Betsy and I birded the river for several hours today. We started at Goat Island on the NY side and had 6 LESSER BLACK-BACKED and 2 ICELAND GULLS. Lots of gulls sitting here.
Our next stop was at the power plants on the Ontario side - the Adam Beck overlook. This spot was loaded with gulls. We had at least 10 ICELAND GULLS, two GLAUCOUS (juv. and second winter), and two LESSER BLACK-BACKEDS. We also had an adult gull that looked similar to a California Gull. The bird seemed slightly smaller than the Herring Gulls, the mantle was paler than on a Lesser Black-backed, and there was a lot of black in the wingtips, all field marks for California Gull. However, there was only one small mirror in the wingtips. In addition brief views of the legs gave me the impression that they had both yellow and pink tones. I suspect that this was a Herring X Lesser Black-backed Gull. Only a handful of BONAPARTE'S GULLS were at the Whirlpool (Spanish Aero Car). Above the falls we searched for the reported Slaty-backed Gull and found 3 ICELAND GULLS, one adult HERRING X GLAUCOUS GULL, also known as Nelson's Gull, and a dark-mantled gull that seemed like it might be a candidate for Slaty-backed. This bird was in a feeding flock below the control gates. Unfortunately, it was distant and the snow began coming down in earnest before it flew downriver and out of sight, so our views were inconclusive. I hope everyone had a merry Christmas. Good birding! Willie ---------------- Willie D'Anna Betsy Potter Wilson, NY dannapotterATroadrunner.com http://www.betsypottersart.com _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
