G’day everyone,
Can anyone recommend a book or resource specifically for Gulls and Terns? I’m looking for something that’s as in depth as possible with plenty of detail on the early few years of these birds. Currently my knowledge of both birds doesn’t go much beyond identifying an adult from a juvenile, and breeding from non-breeding plumage. What I want to do is to learn how to ID the various ages of the birds, eg: 1st year birds, 2nd year birds etc.
Regards, Mark ===============================
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Hi Mark, Both gull books I recommended cover Kelp Gull and all eight casual visitors and vagrant gulls to Australia. That means that only two of 11 Australian Gulls, (Pacific and Silver Gull) are not covered. They also give details of ageing and moult strategies applicable to small and large gulls generally as does the Olsen & Larsson Tern book which covers 15 of the 22 tern species found in Australia.
Mike Carter 30 Canadian Bay Road Mount Eliza VIC 3930 Tel (03) 9787 7136
Thanks Bob for the email. I would’ve replied earlier but it’s been a bit busy the last few days.
HANZAB Volume 3 is exactly what I need by the sounds of it. Not only for the Gulls and Terns, but also for the Stints/Plovers etc, so thanks for that. I was able to find a second hand copy online last night for just under $250 incl shipping.
Thank you to everyone else who responded with suggestions, you’ve given me lots of great places to start looking and learning.
Regards, Mark
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I must admit to being a little amused and a little bemused by the responses to Mark Young’s request for information about “a book or resource specifically for Gulls and Terns” with “detail on the early few years of these birds”. As far as I know Mark is in Australia (probably around Sydney) so I suspect he is interested in the terns and gulls seen in his general area or throughout Australia at the most. Perhaps, if he decides that gulls and terns are truly fascinating (and why wouldn’t he? he is a photographer and gulls and terns are great photographic subjects) he might extend his interest to the gulls and terns which he is not likely to see unless he leaves Australia. It, therefore, seems unproductive at this stage to recommend publications which don’t relate directly to the gulls and terns as we see them in Australia.
I would have thought that it would have been better to recommend a resource/book which referred specifically to the gulls and terns seen or likely to be seen in Australia and especially as they are seen while in Australia.
One respondent did suggest the only reference which would seem to fit Mark’s requirements (assuming I am right in assessing what he really wants). Unfortunately it was hidden in the midst of a lot of patronising chatter and references to many “obscure” publications. That reference was to Volume 3 of HANZAB (Handbook of Australian New Zealand and Antarctic Birds). That volume covers the gulls and terns seen in Australia and New Zealand. It also covers the shorebirds seen in Australia which is another of Mark’s photographic interests. As that same respondent suggests, Volume 1 of HANZAB could be handy as well for its introduction which explains a lot about plumage, aging and moult but Peter Harrison’s “Seabirds an identification guide” might be a little less expensive and just as productive. The ‘problem’ with HANZAB Vol 3 is that it seems to be hard to get, even second hand, and it would probably cost between Aus$300 and Aus$400. I have no intention of parting with my copy of HANZAB Vol 3 even though my interest in birds, bird-photography and birders is diminishing by the hour. If there is another book which exclusively covers the gulls and terns seen in Australia (specifically the sub-species) I would like to know about it. HANZAB Vol 3 was published 15 years ago and there have been some changes in the scientific names but it still is a wonderful resource for bird photographers who want to accurately label their photos.
(Incidentally David James, what is “quire dated”?)
Mark, as you will have noted if you received the copy of “Shorebirds, Gulls & Terns of Coastal SEQ” which I sent you a little while ago, that publication does not go into the detail you are asking for. It is really intended to whet the appetite for birders (and bird photographers) and to introduce them to the glories of shorebirds, gulls and terns. It seems you have got that appetite and now need more information. The best advice I can give you is to become ‘best friends’ with the two people I recommended a while back. Send them your photos and questions and they will willingly and happily give you the best advice anyone in Australia is capable of giving you. They will also be very glad to receive your excellent bird photos.
Cheers
Bob Inglis Sandstone Point Qld Australia http://users.tpg.com.au/inglisrc/
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I can’t remember the address but this (massive document) is available as a download on the web. Google it maybe 😉
Best
Alan
Dwight (1925). “the gulls of the world…” Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 52: 63-401 (is a bit obscure and dated but very thorough, and I have a spare photo copy that you can have for being the only person to plug gulls on B-A in such a long time!).
