We are looking for all possible seabirds on 9/29 but will focus primarily on hunting for a Sabine's Gull (Sabine's Gull - Wikipedia). We believe that by searching every possible place for a Sabine's Gull we will also, as a by-product, see many other good seabirds. And we will thereby also maximize our chances of finding this long-shot, irregular and elusive arctic gull.
Sabine's Gulls are circumpolar, breeding along the northern perimeter of the arctic, in Canada, Alaska and elsewhere. Total world population is at least 100,000. Most of the Alaska and the western Canadian breeders migrate down the Pacific, but many of those breeding in more eastern Canada migrate SE through the Hudson Straits and east of Newfoundland out into the mid-Atlantic ... where they then move south down the center of the Atlantic Ocean, heading for a winter off the west coast of southern Africa, near the Benguela Current. The Birds of North America Online says, "In fall, most individuals from e. Canada cross Davis Strait to migrate south along Greenland coast, rather than on Canadian side."
In Spring most of the Sabine's Gulls return to the Arctic to breed, but not the first year birds, most of whom basically disappear for that summer, and whose whereabouts during their first summer is still mostly unknown to science!
A small number of individual Sabine's Gulls migrate across the middle of the USA (especially Colorado) and a few are seen along the East Coast in Autumn. It is these few on the East Coast which we are hunting for on 9/29, and finding one is a long shot. We have only had about 5 in Massachusetts this year so far (2012 Sabine's Gulls (North America))! These individuals are equally likely to be found along the shore briefly, or miles out on the ocean, since they are basically pelagic after leaving their breeding grounds in the Arctic.
Most of the ocean waters have a paucity of "food" near the surface, most of the time. But sometimes there are factors [including the Gulf Stream (or its eddies & gyres), other surface currents, deep ocean currents, sun-driven temperature differences, canyons, geology-driven upwellings, wind-driven upwellings, storms, bright moonlit nights, monthly lunar cycles, annual fish migration cycles, or other factors] which make more food available in the ocean food chain in particular areas (which are often transient, move around and disappear), and birds such as terns and gulls are drawn to feed on or near this area of the surface in large numbers. This food chain may span from phytoplankton, to zooplankton, to krill, to squid, to small bait fish (such as Sand Lance), to larger fish, tuna and sharks (and human fishermen). This very visible initial feeding activity of terns and gulls and storm-petrels (often flocks of these birds flying around over the fish and other food near the surface of the water) attracts more seabirds, such as jaegers and shearwaters, and occasionally a Sabine's Gull.
We will be searching for these temporarily food-rich patches of water, and the birds (and sometimes the fishing boats) they attract, hoping to see some seabirds visiting us from their far-away breeding areas, such as these long-distance travelers....
---Sabine's Gull from the Arctic.
---Jaegers from the Arctic.
---Great Skua from (breeds in) Iceland, Norway, the Faroe Islands and the Scottish islands.
---South Polar Skua from coastal Antarctica.
---Red Phalarope breeding in Arctic, circumpolarly, further north than Red-necked Phalarope.
---Red-necked Phalarope breeding circumpolarly, in the low Arctic or Subarctic, in tundra ponds.
---Wilson's Storm-Petrel from islands surrounding Antarctica.
---Great Shearwater from isolated islands in the South Atlantic.
---Cory's Shearwater from Mediterranean and also breeds on Azores & Salvage Islands.
---Sooty Shearwater from the southern hemisphere.
---Manx Shearwater from islands around the UK, plus new breeding colonies in Newfoundland, Maine and recently in Massachusetts. Most of the Manx we see will probably be nearby breeding birds.
---Black-legged Kittiwake from the High Arctic, or Newfoundland and the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
---Leach's Storm-Petrel is a nearby breeder in maritime Canada, Maine and Massachusetts (70 pairs at Penikese Island, SW Cape Cod), but ironically we will not see this local bird since it is very shy and usually stays away from the coast and from ships... Leach's Storm-Petrel — Birds of North America Online
Some of the above southern hemisphere seabirds are not even included in the authoritative online "Birds of North America" since they do not breed in North America... Birds of North America Online
Whales are also attracted to where the feeding is good, and this is sometimes attracts seabirds, so we are hoping that by finding some feeding whales we will also find some good birds together with them, on our 9/29 boat trip. We will also complement that boat trip with several land-based sea-watches.
This September/October time of year is especially exciting since the ocean temperature around New England has peaked and is starting to cool off, many whales, fish and birds are starting their southward migration, including most seabirds, including Sabine's Gull...
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| Adult Sabine's Gull. Notice that tail is slightly forked, although this is not always obvious in the field. 2004 (c) Ole Krogh |
And if you are the first person to spot a Sabine's Gull on 9/29, just tell everybody where it is.... (-:
Please use this 12 hour clock system for the location of the seabirds we encounter. It will be our best way to communicate about seabirds while on the boat.
