California Gulls Larus californicus flying over the Columbia River at Gingko State Park in Vantage, WA.
Birds in flight is a great topic for a birding photo contest. After all flying is what differentiates birds from most other animals, and a large part of what attracts us to watch birds in the first place. It is also what allows birds to show up in unexpected places, sometimes to the rescue of humans? How can that be? Recall the story of the Mormans in Utah who were in jus their second year in the Salt Lake Valley. They had arrived a bit late in the season the year prior and though they planted their crops a bit late, and had a meager yield, they were able to save enough seeds to plant a good crop in their second year. Then, just prior to harvest, they were overrun by a swarming mass of katydids, also called crickets, and later named "Mormon Crickets." These insects don't fly, but travel by swarming on the ground, eating essentially all plant matter in their path. They were devastating the crop in Salt Lake when the "miracle of the gulls" happend, and California Gulls came in a massive flock eating the insects and saving the Mormons from starvation.
The two gulls here are adults, with their dark black sharply defined wingtips, their medium-sized straight bill with red and black spots, and dark gray upper wings. They breed in many inland areas including eastern Washington.
This is a sub-adult California Gull, probably in its third year, note the dark tail tip.
Here is a California Gull from behind. I like the symmetry and shades of gray in this photo.
Thanks for doing the contest. Fly on birds and birders.
