When:

Who:

Where:

County:

Location:

Exact Site:
Gull Point

Details: (To view more text, grab the lower-right corner of a field to widen or lengthen the box)

For older records, view original documentation here.

How Many:

Age/Plumage/Sex:
juvenile

Habitat:
beach/sand dunes

Description:
This bird was found dead, high on the beach adjacent to the trail to the Gull Point observation platform. The soft tissue had been removed by scavengers, but most of the plumage was intact and in good condition. It seemed very small in-hand, perhaps like a pigeon. The dorsal plumage, except rump, were a medium-dark, gray-brown with thin whitish margins. the rump, which was hidden by the disarticulated right wing, was prominently banded with gray-brown and white. the two center retrices extended about two centimeters beyond the rest and had rounded tips. The flight feathers were dark with thin whitish edging at the tips. The two outermost primary shafts were white, the third was a medium tan, the remainder were a darker brown. The breast and belly the most damaged but had an extensive area of white feathers, though I couldn't tell just where they belonged. The undertail coverts were boldly banded in gray and white similarly to the rump. The underside of the the wings was a lighter gray than the upperside with extensive bandind in the coverts. there was a broad white band through the base of the primaries. The legs looked dark gray, the feet were darker. The head, which was attached by just a few filaments of skin, was removed so that it would not be lost on the hike out. As for plumage, all I could tell is that it appeared to have a dark brown crown. For its size the bill looked rather robust, with a well pronounced hook at the tip. After accounting for lost flesh and feathers, I could see that the nail was nearly half the length of the bare bill. The bill, top and bottom, was straight with no pinching in the middle.

Separation from similar species:
Pomarine Jaeger would be much larger. Parasitic Jaeger: central tail feathers are normally pointed, >70%(Cornell Lab), normally has 4 or 5 white primary shafts, possibly never 2. Bill is more delicate, thinner in the middle with shorter nail.

Discussion:
had gone to Gull Point to look for the Northern Wheatear seen earlier that day. I found the Jaeger lying near the roped trail where it approaches the beach. before I left the point two other birders had seen and photographed the bird. They were Connor Vara and Shannon Thompson. two days later(9-20-2020) I brought it to the Presque Isle Waterbird Count and gave it to Jerry McWilliams. Jerry confirmed my identification and said that he would take it home to be measured and photographed for his records before conveying the specimen to the Tom Ridge Environmental Center at Presque Isle in Erie for their collection. Jennifer Ferrick and Roger Donn were also able to examine the bird while at the waterbird count.

How positive are you about the identification:
The combination of coloration, number of white primary shafts, shape of the tail feathers and bill structure seem definitive, and I was unusually confident in my assesment when I presented it to Jerry McWilliams, who quickly confirmed my ID.

References:

After the observation:
Kaufman "Field Guuide to Advanced Birding", The Cornell Lab of Ornithology "Birds of the World" online

Media:

Photos and Drawings