Hey birders! Sorry for the lateness of this post. I was having internet issues. I was out for a walk with my family this afternoon (4:30pm) along the Sakatah Trail. This trail passes directly through Eagle Lake (you may recall a certain famous Pomarine Jaeger).
On the north side of the trail there is still an ice pack with many a lounging gull. Most of the birds were Ring-billed Gulls with a couple of Herring Gulls mixed in. As we were about to head back to the car an odd gull flew in. I believe it was a 1st winter Mew Gull. It cooperatively landed in the water at the edge of the ice alongside a Ring-billed Gull. The general impression was a of a slender, slightly shorter Ring-billed Gull. The head was small and evenly rounded with a dark eye. The beak was short, slender, and tipped in black. Flight feathers were dark brown. Its tail was white at the base and had a thick soft brown terminal band that was lighter in color to the primaries. I've seen a similarly plumaged bird in Milwaukee, WI during winter years ago but did not expect to see such a bird in the Mankato area. To get to where I saw the bird, take County Road 3 north from Highway 14 east of Mankato. Park in the parking lot for the Sakatah Trail and walk east until you get to a bridge. The bird was on the north side. Good luck! Chad Heins Mankato, MN __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com
