Bonaparte’s Gull, Chroicocephalus philadelphia

Note: this post, while published, is a work in progress, as are all posts in this series, My Photo Life List. My goal is to photograph every species of bird that is seen on a regular basis here in Michigan, working from a list compiled by the Michigan chapter of the Audubon Society. This will be a lifelong project, that I began in January of 2013, and as I shoot better photos of this, or any other species, I will update the post for that species with better photos when I can. While this series is not intended to be a field guide per se, my minimum standard for the photos in this series is that one has to be able to make a positive identification of the species in my photos. The information posted here is from either my observations or the Wikipedia, the online free encyclopedia, however, I have personally shot all the photos appearing in this series.

Bonaparte’s Gull, Chroicocephalus philadelphia

The Bonaparte’s Gull is a small gull, larger only than the Little Gull and the Saunders’s Gull among all gull species. Adults are 28–38 cm (11–15 in) long with a 76–84 cm (30–33 in) wingspan and a body mass of 162–270 g (5.7–9.5 oz). They have a black hood and a short thin dark bill. The body is mainly white with pale grey back and upper wings. The under wing is pale and the wing tips are dark. They have pink legs. In winter, the head is white.

In their first summer, the appearance of Bonaparte’s Gull is similar to that in its first winter, but paler due to wear. Fewer than 5% of Bonaparte’s Gulls acquire a dark hood in their first summer, and on those that do, the hood is duller than on breeding adults.

Their breeding habitat is near bogs or lakes in coniferous forest across western Canada and Alaska. They nest in conifers, sometimes on the ground.

They are migratory and most move east or west to coastal waters, also the Great Lakes. They are rare vagrants to western Europe, where they usually associate with the somewhat larger Black-headed Gulls.

These birds forage in flight or pick up objects while swimming or wading. They mainly eat insects, crustaceans and fish. Unlike some other gulls, this bird rarely scavenges.

They are graceful in flight, more like terns. They were named after Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte, a zoologist and nephew of Napoleon.

On to my photos:

Bonaparte’s Gull

Bonaparte’s Gull

Bonaparte’s Gull

Bonaparte’s Gull

Bonaparte’s Gull

Bonaparte’s Gull

Bonaparte’s Gull

Bonaparte’s Gull in flight

Adult Bonaparte’s gull

Adult Bonaparte’s gull

Adult Bonaparte’s gull

This is number 125 in my photo life list, only 225 to go!

That’s it for this one, thanks for stopping by!