Sabine's Gull

(first record for Mountains and Valley region)

Date and Time of Observation.

Date: September 7, 2003

Time: 3 different observations: 3:15-3:45 p.m. and from 5:30-6:30 p.m.

Location: County and Town.

South Holston Lake, Washington County, Virginia.

This bird was observed in two different states. The location is Musick's Campground (see page 189 of Johnston's "A Birder's Guide to Virginia"). The campground is just to the south of the VA/TN line and large expanses of lake are visible in both states. The lake is approximately 1 mile in width directly in front of the campground. The observation point has an unobstructed view of the lake in both Virginia and Tennessee. The Tennessee part of the lake lies in Sullivan County and the Virginia part of the lake lies in Washington County. During the fall and winter months this spot is the best spot in Virginia to observe Eared Grebes - we spotted one while observing the Sabine's Gull.

Length of Time Observed.

The total time that we observed the gull was probably around an hour. This was over three different observations.

Habitat.

South Holston Lake is a TVA lake 24 miles in length and covers 7,580 acres. The western shore is residential (lake homes) and agricultural, the eastern shore is wooded and part of the Jefferson National Forest.

Optical Equipment.

• Binoculars: Cabela's Roof-prism 10x42 Professional WP (waterproof) binoculars
• Scope: Cabela's 20-60x / 66mm / "Big Sky" waterproof Spotting Scope

Viewing Conditions.

No Rain. The sky was slightly overcast but with some patches of blue sky. There was a slight haze but overall the viewing conditions were almost optimal with the sun behind us as we observed the gull.

Description.

As soon as we arrived at the viewing point, Rack Cross became interested in this boldly marked gull we saw making its way up the lake (from TN to VA). We immediately got our binoculars on the bird and starting thinking juvenile Bonaparte's Gull or possibly a Kittiwake. Then we got our scopes out and observed the bird for several minutes as it made passes in front of our position up and down the lake - going from TN to VA and back. We quickly ruled out Bonaparte's and added Sabine's to our list of suspects. [See field marks below.]

Field Marks.

We observed boldly patterned wings with deep white triangular areas on the upper wing. The outer flight feathers on the wings were black. The lesser coverts, scapulars, mantle and nape were partially slate blue and partially brownish in color. This coloration extended across the crown of the head. See YouTube video of gull below:

Description of Behavior.

The bird was observed flying up and down the lake. On at least three different occasions, the bird landed on the water. At one point, the gull landed on a small area of sand and gravel about 120 feet from the observers where it was observed by scope and video-taped. Two Caspian Terns are shown in the footage for a size comparison.

Voice.

At one point I thought I heard the gull make a tern-like call but cannot be sure as two Caspian Terns (and one juvenile) were calling in the vicinity.

Previous experience with this or similar species.

None with this species. I have seen many Bonaparte's Gulls and also observed several Black-legged Kittiwakes on a Brian Patteson pelagic trip from Virginia Beach in December 2002.

What other field marks helped you eliminate other similar species?

The lack of any black on the inside of the white triangles led us to the conclusion that this was a Sabine's Gull - eliminating the Kittiwake. In addition, the under-wing pattern, color of cap, nape, and mantle, as well as these areas blending to form one continuous band of color also helped us to eliminate the Kittiwake.

Other observers, if any.

Rack Cross, Sam Cross, Wallace Coffey, Janice Martin, Bert Hale, and Lorraine Hale

Did other observers agree on species identifications? In not, state specifically why.

All observers agreed that this was a Sabine's Gull. Especially after reviewing some of Wallace Coffey's books on gulls, etc.

Resources consulted for identification.

• Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America
• Sibley Field Guild to Birds
• National Geographic Guide to Birds of North America
• "Shorebirds" ?? - book brought to the scene by Wallace Coffey

Attach photographs, field notes, and sketches, if any, and provide details of equipment used.

Digital Videotape: Approx. 7 minutes of digital video is available if needed.

Equipment: Sony DCR-TRV340 Digital Camcorder with Sony 2x VCL-HG2037X Teleconverter lens. The optical zoom on camcorder is 25x and total with lens is 50x

Field Notes:

I did not make any field notes at the time but Rack Cross did make notes and sketches at the time of observation.

Note: Web link above sent to Ned Brinkley the night of Sept. 7th. Mr. Brinkley confirmed our ID of this species the next day.

Signature:

• Edgar F. "Ed" Talbott, III
• Buchanan County Bird Club
• Date: September 23, 2003