Black-legged Kittiwake/Gull

[okaugust]

So there I was, sitting in Nehalem, OR today, wondering if the Hooded Oriole was every going to show itself for me (the answer is no), and if I was going to have to make a fourth trip down there to look for it (the answer is yes), idly looking at the Birds Near Me app on my phone, when I saw Black-legged Kittiwake have been reported 1-2 in three locations nearby in the last 30 days. I had what Samuel L Jackson would call a moment of clarity, when my brain snapped into place...and I remembered being at Nehalem State Park on December 31st, hiking along the bay side and back into the woods when a very light colored gull flew over. I only got one shot then lost it in the sun. I got home, cropped it a bit, decided there wasn't enough definition to ID it as anything (like I do most gulls unless they stand out as very different from the 5000 Olympic Gulls that are everywhere here) without ever having the fact it had very black legs jump out at me. Granted there isn't a lot going on with the wing tips to point to a Kittiwake. Thoughts?

This is what I call "winter birding" where (when I lived in WY) I would drag out some older photos to make sure I didn't miss anything. Thank you!

Edited January 24, 2022 by okaugust

[Quiscalus quiscula]

Bump

[AlexHenry]

No, definitely not a Kittiwake.

[okaugust]

Thanks, I don't know my gulls very well, but put it to the NA Gulls group and was shot down there too. Wishful thinking on my part.

General suggestions were Glaucous or our usual hybrids, though I've never seen one with legs that dark.