[TopOfUtah] Probable SLATY-BACKED GULL-Logan, 11/30/08

[Craig Fosdick]

Today while picking through the gulls at Sue's Pond (aka Logan Mitigation
Ponds) in Logan, I came upon a gull that did not fit the usual suspects.
After a bit of deliberation, and one phone call, I arrived at a conclusion:
SLATY-BACKED GULL.  Yes, I know, out of place indeed.  The bird was seen
1120-1230 pm at the Shorebird Playa at Sue's Ponds, aka the Logan Mitigation
Ponds, Cache Co., Logan, 11/30/08.

Brief description of the bird and why I think it is Slaty-backed Gull.
First, it's a big bird, bigger than the California Gulls and about the same
size as the five or so Herring Gulls that were present.  It's an adult, with
pale pink legs, with a mantle noticeably darker than that of a California
Gull, and much, much darker than the nearby Herring Gulls.  Eye is yellow,
with dark smudging around the eye.  Head not blocky, but with a gentle peak
towards back and a gentle slope towards front.  Bill big, yellow, with red
smudge in front of gonydeal angle.  Black wingtips.  Head is moderately
streaked, about the same or perhaps a little less streaking than Herring
Gull.  I did not see the bird fly....

I have sent photos to be posted on Utah Birds, and will gladly
send attachments to anyone who's interested.

After concluding that it was a truly lost gull, Western Gull was my first
choice, but I later decided to consider Slaty-backed Gull as well, given
that both species are the same size as Herring Gulls and have darker
mantles.  A phone call to Ryan O' Donnell revealed that my suspicions about
the streaking were correct; too much for Western Gulls.  The bird is too big
(25" vs 21") for Lesser black-backed Gull, leg color is wrong (yellow in
LBBG), and the mantle is too dark.

Other birds present at the Logan Mitigation Ponds today included..

350 California Gulls
30 Ring-billed Gulls
1 first-winter Glaucous Gull
1 Greater Yellowlegs
.....and the lonely juvenile Ross' Goose continues.

Sue's Ponds are on <.5 mile down 1900 W off of Utah 30, heading west from
downtown Logan.  If you've never been there...here are a few tips.

1.  Gulls come and go, and just because they are not present on a given day
does not mean that they have left....case in point, the Lesser Black-backed
Gull was present on/off for nearly three weeks in November.
2.  The shorebird playa (gull central) is the second pond down the gated but
usually not locked dirt access road (don't drive it if it's wet) on the
south.
3.  If the SLATY-BACKED GULL is there, it sticks out....darkest mantle, by
far.

Good birding, Craig.

Craig Fosdick
Logan, Utah.
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