Oakland Co Lesser Black-backed & Iceland Gulls 12-26

[Cccta@aol.com]

Listers,
 
Today I had a chance to check out the gull flock near the Palace of Auburn  
Hills and had my best Oakland County gull day yet. In the bulldozed area at  
the Northeast corner of M-24 and Brown Road (just north of the Palace and just  
off I-75 at the Lapeer Road exit) there were about 1000 gulls between 3:30 and 
 4:30 pm.
 
First and most obvious were a pair of Great Black-back Gulls. Next there  was 
an (the?) adult GLAUCOUS GULL which flew off to the Northwest along  with a 
constant parade of gulls leaving the general area. Then I found the adult  
LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL with its dirty head and yellow legs and finally I was  
able to pick out a first winter ICELAND GULL.
 

On days when the dump is open, gulls often congregate in different  areas on 
the East side of M-24 which have been dozed to prepare for future  
construction. The open area they were in today seems like it might be the  current 
favorite. Both M-24 and Brown Road are pretty busy but I was able to  pull off on 
the shoulder of Brown Road to scan the flock initially from south of  their 
location. This is where I saw the Glaucous and Great Black-backs from but  I 
didn't see the Iceland and Lesser Black-back until I drove to the North side  of 
the flock and scoped them from the back parking lot of one of the businesses  in 
the industrial park. The landfill up the hill from the Palace seemed to  be 
done for the day when I got there but the one about a mile further up  off the 
North side of Silverbell Road west of M-24 was still tipping and  dozing 
"fresh" garbage and had about a thousand gulls swirling above it. The  stream of 
departing gulls to the Northwest likely was in the direction of one of  the many 
lakes and I'm guessing is where many of them roost for the night. Has  anyone 
seen where they wind up?
 
Good Gulling,
 
Scott Jennex
Ferndale

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