Hi Everyone,
I wanted to send an update on the BLACK-HEADED GULL x RING-BILLED GULL hybrid that has been consistently documented in Fairmount WMA, Somerset Co., since the weekend of February 12-13. In my previous message, I commented that we felt a second individual, a pure Black-headed Gull, may have been present as well. Our documentation photos were limited, however, and I had a long home Internet outage that delayed review. The photo forensics from the Saturday photos ultimately confirmed that our original sighting was also the hybrid. This was, of course, the most likely explanation, but not the only one. Thanks for your patience while we reviewed our field impressions against our distant photos. As the following comparison of eBird range maps indicates, this is another very rare hybrid combination, so the record is quite noteworthy.
Black-headed x Ring-billed Gull (hybrid) range map:
http://tinyurl.com/4wxyasp
Black-headed Gull range map:
http://tinyurl.com/4cgocn9
The odds of encountering two very rare Ring-billed Gull hybrids in one day in Maryland seems overwhelmingly low, which makes them potentially even more significant. It looks like we'll have to increase our vigilance for these combinations in the years ahead.
Here is a summary of places to view photos of this interesting bird, starting with our distant shots from Day 1:
Evelyn Ralston:
http://tweetweet.smugmug.com/Nature/Birds/201102-Blackwater/
(see images 30, 31, 35, 36, and 37)
Mine (bad, but with very different structural impression):
http://www.billhubick.com/images2/bhgu_x_rbgu_hybrid_somerset_01.jpg http://www.billhubick.com/images2/bhgu_x_rbgu_hybrid_somerset_02.jpg http://www.billhubick.com/images2/bhgu_x_rbgu_hybrid_somerset_03.jpg
A nice profile shot by Matt Hafner yesterday:
http://www.billhubick.com/images2/bhgu_x_rbgu_hybrid_matt_hafner.jpg
from Mikey Lutmerding:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeycerw/5452745331/
from Dan Haas:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nervousbird/
from Joe Turner:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/41142725@N07
** These last, in particular, offer close-up details of the distinctive wing pattern that is central to the ID as BHGU x RBGU hybrid.
Thanks to Mikey Lutmerding, Ron Gutberlet, Dan Small and everyone else who helped document the bird. I think Maryland does a great job working together to thoroughly document all of our unusual birds, and our good habits are clearly getting even better.
Good birding!
Bill
p.s. Some recent photo updates, including the WOST and the out-of-range BCCHs in Kent and southern Cecil:
http://www.billhubick.com/photos/updates/20110221.php
Bill Hubick
Pasadena, Maryland
http://www.billhubick.com
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