Last week I spent a couple of days checking sites in Ottawa County, Michigan, mainly centered around Holland State Park. I was particularly interested in what Herring numbers were like and if any lingering "northern" gulls were to be found.
I stumbled on a couple of GBBGs (2nd and 4th summer type), 1 LBBG (1st summer) and, surprisingly, only 4 juvenile Herrings from some 275 individuals.
The single mirror on p10 and absence of a p9 mirror suggests a younger bird. The brownish greater primary coverts also point away from a definitive adult.
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| 4th Summer Type GBBG. |
My only Lesser Black-backed Gull, a species that I thought I'd see more of on the west-central Michigan lakefront:
There was no shortage of 1st summer Herrings, including this individual retaining an all-black bill:
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P1-P7 fully grown, P8 half grown, P9 dropped, P10 old. S1-S2 renewed, as well as most inner/mid secondaries. 03 August 2016.
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| Another 1st summer type with S1-S3, P1-P8 fully grown as well as all rectrices. The bi-colored bill is a much more expected look. |
