This presentation was built in order to try and break some barriers in Israel large Gulls ID the presentation was first built in 2.9.09 and then ammended several times (last 25.1.11) Special thanks to Ehud Dovrat who infected me and many others in this amazing Gulls virus

1. Field identification guide to large gulls in Israel Created by: Amir Ben Dov and Yoav Perlman, October 2009 Updated June 2010 [email_address] [email_address] Moderator: Mars muusse, Ehud Dovrat Special thanks: Morten Helberg – Norway, Risto Juvaste – Finland, Theo Muusse – The Netherlands, Hadoram Shirihai, Prof. Peter de Knijff - The Netherlands, Klaus Malling Olsen, Liebers, D Images: Theo Muusse, Mars muusse Gal Shon, Avi Meir, Yoav Perlman, Amir Ben Dov * Unless stated otherwise, all images by Amir Ben Dov © All images are copyright of the photographers Part 2

3. Heuglin’s Gull - Larus heuglini winter plumage, Ashdod 15/1/08 Usually large and bulky, streaked hindneck and nape in winter

4. Heuglin’s Gull - Larus heuglini , spring plumage, Ashdod 15/1/08 Compare with previous slide: same date, 2 different plumages / moult stages

5. Heuglin’s Gull - Larus heuglini, winter plumage, Ashdod 15/1/08 Much larger gull than Baltic Gull

6. Heuglin’s Gull - Larus heuglini , Ashdod 30/1/10 Some individuals may show faint stripes on hindneck also in January Long tarsus Dark mantle and wing coverts

7. Heuglin’s Gull - Larus heuglini , Ashdod 6/1/10 Large mirror on P10, small mirror on P9 Faint fuscus - like secondary pattern, medium-dark secondaries

8. Heuglin’s Gull - Larus heuglini , Eilat 1/3/08 Black P10-P4 Large mirror on P10, small mirror on P9 Clear contrast between black wingtip and rest of upperparts (no contrast in fuscus ) Large grey / White crescents on P7 – P5

9. Heuglin’s Gull - Larus heuglini , very small female, Ashdod (Yavne 4) 19/9/09 (in the back - Baltic Gull) Extremely small females almost same size as female fuscus !

10. Heuglin’s Gull – Larus heuglini 2 nd winter, possibly male Ashdod seashore 2/1/10

11. Heuglin’s Gull - Larus heuglini 2 nd CY, Ashdod (Yavne 4) 11/12/10

12. Heuglin's Gull Larus heuglini 1 st winter Ashdod 6/1/10

13. Heuglin's Gull – Larus heuglini 1 st winter, Ashdod 8/1/10

15. Baltic Gull – Larus fuscus fuscus , Ashdod 19/9/09 Black back

16. Baltic Gull – Larus fuscus fuscus , Ashdod 19/9/09 Image by Gal Shon ©

17. Baltic Gull – Larus fuscus fuscus , Ashdod 9/1/08 Easily identified in flight - all underwing remiges black

18. Baltic Gull – Larus fuscus fuscus 1 st winter, (ringed as pullus on 27.7.08) Ashdod 27/2/09 Very dark body, wings and mantle

19. Baltic Gull – Larus fuscus fuscus 1st winter Ashdod 2/10/09 Very dark head, body, wings and mantle

20. Baltic Gull – Larus fuscus fuscus 1st winter, Ashdod 24/9/09 Very dark body, underwing coverts and primaries

21. Comparison between 1 st winter Baltic Gull and 1 st summer Yellow-legged Gull Paler brown bird Dark brown bird Mantle and wing coverts with dark centers and thin white margins Relatively short legs Relatively long and thick legs Delicate head and bill Massive head and bill Baltic Gull 1 st winter Ashdod 11/12/09 Yellow-legged Gull juvenile, Tel Aviv University Zoological Garden 18/6/10 Both can be seen together on Israeli coasts during late August to mid September Mantle and wing coverts with smaller Dark centers and broader white margins

22. Baltic Gull – Larus fuscus fuscus , advanced 1 st winter, Ashdod 27/2/09 Note active post-juvenile moult. All 2nd generation feathers very neat, recently replaced, vs. steppe - taxa which have the post-juv moult much earlier in the year (active moult in Aug-Sept) 2 nd generation feathers

25. Lesser Black-backed Gull ssp. (possibly inermedius ) Ashdod 30/10/09 Dark grey mantle, Not coal black like fuscus

26. Lesser Black-backed Gull - Larus fuscus ssp Ashdod, 27/2/10 P10 is little short (same length as P9) Therefore it may well be Larus fuscus fuscus and not intermedius

