Yellow-legged
Gull - Larus michahellis
(last update: October 08 2013)
Coordinators:
Delfín González
Gabriel Martín
Antonio Gutierrez
Amir Ben Dov
Mars Muusse
Yellow-legged Gull michahellis 1CY & 4CY 70Y October 2008 & November 2011, The Netherlands & Belgium.
Ringed michahellis from Rheinau Freistett, Germany, ringed on 31 May 2008.
This color-ringed 1CY Yellow-legged Gull has replaced most of the scapulars to second generation feathers, but a few (lower) scapulars and all coverts & tertials are still juvenile. The whitish patterns and markings on nearly all greater and median coverts is worn and the feathers are rather brown bleached, so most of the coverts shows a extensive dark central reaching to the edge of the feather with small white fringes. The under-wings are dark showing a typical fine dark marked pattern. Note the bill which start to get paler at the base and the typical tapering solid black tail-band; the rectrices are clearly white from the top of the tail-band till the base of these feathers with only a few dark spots. So there's many contrast between the rectrices and the upper-tail coverts.
below: michahellis 1CY 70Y October 21 2008, Westkapelle, The Netherlands. Picture: Ies Meulmeester.
below: michahellis 4CY 70Y November 18 2011, Oostende, Belgium. Picture: Roland Francois.
More than three year later on 18 November 2011, Roland Francois photographed the same Yellow-legged Gull as 4CY in the harbor of Oostende/Belgium. Note the distinct dark marked primary coverts and alula feathers.
