in the way and so it's not until after work today that I finally stick said pixels up on the big screen and have a proper look.

Oh. Ohhh.. Eeek?

I hit the reference material, going as far as Olson and Larsson - who really need a 2nd ed. with more images of all ages, btw - and still I am;  'Huh.'

So, to share with those who care, said results you see below. They are all horribly cropped, as you probably expect by now..

It had already passed by the time the camera obeyed

I only got one 'close' shot, and of course it was in the worst pose it could find. You can perhaps see that it has a long pointed hand and very dark outer primaries, a white white rump and uppertail, with tail bar, and a not exactly well-marked belly.

Then dropped lower

 

This the best image. You can see the - really obvious in life - very dark if not black secondaries, grey feathers in the greater coverts and mantle, the long bill, and long pointy hand. Plus again that very white bum plus tail bar

Underwing sort of visible

Not a great image even by my standards - with artifacts on the right wing at least - but the only underwing glimpse I got so up here. But is it a pale underwing with artifacts, or a slightly marked underwing with pale central panel?



Thoughts.. Well, one thing sprang to mind at the time, looking through bins at a different angle, but looking at those pics up there, I am struck by.. well, a real whisky tango. I even considered going back to that online forum - which I'd previously sworn off after having questions called statements - but there are limits.

Then again, if I can't find a picture that fits, I might even resort to it.


To apologise to all of you who hate gulls aren't laridophiles and had to put up with this, here's something closer-to;

Isn't that better?

Better posting will follow. With lots of close-ups of tweety birds and very few if any awful gull sp. pictures.


Be Seeing You..