RE: [nysbirds-l] Thayer's/Kumlien's thingy photos & video
In April 1997 I took the following photo of an adult Thayer's on Staten Island. At least two other experienced observers agreed that it was a Thayer's. http://home.bway.net/lewis/birds/Thayers/Thayers.JPG Bob Lewis Sleepy Hollow NY (visiting New Mexico until June) --- On Sun, 3/13/11, Kevin J. McGowan wrote: > From: Kevin J. McGowan > Subject: RE: [nysbirds-l] Thayer's/Kumlien's thingy photos & video > To: "Angus Wilson" , "NYSBIRDS-L@cornell.edu" > > Date: Sunday, March 13, 2011, 5:33 PM > For those interested in arcane gull > things, check out the research photos of Thayer's Gull wings > generously supplied at my request a number of years ago by > Dennis Paulson at the U of PS Slater Museum: > http://www2.ups.edu/biology/museum/gullwings4. > > Kevin > > > Kevin J. McGowan > Ithaca, NY > k...@cornell.edu > 607-254-2452 > > -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
RE: [nysbirds-l] Thayer's/Kumlien's thingy photos & video
For those interested in arcane gull things, check out the research photos of Thayer's Gull wings generously supplied at my request a number of years ago by Dennis Paulson at the U of PS Slater Museum: http://www2.ups.edu/biology/museum/gullwings4. Kevin Kevin J. McGowan Ithaca, NY k...@cornell.edu 607-254-2452 -Original Message- From: bounce-9095404-3714...@list.cornell.edu [mailto:bounce-9095404-3714...@list.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of Angus Wilson Sent: Thursday, March 10, 2011 8:19 PM To: NYSBIRDS-L@cornell.edu Subject: Re: [nysbirds-l] Thayer's/Kumlien's thingy photos & video ... For those interested in following the details, a good place to start is this comparison of the wings from the University of Puget Sound museum. Upper: adult Thayer's, Jan; Lower: adult Herring Gull (note: this is a 'western' American Herring), Dec.; both from Washington State. http://www2.ups.edu/biology/museum/THGU-HEGUwing1.jpg http://www2.ups.edu/biology/museum/THGU-HEGUwing2.jpg Remember these are just single wings and do not address the issue of individual variation - a thorny issue that often confounds the identification of large gulls. -- Angus Wilson New York City & The Springs, NY, USA http://birdingtotheend.blogspot.com/ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [nysbirds-l] Thayer's/Kumlien's thingy photos & video
This is indeed a fascinating bird and well worth careful study. The photos and video grabs are not so shabby and just go to prove how much useful information can be captured under less than ideal conditions. Well done guys! The standing bird is quite striking and I like the leg color, fact that both eyes are dark (it's not so uncommon to see gulls with one eye dark, the other light), the way the brown smudging concentrates above the shoulders (like a loosely wrapped shawl), the color and shape of the bill and also the bulging white bar on the tips of the secondaries. It also looks noticeably short legged. The primary tips look black (not gray) and beyond what I'd expect for 'Kumlein's' but maybe this is a simplified/outdated view. I'll leave it to the experts to decided whether the patterning on P5 is beyond the expected range for classic Thayer's, but as Doug has said already, this subtle detail seems to be the focus of any lingering concerns. It seems ironic that Alvaro Jaramillo, a Thayer's expert from California was just down earlier this week and asked about the frequency of Thayer's Gull on the coast. In my view they are extremely rare, much more so than in western or central New York, but maybe not entirely absent. Lots of gulls are on the move now, so it's worth checking every little gathering, if nothing else to gain a deeper understanding of how our gulls vary from one to the next. For those interested in following the details, a good place to start is this comparison of the wings from the University of Puget Sound museum. Upper: adult Thayer's, Jan; Lower: adult Herring Gull (note: this is a 'western' American Herring), Dec.; both from Washington State. http://www2.ups.edu/biology/museum/THGU-HEGUwing1.jpg http://www2.ups.edu/biology/museum/THGU-HEGUwing2.jpg Remember these are just single wings and do not address the issue of individual variation - a thorny issue that often confounds the identification of large gulls. -- Angus Wilson New York City & The Springs, NY, USA http://birdingtotheend.blogspot.com/ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