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Hi Mark, The two groups of birds you mention are amongst the best, in my opinion. If you truly want to understand their plumages there is no single source that help satisfy you. It will require study. An ability to accurately identify the different ages of birds (in the field or in the hand) requires an understanding of moult. It is the crux of advanced bird identification. Moult, of course, is the replacement of feathers. Moults introduce new generations of feathers. Moults can be either complete (renewing all the feathers) or partial (renewing only some of them). It is a fairly complex subject because it is subject to lots of evolutionary pressure (migrants versus residents, cold versus warm climates, appearances and sex, etc., not to mention the absolute necessity to renew them versus the energy it requires) and so it differs quite a bit between different groups of birds. To help understand it, humans have developed some conceptual models, some simple, some less so, some good, some less so. If you want to go all the way with bird identification you will have to get a grasp of this subject. But master this subject and you can apply it to all birds, and consider yourself an expert. Following on from the above, no one source will suffice. Here are some suggested resources, some theoretical or authoritative, some local (my references are all quire dated, but progress has not been so fast anyway): Marchant & Higgins (1990). HANZAB Vol. 1. (The introduction to “Plumages and related matters” has an outstanding account of the subject be Danny Rogers – its just a few pages to photocopy). Higgins & Davies (1996). HANZAB Vol. 3 (has detailed accounts of plumages, moults, ageing, etc of all Australian species of gulls and terns). Dwight (1925). “the gulls of the world…” Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 52: 63-401 (is a bit obscure and dated but very thorough, and I have a spare photo copy that you can have for being the only person to plug gulls on B-A in such a long time!). Grant, P. (1986). Gulls: A guide to identification. T&AD Poyser (slightly dated but stronger on the understanding of the moult influences appearance, and therefore better than the modern guides to gulls, in my view) Grant, P, and Mullarney, K. (1989). The new approach to identification. (this obscure booklet explains the terminology of feather tracts, feather topography, moult and so forth – if you can master and apply the concepts therein you can consider yourself an expert ). Svennson, L. (1994). Jizz versus Tertial Fringes. ( a reminder that scrutinising the minutest detail is not always the best way). James, D. (1995) Picking a Gull Friend: Identification and Ageing of Black-backed gulls. Wingspan 17 (Vol 5 No. 2). (Kelp versus pacific Gulls, ageing and colour photos of most identifiable plumages) Carter, M. et al. (1994). The Comic terns: Identification of four medium-sized terns. Wingspan No 16. (vol 4, no 4) (Common, Arctic, White-fronted and Roseate terns in Aus with photos of many plumages. The books Mike Carter mentioned are also very good. You asked for books OR resources. One of the best resources available in Sydney is the Bird Collection at the Australian Museum. On the prepared specimens (or skins) you can see the feathers 1 by 1 and understand what the literature is saying. This is how to hone your skills and take them back to the field. Call the museum, ask for the bird section and make an appointment (business hours only) to visit the collection and look at your favourites. The curator is very accommodating. Hope this helps.
Yes, these three book are certainly the best books on gulls and terns at present. However, although the titles say it, I’d like to emphasize that none of them covers Australia.
Nikolas
For Gulls you need either Olsen & Larsson (2003), Gulls of Europe, Asia and North America, Christopher Helm, London, or Howell & Dunn, (2007), Gulls of the Americas, Peterson Field Guides, New York.
For Terns you need Olsen & Larsson (1995), Terns of Europe & North America, Princeton, New Jersey.
Mike Carter 30 Canadian Bay Road Mount Eliza VIC 3930 Tel (03) 9787 7136
Hi Mark
Trevor Ford has recently published a guide to gulls and terns in SE Qld:
Shorebirds, gulls & terns of Coastal SEQ : an identification guide Illustrations are by Jeff Davies
Pub details: Self-published Trevor Ford, 2010 64 p. : ill. ; 15 cm. I can’t find an ISBN but the Libraries Australia number is 45782131
Trevor often reads Birding-Aus so he may let you know where you can get a copy.
One of the best books for gulls and terns worldwide, also covering other seabirds, is:
Seabirds of the World: A Photographic Guide A Photographic Guide By Peter Harrison
Paperback, 317 pages 317 p. 740+ color photos 24 pages of line illus. 319 maps 22 cm .57 kg Princeton University Press, 1996 ISBN: 0691015511 EAN: 9780691015514
This is still available from several online booksellers, but the original, even more comprehensive hardback is out of print, but available in a number of libraries (these are listed on the National Library website):
Seabirds: An Identification Guide By Peter Harrison Hardcover 448 p. : ill. (some col.), maps (some col.) 25 cm. Croom Helm, 1983 0709912072 (Croom Helm) Also published by Reed, ISBN: 0589014722 (Reed)
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