cywong

Would experienced birdwatchers please advise on whether these are immature Black-tailed Gulls? It's very difficult to identify gulls especially immature ones.











Shandong Feb2008

cgeoff

Nice photos, Cherry. I think their identities are as follows:

Pic 1. 1st winter Vega Gull. The most obvious features identifying this bird is the relatively pale and unmoulted median and greater coverts, and the pattern of the scapulars.

Pic 2. 2nd winter Yellow-legged Gull (mongolicus). Rather pale upperparts, extensive grey in the median coverts for this age, relatively unmarked white underparts.

Pics 3 & 4: 2nd winter Black-tailed Gulls. Relatively dark grey upperparts, extensive brownish wash on rear of head, clean-cut two-tone bill, dull yellowish legs.

Pic 5. 2nd win Yellow-legged Gull. Same as above, but based on the bill pattern, a different bird.

Nice photos. How many birds at this site? Is it along a river, or along the coast.

Geoff

cywong

Geoff,

Thank you very much for your expert opinion and detailed explanation.

All the above 5 photos were taken at the same site, a place along the coast. The place is called Shidao ( 石島), at northeast coast of Shandong.

At this site, there were about 50 birds including Black-tailed Gulls, Vega Gulls, Yellow-legged Gulls and Mallards.

We also found these gulls in another site called Shing Shan Wai, another place along the coast. There were hundreds of gulls at this place.