This bird has been at Craney Island, Portsmouth, since spring...studied by a bird survey team in this closed area...not evident in these portraits, is the fact that it is smaller than a Herring Gull...it is whitish, which might suggest Kumlien's Iceland Gull, though it has a very large head and bill, which does not fit that gull...notice that the wingtips and tail in the lowest image from June 23, 2011 are very ragged...and the bird is filthy, from bill to feet, from foraging in dark dredge spoil, but the wings are coming in with some new, rather buffy feathers in the next image up, August 20, 2011 and the bill and feet are cleaned up...and the top two images are from today, October 13, 2011...finally got a flight image, though not crisp, it does show the upperwing pattern....possibly a hybrid Kumlien's and Herring?
Brian Taber
