I saw the Slaty-backed Gull, too. It was last seen sitting at around 9:15 am near a second winter Iceland Gull - I left at 9:30 am. Norm wrote: >>>Thanks to all who helped us get on this intriguing and confusing bird.>>> Amen to that! I would also add that it really is a ocnfusing bird, especially from a great distance. Another birder and I first mistook it for a problematic Lesser Black-backed (no clear leg color visible) from the parking lot viewing area. From the catwalk, however, the bird's legs were clearly a pinkish flesh color. This characteristic was even more evident when I was able to follow the bird in flight. At times, it got very close to the catwalk, and I could even see the white tongues on the P6, P7 and P8 primaries, albeit only as brief flashes. So my advice to those going this weekend would be to go straight to the catwalk. I would also suggest that those that have it would be well advised to look at their August 1994 issue of Birding, which contains an article on Slaty-backed identification I found quite useful (Adult Slaty-backed Gulls: Variability in Mantle Color and Comments on Identification, Mary Gustafson and Bruce Peterjohn, page 243-49). The bird I saw today most closely resembled the bird pictured in Figure 5, with maybe a hint more streaking on the head than in the picture. The bird's legs were as pink, though a bit darker, as those of the bird in Figure 2. Good luck to all and thanks again to all who found this great bird. Now, I'd like to hear from some of the folks who know how many records there are for this species in this area. Is this a first for Maryland? Tom Stock Silver Spring