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Caspian Gull - 3rd winter, Hole Haven Creek
8th March 2008
This became the 38th individual at this site since 25th October 2007.
This bird was quite distant but the features required are clearly visible: long thing legs, low sloping forehead, small dark eye forward in the face, long slender, pale lemon yellow bill with little in the way of a Gonydeal angle. The bird is aged as 3rd winter by virtue of the residual 2nd generation feathers, now looking a dirty grey, in the wing coverts and tertials and in combination with more adult like primaries. This bird had a severe limp and the primaries were out of alignment much of the time, not a well bird.
Caspian Gull - 3rd winter, Hole Haven Creek
5th January 2008
Aged by black primaries with white tips in conjunction with older dark brown centred outer tertials and replaced plain grey inner tertials and the brown 'wash' to the greater and lesser coverts. The bill is predominantly yellow with small red Gonydeal spot.
Identified as a Caspian by:
The sloping forehead,
Small dark beady eye with lack of streaking
Slender, tapering and pale yellow bill with dark mark near the tip and lack of obvious Gonys angle
Long spindly and slightly pinkish legs
Caspian Gull - 3rd winter, Private Site, Essex 31st January 2009
Same bird above and below
This bird was the closest Caspian Gull I have ever seen. It is aged as a 3rd-winter by mostly dark bill with pale tip and residual brownish 'ghosting' in the wing coverts. This individual had especially tatty primaries, and it could have been unwell which would possibly account for the mostly dark bill.
The otherwise classic Caspian Gull features can be seen
- Small head with low sloping forehead
- Small dark eye
- Fairly heavy streaking around the lower neck and breast sides
- Long, thin and pasty coloured legs with a lot of leg visible above the knee
- Bulging rear belly
Caspian Gull - Larus cachinnans
Third-years
Caspian Gull - 3rd winter, Private Site, Essex, 2nd January 2010
Surprisingly few 3rd winters are seen, one of the minority plumages. This bird has the full suite of characters of a classic Caspian; note the bill shape and pattern, the head shape, the long neck, limited beast and neck 'streaking' and long rear ended appearance.
Aged as a third winter as retained tertials are present and the primaries only have limited white spots.
This bird has a fairly pale eye, not the completely black doll like eye as expected on many birds, it isn't however as pale as on a Herring Gull.
Caspian Gull - 3rd winter, Private Site, Essex, 13th February 2010
Note the classic small head with low sloping forehead and long parallel sided bill with lack of prominent Gonydeal angle, the result is a snouty appearance. The eye is darkish though not completely dark. Also not the down turn in the gape.
The small head is perched atop of a long slender neck.
Aged as a 3rd-winter due to dark markings on the bill, the retained pale brown wing coverts and tertials and the the black primaries with small white tips. The bird still, however, has the long slender proportions appearing attenuated at the rear.
The legs are not visible.
Caspian Gull - 3rd winter, Private Site, Essex, 13th February 2010
Same bird as in the previous image.
Here the legs are visible and they are long, slender and pasty grey-ish pink in tone.
The black in the wing-tips is limited. The black of P10 only just reaches the blackish outer primary coverts on the outer web whilst all the subsequent primaries increasingly fall short of the coverts. Note the extensive pale grey tongue with whitish 'moon' on the inner web of P6.
On P10 thee s a large mirror on the inner web with a small mirror on the outer web whilst there is a small mirror on P9. Note also the odd black pattern of P4, a black wedge.
On the underside of the near wing the pale grey tongues can be seen more obviously.
Caspian Gull, third-winter, Essex 9th January 2010
Caspian Gull, third-winter, Essex 9th January 2010
Caspian Gull, Third winter, Essex 13th February 2010
Caspian Gull, Third winter, Essex 13th November 2010
Typically elegant looking bird with dark looking eye, fine hind neck streaking and slender bill
Caspian Gull, Third winter, Essex 22nd January 2011
Classic Caspian Gull profile clearly seen here; long slender pale lemony yellow-green bill with lack of Gonydeal angle, smallish dark eye forward in the face and the lower hind-neck streaking.
Caspian Gull, Third winter, Essex 22nd January 2011
Same bird as previous two images however here the dark primary coverts are dark, the mirrors are small, white primary tips small and dark remnant tail band.