Steppe Gull - barabensis

(last update: 8-9-2014 )

Home

barabensis 1CY July
barabensis 1CY Aug
barabensis 1CY Oct
barabensis 1CY Nov

barabensis 2CY Jan
barabensis 2CY Febr
barabensis 2CY March
barabensis 2CY July
barabensis 2CY Nov

barabensis 3CY June
barabensis 3CY Nov

barabensis sub-ad Jan
barabensis sub-ad June
barabensis sub-ad Nov

barabensis ad Jan
barabensis ad March
barabensis ad May
barabensis ad June
barabensis ad July
barabensis ad Nov
barabensis ad Dec

Steppe Gull barabensis adult, July 20 2010, Turgay village (county Aqtobe), Kazakhstan. Picture: Ross Ahmed.

Turgay (county Aqtobe): village 400 km WSW of lake Tengiz, central Kazakhstan. Birds breeding here belong to a transition population between cachinnans (nominate cachinnans at the Caspian Sea are about 875 km to the SW) and barabensis ('standard' barabensis from the Omsk area are about 1100 km to the NE).

Below: bird flying around at flooded plains along the river, close to the village.
Moult halfway: P1-P4 fully grown, P5 growing, P6 missing, P7-P10 are still old. P4 without obvious sub-terminal black, reminiscent of cachinnans. Legs yellow. Short bill with obvious gonydeal angle. No obvious bill-band. Compact bird. Phenotypically close to barabensis.