[Birdnet] Whimbrel and Leucistic Franklin's Gull

[Kristin Purdy]

Thanks to Paul Higgins for calling in the report of the WHIMBREL on Antelope Island Causeway in Davis County. I scampered out there this afternoon and saw the bird at about 3:45. He or she was on the south side of the causeway at mile 1.1. This spot is a few hundred yards west of the weather station as Paul reported.

While I was there the bird flew a loop out over the water and boomeranged back to the causeway at about mile marker 1. That's where I left it. 

Now I can scratch the Whimbrel off one of my lists--Kris' List of Dirty Little Secrets. That list contains the names of Utah species that aren't wildly rare, but I've never seen them. I can't tell you the remaining names on the list because it's a secret. 

Another interesting bird along the causeway today was a leucistic adult Franklin's Gull swimming at mile 4.2, south side. I was attracted to this gull because it appeared pure white to the unaided eye. I thought I had an Ivory Gull for a minute--Ha! With binoculars, the bird appeared to wear the palest of gray hoods and it had very pale gray wingtips. The eye and the beak were black. It was a pretty neat-looking bird. 

The only shorebird species I saw today in addition to others I reported earlier in the week on birdtalk were Semi-palmated Plovers and Long-billed Curlews. No Black-bellied Plovers today. 

Kris
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