There were two adult Common Terns along with two Forster's Terns on the north shore of Timnath Reservoir.
Common Tern #1 More advanced molt into winter plumage. White forehead with blackish speckling on crown transitioning to a more fully black nape and hind neck. The face was mostly dark with a more solid black ear patch and white speckling transitioning again to a more blackish hind neck. The primaries on the upper wing were significantly dark on the outer 1/4 of each feather and I caught a glimpse of the dark wedge extending into the center of the wing when it flew. Bill was all black Legs were red and longer than a typical Arctic Tern with the belly feathers well above the leg joint. Tail was obviously shorter than the wing tips and was white or whitish. Common Tern #2 Just starting molt into winter plumage. The head was mostly black with a few white speckles in the forehead. This bird did not fly or raise its wings. They looked dark on the primaries on the folded wing similar to Tern #1. Bill was 1/2 orangish-red on the base and dark on the tip. Legs also red and longer than a typical Arctic Tern. Tail was white and shorter than the wing tips. Joe Mammoser Fort Collins -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/573c207d-4b4c-4ffa-ac9f-1b20b83ef053%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
