Ring-Billed Gull

Well, Spring has sprung! We have had record-breaking temperatures for the last two days, and it has been wonderful! Yet, in Newfoundland we know that can go just as quickly as it came. However, among the birds, Spring is here to stay. Their feathers, beaks and legs are changing into their best presentation, and the song birds are exercising their lungs.

This is a Ring-Billed Gull; pretty aptly named! In the Spring the bright yellow returns to this gull's beak, and the winter streaking on the head disappears and is replaced with a snow white crown. It is easy to see in this picture that it also has a red eye ring.


This image provides a clear contrast of the the Ring Bill in the winter. The beak and legs are almost green and the head is streaked with brown. The one constant with this bird is its distinct ring around its bill.

You may have noticed that the legs of this gull are yellow. What's the difference between this gull and the famous Yellow-Legged Gull? This one is not a Yellow-Legged Gull. The main differences for a new birder to look for are the ring around the bill, and the mantle of this gull is light gray, not slate gray like the YLG.

Over winter, there were only 4 Ring-Billed Gulls spotted in the St. John's area. Now that Spring has arrived, the harbour and urban ponds and lakes are seeing more and more arrive each day. This gull is relatively smaller than the Herring Gull and the Iceland Gull but is bigger than the Black-Headed Gull.

It is quite photogenic. If you're lucky, you might even spot one of these birds at the Yellow Arches enjoying some fries!

Yellow-Rumped Warbler

I spent most of yesterday birding, adding three new birds to my life list! I have been hearing about the Yellow-Rumped Warbler that wintered at Kelly's Brook. After the third set of directions, I found my way to the small brook that runs behind the ball park off Empire Avenue. I really wasn't expecting to see it. I have been to Long Pond in search of a Black-Backed Woodpecker seven times, and I still haven't found it.
When I arrived, I began walking the trail by the brook and things were not looking hopeful. The warbler is such a small little bird and the woods were thick. At any rate it was a nice walk. When I got to the end of the brook by the bridge, I had accepted that I wouldn't see it today. Then, there it was flitting in an open tree. I saw it for about 10 seconds but couldn't get my camera set up. It was gone. I was left wondering if I had really seen the warbler or some other little bird. I certainly didn't see any yellow. I decided to wait and see if it would come back. Then out of the blue I saw two Green-winged Teal. They kept me busy for a while. I'll post those shots another day.

I started my walk back along the brook and decided to dart into the woods a bit to see if I could get a better shot of the teal when I saw a little bird. It was so far away that I couldn't identify it. Nevertheless, I got my camera working and started shooting.

I posted this shot just to illustrate how big the above crop is. This image is a 90% crop of the original shot. The Warbler in flight posted above is about a 7% crop of the original picture.

I know that Rule #1 for photographing birds is to ensure that the eye and the beak are in focus. However, Rule #315 is when the name of the bird is a "Yellow-Rumped Warbler" and you are able to capture the yellow rump, then you can post the picture anyway!

Yellow-Legged Gull

Today's post is all about the bird and the experience, not the pictures. In January, the buzz went out that a Yellow-Legged Gull had been spotted in the harbour in St. John's. Birders everywhere were rushing to the scene. Then, it was reported that the gull had been seen at Quidi Vidi Lake. All the birders rushed to QV and lined off the banks with their cameras and scopes.

This shot was taken on January 30th, a cold Sunday afternoon. Within an hour there were twice as many spotters. All were shivering in their boots hoping to get a glimpse of the Yellow-Legged Gull. It did not disappoint. It showed up on cue. Thanks to Anne Hughes, I got a brief glimpse of the bird through her scope . It was brief and fleeting. First, the gull sat down, hiding its yellow legs. Then other not-so-special gulls got in front of it and blocked the view. Despite the cold, I planned to wait it out to get a better look and maybe even a picture.


In a flash, the gulls flushed and the YLG was gone! I had missed my chance to get a picture of it. Well, I no longer had free time to go in search of this special gull and soon, winter passed. The rains came and the ice went out of Quidi Vidi Lake. I thought for sure that this rare sighting would go undocumented in my records.


Well, today after work I toyed with the idea of taking a nap or going for a walk. Hmmmm what to do? Well, I decided that going for a walk was better for me so I dressed warm for that brisk wind that was blowing and grabbed my camera. I headed for Long Pond, Pippy Park. Aside from a few Robins near the parking lot there weren't many birds. I walked around the pond and spied some American Wigeons. One of the members of the discussion group was recently inquiring about where they could be found so I went through a trail to the water's edge to get a better look and take a count. Yep, there were American Wigeons, four in fact.


Before returning to the trail, I looked out over the thin ice to see if there were any more Wigeons on the pond. What should I see but the Yellow-Legged Gull? What are the odds of that? There are thousands of gulls in St. John's and ONE Yellow-Legged Gull, and it was all mine for the snapping. The gull was about 50 yards away from shore! I really had to push the limits of my 250mm lens. I experimented with so many settings trying to ensure that I got at least one clear shot. The images uploaded here are less than 10% of the original image size - a major crop!



What makes this gull so special? Well, it's a "come-from-away," just like me. It is a southern European species that rarely finds its way here. Although, it has been documented in Newfoundland before. I am providing a link to the recorded event explained by Dave Fifield of MUN who documented the event in 1997. http://www.cs.mun.ca/~dave/ylgu.html This article gives a great description of the YLG and provides some good photos.


Needless to say, I am delighted that I went for a walk today instead of just dreaming about seeing the Yellow-Legged Gull.

Hudsonian Godwit

Sometimes getting a picture of a rare bird is just a matter of "right time; right place." This Hudsonian Godwit just appeared as I was walking around Quidi Vidi Lake in October. I had my Sony point and shoot camera and sat on the bench to fire away. For a long time he remained hidded behind the many ducks in the area, but in time he did finally move out on his own.

When I got home, I searched all of my books to find out what kind of bird this is. I couldn't find anything to match. In January I finally sent it off to a real birder who came back with many questions: "Where did you find it?" "When did you see it?" and more. The birder thought it is a Black Tailed Godwit. In fact, it looks more like a Black Talled Godwit than a Hudsonian. He sent the picture to two other birders who finally decided that it is a Hudsonian. What is the difference?

Well, there are slight differences in the tail bar and in the shape of the beak. The Hudsonian apparently has a slightly greater bend in the beak than the Black Tailed. The other main difference is the origin. The Black Tailed Gotwit is an Eurasian bird that can most often be found in Asia. The Hudsonian is an Arctic bird that is most often found in western North America including Alaska. In either case, the bird was well off course, and I was there to capture its presence and to help document the bird traffic in Newfoundland and Labrador.

If you ever come across a bird that you don't recognize after a fair amount of research, consult with a regional expert. It might be a very important find - like the Pink-footed Goose. It seems that our visitor this year is the first recorded visit since 1995. Bird records are important.

Don't miss out on the Beak display at The Rooms. Free on Wednesday night, you can view a very old and well-maintained collection of birds in the province. Most of the collection belongs to Memorial University. It is a great place to take children. There is even a birder backpack for them to use and identify birds while viewing the large exhibit.