Date: Wed, 4 Sep 2002 16:15:36 -0400 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Peter Mann Organization: EPL, Inc. Subject: Kelp Gull - Yes MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit SAME TEXT AS BEFORE - THIS TIME WITH A SUBJECT LINE, SO IT MAKES MORE SENSE. Floyd Parks, Zack Parks, Jerrod Parks, Paul Tolson and I decided to go looking for the Kelp Gull - a life bird for all of us. I arrived at the Seabreeze at 3:30 pm and spent the next two hours looking at Great Black-backed Gulls in all plumages, but no KEGU. The others arrived at 5:30 and we began a spirited discussion on the finer points of dark-mantled gull morphology. "There that gull is a little smaller than the other Great Black-backeds" "Yeah and don't you think his mantle is darker?" "His feet aren't really pink, are they?" After about 10 minutes of this, we decided we had another Great Black-backed gull, when the genuine article flew to his favorite piling. Wow! No question that he was a different species. We got great looks for the next half hour as he preened, slept, and generally cooperated. (I guess it wasn't worth his while to show up for just one birder, so he waited until all five of us were there.) We then retired to the Seabreeze for Bootsieburgers and crabcakes, sitting under the MOS certificate while watching the Kelpster. Great ending to a great weekend of birding Peter Mann Galena, MD ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================