Lunenburg "Nelson's" Gull 1/1/2009

I had nice looks at this bird as it fed on "scraps" along the waterfront at Whalom Lake. Initially it was near a Great Black-backed Gull and was very close, if not equal in size and dwarfted the nearby Herring Gulls, clearly a large bulky gull.

I saw it head on and thought immediately it was a probable Glaucous, the dark primaries and tail where hidden. The lighting was harsh, bright sun light and not optimal for photos, the picture were all digi-binned except for one (perched on the lake) through my old Swift scope.

Seems to have the face and head of a Glaucous Gull

Showing a more rounded head, but large bill, in this pose. Note the dark primaries.

Fairly angular and "Glauc-y expression" in this pose.

None of the photos here show it, but the base of the bill was pinkish.
The tail is fair dark, but little else to see in this shot.
A more distant view, as it flew onto the partially frozen lake and perched by itself.

Fairly dark primaries

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