Iceland or Thayer's Gull?

Gull identification, especially for juveniles, can be very challenging. Many an expert birder will take a pass on ID'ing them. This past January, while in Duluth, we stopped at Canal Park to work through the resident Herring Gull flock looking for any rarities (Glaucous, Iceland and/or Thayer's Gull). We found one very interesting 2nd cycle Gull, that the locals had named "Herman".  It was named "Herman" because the locals could not decide on whether it was a Thayer's or an Iceland Gull (split about 50-50 on the ID), with it being a hybrid as a third possiblity.  I made sure I took a lot of pictures of "Herman" and then sent several of my best photos to my New Jersey experts for their opinions on "Herman".  Six New Jersey experts looked at my photos, two said it was a Thayer's Gull, two said it was an Iceland Gull, and the last two punted (one stating that he does not do juvenile gulls).  Still a 50-50 split.  Sometimes you just have to accept that you will not be able to identify a bird, even when you have good photos.  Any opinions on what Herman is?

"Herman"

2nd Cycle Herring Gull & "Herman" (behind), note differences in their wings



Nemesis Bird 4 - Ross's Goose

January had ended with me adding three Nemesis Birds (Great Gray Owl, Iceland Gull, & Barred Owl) to my Life List.  Since i was on a role with local species, I decide I would focus my efforts on the only probable Nemesis Bird I still might find during the winter here in New Jersey - Ross's Goose. Unfortunately, very few Ross's Goose sightings were reported during the first two weeks of February, and my own efforts, during those same period also came up empty. My first promising lead came out of the New Jersey Rare Bird Alert for February 17, 2001, with a report of a single Ross's Goose found among 5000+ Snow Geese in Upper Freehold.  Fortunately for me, I travel through that area everday on my way to/from work, and know that a large flock of Snow Geese has been wintering in this area for years. What an awesome sight it is to see that  flock taking off, looking like a white cloud rising up from the ground, just after dawn on my drive in to work.
I would need to locate where the flock was feeding first, and then try to find a single small white goose in a flock of 5000+ larger white geese. Knowing the area well made locating this Snow Goose flock fairly easy; unfortunately, most of the geese were too far out in the field for me to get a good look at them and could not locate a Ross's Goose that weekend. However, I did find 3 Cackling Geese among them. Cackling Geese look like small Canada Geese and definitely stand out among a flock of Snow Geese.  My second promising lead came out the following week, of the New Jersey Rare Bird Alert for February.  A pair of Ross's Geese were reported in a flock of Canada Geese in a Park in Toms River. What a stroke of luck, this park was about 10-15 minutes from my home and two white geese would definitely standout in a flock of Canada Geese.  It took me about 2 seconds to locate the two Ross's Geese after I pulled into the Park's parking lot. Almost too easy. Hard to believe, but I've just run out possible Nemesis Birds that I could possibly find during the winter here in New Jersey.  But don't worry there is always another Nemesis Bird for me to chase! I am traveling to Puerto Rico this month and another opportunity to find a Mangrove Cuckoo.  Talk about a Nemesis Bird - I've been chasing after a Mangrove Cuckoo for 26+ years.  Wish me luck!

Ross's Goose

Cackling Geese in with Snow Geese