Hi all! A friend of mine called me to alert me to several fields full of gulls off of 257 and CR78 north of Windsor and South of 14 around 6pm tonight. They were grouped in the field on the south side of CR78. The fields were being actively plowed so no surprise there were many gulls. Several dozen Franklin's have returned among a few California's, one Lesser Black-backed, and the throngs of Ring-billed Gulls. There was one dark headed gull that stuck out. First, this was an adult bird in full breeding plumage. The black on the head rose much steeper to almost the top of its head, way higher than a Bonaparte's or Franklin's should go. The mantle was lighter than any of the surrounding Franklin's. I could see red on its bill and red legs. The legs matched the color of the bill. I know Bonaparte's have pinkish legs but from the sunlight shining from the west they seemed really really red. Anyhow the red on the bill eliminated the Bonaparte's. The kicker was when this bird took off. The primaries on the underside of the wings were incredibly dark with the two white outer primaries with black tips. I'm 99% positive on this one. Sometimes I just can't believe my own eyes. I really hope someone will head out to the area to take a peek. I'd love some validation on this one. No photos per usual with me. I'd really love one now. Someday...There are thousands of gulls all over the place from Windsor north to the Weld county landfill. So good luck to anyone that tries!
Josh Bruening Fort Collins -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cobirds?hl=en?hl=en To unsubscribe, reply using "remove me" as the subject.
