Most people take winter pelagics off Cape Hatteras for the alcids or a chance at Great Skua, but Brian Patteson's winter trips also happen to be an excellent opportunity for studying gulls.
Chum reliably summons a flock of a few hundred that parade along behind the Stormy Petrel II like the tail of a comet. Unlike most gull-watching which involves staring at loafing flocks on the beach, gulls behind the boat come in to point blank range with wings spread for easy viewing.
Some unusual gulls turned up on last Sunday's pelagic trip, which makes a great opportunity for a good old fashioned bird quiz!
Ready, Go!
Bird #1
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| practice bird |
Just kidding! That was a warm-up bird to get you used to the mediocrity of the photos, and for the uninitiated, to introduce the default species seen here, the Herring Gull.
Here's the real bird #1
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| bird #1 |
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| bird #1 |
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| bird #1 |
Bird #2
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| bird #2 |
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| bird #2 |
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| bird #2 (right) |
Bird #3
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| bird #3 |
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| bird #3 |
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| bird #3 |
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| bird #3 |
Bird #4
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| bird #4 (left) |
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| bird #4 |
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| bird #4 |
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| bird #4 |
That's it!
Leave your answers in the comments below, or if you're shy, email them to me directly: scott dot winton at gmail dot com
Wild guesses are totally fine, but it would be great to hear the rationale for your answers.
First person to get them all correct wins a free Brown Boobies t-shirt!
