Hi,

 Three adult Caspian Gulls at Stubbers Green yesterday / today!!

Martin Garner photographed/videoed two yesterday and may have had a third bird (see his Birding Frontiers blog) and he and I were there today when we also saw two birds, one of which was different to either of yesterday’s!

Martin also saw a 1st-winter Yellow-legged Gull yesterday and we saw the subadult Iceland Gull today.

A real gull-fest, but three different Caspian Gulls over two days may be a site / county record – I’ll have the check, unless you know.

Martin and I also discussed the possibility of him leading a Gull Masterclass at Stubbers Green during late February / March, like he has in the northeast. Hopefully more on that soon!

Cheers.

Kevin Clements

Graham,

Stubbers Green lunchtime, 9^th January:

38 Tufted Duck

16 Pochard

12 Shoveler

1 Goosander

1 GC Grebe

70 Canada Geese

61 Lapwing

11 Moorhen

7 Common Gull

 

Also, another interesting adult large white-headed gull, but I did not have a camera!! Head heavily streaked, which extended onto nape, neck sides and upper breast. Mantle darker grey than Y-l Gull, but with blotchy appearance, as if made up of two slightly different tones of grey giving it an untidy an immature look. Visible primaries in closed wings black with small white mirrors. Tertials same tone of grey as upperparts, with typical white edges, but with much darker centres like grey of LB-b Gull and contrasting with rest of upperparts i.e. tricoloured tertials that also gave impression of immature bird, but it had an adult bill, which was yellow with red a spot. adult. Legs yellow, with a stronger and more orange tone than the bill. Eyes pale yellow, with possible red or orange orbital ring. A large bird, bigger than adjacent LB-b Gulls, comparable with mid-sized Herring Gulls. It did open its wings, but it was obscured by other gulls at the time, and it seemed to have a darker secondary bar, similar in colour to the tertial centres.

I was first drawn to it by the tone of grey and its yellow legs, thinking it might be an omissus Herring Gull, which I am not familiar with, but the other details did not seem to fit. Otherwise, it would have to have been a large, pale LB-b Gull, hooded Y-l Gull or a hybrid!!

I’ll have another look tomorrow and definitely take a camera!!

Graham,

Not sure if you have seen this thread on Birdforum www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=217971, but general consensus amongst those that have seen Azorean Gulls in the Azores and the Oxfordshire bird is that the two adults at Chasewater and elsewhere were most likely hybrid Herring x Lesser Black-backed Gulls and that the subadult bird probably was too.

Nonetheless, an interesting experience at the time.

Kevin Clements

Hi Kevin,

I've tried to look at the Bird Forum but I've given up after it caused my computer to crash before I could even register! I can well imagine the discussion and can quite easily go along with what appears to be its outcome. Every day I see gulls that don't quite fit the bill (or some other feature) and once normal species variation has been considered it is a great relief to have the hybrid explanation to fall back on. It could even help with the current Glauland or Icecous Gull that's teasing the braincells! Perhaps Atlantis could be the result of hybridization between graellsii and michahellis anyway. Is the Oxfordshire bird regarded as a pure Atlantis and if so, why?

Graham