An errant Ross's Gull has brought local and national bird watchers to the Gavin's Point Dam area in the past few days.
The species was first noted on November 26 by Mark Brogie, from Creighton, Nebraska on a bird-watching outing during Thanksgiving weekend.
There have been a number of subsequent sightings in the area in southern South Dakota, which includes the dam, as well as Lake Yankton.
A primary consideration for the locale where the observations have been made are which state or county where the this gull has occurred.
Based upon the numerous postings to the Nebraska and South Dakota bird forums, the flights of this gull has contributed to the records of occurrence for this species in South Dakota and Nebraska.
"Cuneate-tailed Gull, Larus roseus Macg."
From: Coloured Figures of the Birds of British Islands, as issued by Lord Lilford.
There is an "indefinite" boundary along the river, so the pertinent posts has included discussions regarding the political boundaries, which certainly mean nothing to the gull as its days are focused on finding the necessities for survival.
The word about this one bird was quickly spread. There were notes on the South Dakota bird discussion group as well as the similar message board in Nebraska.
News of the sighting went way beyond the two-state region.
Enthusiastic bird-watchers many other states came to see the "beautiful" bird. People from Florida, Missouri, Texas, New York have made their way to the Missouri River reservoir to get a look at this Arctic bird, so rare in the lower 48 states.
The ornithological significance is that the birds' presence is a new record for South Dakota, as well as one of the few sightings for Nebraska.
There are only a relatively few records for this bird occurring in the continental states of the United States.
During the past few weeks, another Ross's Gull was seen in Colorado.
The reason for their occurrence was attributed to a weather system, which thrust Arctic air southward to the Great Plains.
Ornithological History
The Ross's Gull which has been spending time about Gavin's Point Dam, is a single indication of a rare bird, which has caused an increased attention to gulls and other birds at Great Plains reservoirs.
Reports from the different bird forums have included notes about several species which are not usually expected. The following tally is based upon notations provided by birders such as Ricky D. Olson, Scott Stolz and Paul Roisen whom have made particular efforts to observe different species at the different dam sites. The numbers represent the number of the species which have been counted, which are based upon multiple visits, as for example, there is just one Ross's Gull at in the area of Gavin's Point Dam and Lake Yankton. The asterisks indicate birds which were noted but where there was no count.
|
Bird Species |
Gavin's Point Dam |
Fort Randall Dam |
Big Bend Dam |
Oahe Dam |
|
American White Pelican |
- |
** |
- |
- |
|
Barrow's Goldeneye |
- |
- |
1 |
- |
|
Black Scoter |
- |
- |
3 |
- |
|
Black-legged Kittiwake |
- |
1 |
1 |
5 |
|
Bonaparte's Gull |
** |
** |
** |
** |
|
Bufflehead |
- |
** |
- |
- |
|
California Gull |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
|
Common Goldeneye |
- |
** |
- |
- |
|
Common Merganser |
- |
** |
- |
- |
|
Double-crested Cormorant |
- |
** |
- |
- |
|
Glaucous Gull |
- |
- |
** |
1 |
|
Glaucous-winged Gull |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
|
Great Black-backed Gull |
1 |
- |
1 |
- |
|
Herring Gull |
** |
- |
** |
** |
|
Iceland Gull |
- |
- |
1 |
- |
|
Lesser Black-backed Gull |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
|
Little Gull |
- |
- |
- |
2 |
|
Long-tailed Duck |
- |
** |
4 |
- |
|
Mew Gull |
** |
- |
- |
1 |
|
Ring-billed Gull |
** |
- |
** |
** |
|
Ross's Gull |
2 |
1 |
- |
- |
|
Sabine's Gull |
** |
- |
1 |
- |
|
Thayer's Gull |
- |
** |
** |
** |
It is readily obvious - based upon observer reports - that the dams and reservoirs of the Missouri River are a place suitable for a variety of bird species, as indicated by bird watches focused on determining the occurrence of species at different places.
Wandering Birds
The Missouri River occurrence of the Ross's Gull changed during the first weekend of December.
Upon the same day when the resident bird at Gavin's Point Dam was noted, there was another Ross's Gull at Branched Oak near Raymond, NE.
At the same time, another of this species was noted at Fort Randall Dam.
The mix of sightings at different localities meant further details were expressed to indicate other sites with similar features to the places where this species of gull was known to occur.
Gull Pics
Here are a couple of links to pictures of the Ross's Gull.
- * Pictures by Roger Dietrich
- * Pictures by Terry Sohl