I apologize for not sending this to the Minnesota lists yesterday. I intended to, but got distracted. I am posting in case anyone is interested in a bird on the border. A few of us will be trying to relocate the bird today. If we are successful, I will post that sighting on a more timely basis.
Yesterday's Message: I went Jaeger hunting (Jaeger Jaegering?) over the lunch hour and was able to relocate the Jaeger that Fred Lesher found and reported yesterday. When I found it, the bird was loafing on Lake Onalaska straight west of the observation deck at Nelson Park on the north end of French Island in the area where Fred found it yesterday. In total, I was able to watch the bird for nearly 1 1/2 hours. When I spotted the bird, I tried to call several area birders. I did reach Jean Ruhser and she was able to join me. After she arrived, we were able to leisurely compare the bird to the Sibley and National Geographic field guides and we are positive that this bird is in fact a Pomarine Jaeger and not a Parasitic Jaeger. The bird is a light morph adult that is close to breeding plumage. We were able to get definitive looks at the bird's black cap, bill, wings and tail. All of the field marks as well as the bird's size and bulk point to an ID of Pomarine Jaeger. On this bird, the black cap extends well below the lower mandible of the bird's bill. This extension was not as obvious as the mutton chop sideburns of a Peregrine Falcon but was definitely well below the gape and lower mandible and gave some of that same appearance when the bird was viewed from head on. The bird's bill was two-toned and was relatively heavy - more like that of a Herring Gull than the more pointed, slender bill of a Parasitic Jaeger. Both Jean and I were able to get good looks at the top and bottom of the bird's wings. The top of the wings were a uniform dark brown with an indistinct white crescent at the base of the primary flight feathers. The underside of the wings showed a very distinct white crescent at the base of the primaries and a less distinct white crescent at the base of the first row of coverts of the primary and secondary flight feathers that connected to an extended indistinct white line at the margin of the secondaries and their coverts. There was also a great deal of other white mottling on the other coverts toward the leading edge of the underside of the wing. The bird is all white below from the dark breast band to the under tail coverts. According to the Sibley field guide, this is a feature of some adult male light morph Pomarine Jaegers. The bird's central tail feathers were not fully developed but did extend at least 2 inches past the end of the other tail feathers. These central feathers were broad and rounded and when the bird flew parallel to our viewing location showed the 90 degree twist of a Pomarine Jaeger. They gave the end of the tail a thick and almost rudder-like look. I have seen several Parasitic Jaegers at Duluth and Wisconsin Point. This bird was much larger and bulkier, with a thicker neck, broader wings, and more of a pot-bellied look when it was flying. Although we did not get to see it in close proximity to a Ring-billed Gull, there were gulls in the area. This bird was definitely larger and bulkier than the gulls. In general, the bird did not appear as agile in flight as the Parasitic Jaegers that I have seen. The wings were much wider and did not have the relatively thin, pointed aspect of those of a Parasitic Jaeger. Thanks Fred for alerting us to this great bird. It gave Jean and I wonderful looks. Hopefully, others can share it as well. Since it is so early in the fall migration, perhaps it will stick around for awhile. Good Birding, Dan Jackson Chaseburg, Vernon County, Wisconsin (Near LaCrosse) http://community.webshots.com/user/danielejackson -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://moumn.org/pipermail/mou-net_moumn.org/attachments/20070816/2e767934/attachment.html
