Monday 4 June 2012

Little Gulls

Last weekend there was a group of Little Gulls at Frampton Marsh RSPB on the Lincolnshire coast. The group numbers fluctuated throughout the time I was at the site, but the most I saw at one time was 12 individuals. The gulls looked to me to be 1st summer birds, but varied greatly in their appearance. Some looked like 1st winter birds, with pale heads, some had the start of a black hood and a couple had almost complete black hoods, with one bird looking almost adult like, except for its wing pattern.

This group gave me a chance to study the differing plumages in a group of birds, that whilst they looked different, were in fact the same species.


The above photo shows 4 Little Gulls and a larger Black-headed Gull in the background. You can see the differing plumage patterns on the heads of the birds, but they all show the wing patterns of 1st summer birds, with the dark on the upperwing appearing almost bleached, giving it a browner appearance than on winter birds.




The above 3 photos show the differences in the plumages on a larger section of the group, with up to 6 birds present in the last photo. They all show the wing pattern of 1st summer birds, but again, the differences in head plumage is quite apparent.

The photos below show a few of the birds in closer detail, giving a chance to see the wing pattern a bit better. The bright red legs and all black bill are I.D. features of this stunning little gull and are present on all, but juvenile birds (although in winter the legs are slightly pinker).




The two photos below show the bird with an almost complete black hood, but the bird is not an adult as the wing pattern shows. An adult Little Gull has clean grey wings with pure white tips and the hood is complete. This bird shows the dark on its upperwing and the hood has a whitish freckling on the front.



A good lesson for me in gull identification, showing the wide range of appearance of a bird that tends to only be shown as an adult summer or winter bird in the guide books.

12 comments:

  1. Great photos and perfect for a id lesson.

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    1. Thank you Eileen, I think they are a bit helpful!?
      J

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  2. An interesting study John. Gull identification is a bit of a black art to me.?? {:(

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    1. Thanks Roy,
      It takes a bit of time, but I haven`t started chanting anything backwards yet! ;)
      J

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  3. Some good info there John as well as great photos. I do find gull ID tricky especially with all their different stages! I will be putting a gull on a post soon which I shall tentatively ID but will stand to be corrected :-)

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    1. Hi Jan,
      Thank you. Gull I.D. is and always will be tricky, gulls of all species have so many varying plumages and then there is the fact that some have up to 4 different stages before reaching adulthood, it`s a nightmare, but good to try and get some sort of handle on!
      J

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  4. Great info, thanks John. I'm learning that identifying birds, bugs, butterflies etc is a bigger challenge due to the variations within the same species. Just makes it all the more interesting!

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    1. Hi Omi,
      Thank you. I agree with you, sometimes the harder the I.D., the greater the sense of relief when you I.D. the bird/bug correctly.
      J

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  5. Such neat little birds. One day I'll figure out all the plumages of all the gulls. One day.....one day.

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    1. They are lovely little gulls John, even these birds that weren`t adult had a sort of `neatness` about them. You and me both with the different plumages, for me, that day is a long way off!
      J

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  6. Replies
    1. Hi Bazza,
      Not when it comes to gulls and all their different plumage stages! ;)
      Just `gulls` is a lot easier than 1st summer Little Gull and 3rd winter Herring Gull, but where is the fun in that?! ;)
      J

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