A glaucous-winged gull was spotted in Lake County this week. The glaucous-winged is a rare gull here that normally lives in the western United States, Alaska and northern Canada. In winter, it flies along the Pacific Ocean southward, and sometimes it wanders eastward into Illinois and other states.
The gulls you see while you’re walking along a lakeshore, a huge river bank or even driving by a landfill, are not always the same species. They are typically found near water, whether the ocean, a lake, a river or wetlands. But birders don’t like when folks refer to them as just a bunch of seagulls.
When winter comes, birders who love gulls are out searching for some rarities. That’s the time when northerly breeders spend winter here along the cold and icy waters of Lake Michigan, as well as along rivers and even near landfills.
At all times of the year in the northern Illinois area, you’ll see mostly ring-billed gulls. It’s one of North America’s most common gull species, though believe it or not it actually once was nearly extirpated due to hunting for its feathers and eggs.
The ring-billed is a medium-sized gull that takes up to three years to mature to its adult plumage, with a white head and breast, yellow bill with black ring around it, gray wings, black tail with white wing spots and yellow legs. But not all ring-billed gulls look alike. A 2-year-old ring-billed, for example, has lots of streaking and a pink bill with a black band. Same species, different look.
The next most common gull in these parts is the herring gull, which is larger than the ring-billed and takes four years to reach adulthood. Jonathan Livingston Seagull, the bird that wanted to be more than just a seagull, was a herring gull. He looks like a ring-billed gull, but is larger and has pink instead of yellow legs and a red dot on a yellow bill.
In winter, you’ll find plenty of herring gulls and ring-billed gulls, but others you might see this time of year include the great black-backed gull. This species has a black back that contrasts with its pure white head, neck and belly. The great-black backed is quite lovely and large, and fairly easy to identify in its adult plumage. A great spot to look for this and other wintering gull species is along Lake Michigan in Winthrop Harbor, Zion and Waukegan.
Another one you may see is the glaucous gull, which in certain plumages can appear almost pure white and ghostlike. But then, in different plumages, glaucous gulls also can have variable brown streaking, and they may be difficult to pick out among all the gulls in a huge flock.
Birders who enjoy the challenge of identifying gulls are called lariphiles, lovers of the family Laridae, to which gulls belong. I must admit I enjoy seeing a rare gull when someone else finds it and points it out. I don’t have the patience or keen detail knowledge of gull plumages to try to pick them out on my own.
This winter, someone found a California gull way out of its range in Lake County. I went once to look for it. and didn’t find it. Someone else recently reported a glaucous-winged gull. I did not even try to go see that one.
My response is: Birds have wings. They fly. The gull has probably gone. And that’s often what seems to happen with the rare ones.
Gulls are great fliers. A birder once reported that an ivory gull, one of the rarest gulls in the world, had stopped by the Lake County Fairgrounds. I was there in fewer than 10 minutes and the bird was gone, never to be found again. He had excellent photos for proof, and I knew that probably was my last chance to see such a rare species unless I traveled to the Arctic region and scanned among the ice floes.
If I haven’t deterred you from wanting to identify any of the “seagulls” you encounter, then here’s a suggestion for a new winter activity. Dress warmly, take a walk along a Lake Michigan beach and bring some binoculars. Focus on the first gull you can clearly see and try to pick out some of its plumage markings, for example, the color of its feet, bill and back.
Perhaps you’ll then be convinced that you’re looking at more than just a bunch of seagulls.
Sheryl DeVore has worked as a full-time and freelance reporter, editor, and photographer for the Chicago Tribune and its subsidiaries. She’s the author of several books on nature and the environment. Send story ideas and thoughts to sheryldevorewriter@gmail.com.
