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[Skuas] Arctic Skuas 短尾賊鷗

Great shot, Hendrix, but this is definitely Arctic, presumably the first bird we saw just near the Murrelet.

In addition to the apparently extensively pale primaries (though lighting effects in this shot could be playing a part), this bird shows a breastband and pale lower underparts, and you can just see the diagnostic tiny pale area above the bill I believe. Breeding Arctic does have tail streamers as long as this, but Long-tailed has even longer ones of course, unless they are broken.

Various other features separate from Pom.

One of two identifiable with certainty as Arctic out of five skuas seen yesterday, though all the others looked like fairly clear Arctics to me, which seems to come through later than the other two species perhaps.

Mike Turnbull

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