27. Lesser Black Backed Gull – Larus fuscus ssp , Ashdod 9/1/08. Ringed in Nordfugløy, Karlsøy, Troms, Norway, in a mixed colony of L.f.intermedius and L.f.fuscus

28. Lesser Black backed Gull – Larus fuscus intermedius (front bird), Stavanger, 2/11/02, Westkapelle, the Netherlands, Image by Mars Muusse ©

30. Lesser Black-backed Gull – Larus fuscus graellsii intergraded with ‘Dutch’ intermedius (right), and L. f. fuscus (left). Westkapelle, the Netherlands, 01/10/2009, image by Theo Muusse ©

31. Lesser Black-backed Gull – Larus fuscus graellsii , 22/10/01, Westkapelle, the Netherlands, image by Mars Muusse © Heavily streaked head with white face

32. Lesser Black backed Gull - Larus fuscus graellsii adult female ringed in the UK, 3/4/03 Nachtegalenkeet, Maasvlakte, the Netherlands by Mars Muusse ©

34. Great Black-backed Gull - Larus marinus , Acre port 10/3/09 Dark back almost as fuscus Massive head and bill

35. Great Black-backed Gull - Larus marinus , Acre port 10/3/09 P10 – tip all white P9 - tip all - almost all white

36. Great Black backed Gull - Larus marinus , Acre Port 10/3/09 Pink legs Broad white Trailing edge

37. Great Black-backed Gull Larus marinus Acre port 1/1/10 P10/9 – tip all white fuscus- like underwing but broader trailing edge

39. Pallas’s Gull - Larus ichthyaetus , Ashdod 15/1/08

40. Pallas’s Gull - Larus ichthyaetus , Ashdod 16/2/08

41. Pallas’s Gull 2 nd CY - Larus ichthyaetus , Ashdod 22/1/11

42. Pallas’s Gull - Larus ichthyaetus , Ashdod 22/1/11

43. Pallas’s Gull - Larus ichthyaetus , Maagan michael 18/1/11

44. Some images of unidentified gulls These images emphasize the huge variation seen in the field Not every gull can or should be identified

45. Larus sp . possibly heuglini – Eilat 1/3/08

46. Ehud Dovrat, March 2009 Ehud is the pioneer of gulls color rings tracking and of gull identification in Israel Gull-watching in Israel

47. Major gull watching sites in Israel – where and when Acre area and northern Med. coast cachinnans December – March, up to 6000 armenicus October – March michahellis several pairs breeding on islands off Rosh Hanikra April – August Ma’agan Michael: sea shore and fishponds armenicus present year round, many hundreds in spring, many Thousands in winter ichthyaetus December – Early March, Up to 100 michahellis 2-4 pairs breeding on Pigeon Island April – August Tel Aviv metropolin Tel Aviv univ. and Ramat Gan Safari michahellis 7-10 pairs breeding, April – July armenicus October - March Ashdod - Yavne 4 ponds, seashore and rubbish dump – the prime gull watching site in Israel fuscus September – mid April, up to 1000 heuglini October – mid March, up to 300 cachinnans December – mid March, up to 500 barabensis November – mid march, up to 200 armenicus October – March mainly 1 st - 2 nd winter birds Lake Kinneret and Bet She’an Valley armenicus October – March (thousands) ichthyaetus December – early March, up to 1500 Eilat – north beach, KM 19, KM 20 fuscus strong migration in spring, mid March – late May heuglini mid March – late May Harod Valley armenicus October – March (many hundreds) ichthyaetus December – early March, hundreds

48. Caspian gulls – Larus cachinnans flock in an afternoon pre-roost gathering, part of a 5000 birds flock , Acre Valley 22/1/10

49. Pallas's Gulls - Larus ichthyaetus, Israel highest record number (1300+) Sde Eliyahu, Bet She’an Valley 21/2/08

51. Mixed gulls, Ashdod : heuglini, fuscus, cachinnans, armenicus Ashdod 20/1/10 Yoav Perlman ©

52. Reading color rings in Israel Most rings in Israel are read nowadays in Ashdod sea shore and Ponds 31°51‘09"N 34°42‘26"E Ben Zakai reservoir, alternative resting point Yavne 4 ponds Yavne 3 ponds

56. Gulls color ringing in Israel Armenian Gull – Larus armenicus ringed at Afek NPA Hospital 8/1/2010 Since 2008 red color rings beginning with U are being used in Israel Some birds were found poisoned / exhausted, rehabilitated at NPA Wildlife Hospital and released: fuscus , armenicus , cachinnans Other gulls were trapped at Ashdod: fuscus , armenicus , cachinnans michahellis pullus ringed since May 2010 in Tel Aviv University Zoological Garden

59. Enjoy gulling!