This Featured picture from Wikimedia Commons was taken in Franz Josef Land, a Russian archipelago of 191 islands in the Arctic Ocean.
It’s a beautiful photo of an iceberg and there’s a bird in it.
Quiz: What bird?
Here are some hints:
- Narrow your options by finding out what birds are possible in Franz Josef Land.
- Examine a more detailed photo to see the bird’s features. Click here for the image at 800×533 pixels with attribution or here for the full resolution original at 4,596 × 3,064 pixels. (I downsized the photo to fit my blog format.)
So what bird is flying by this iceberg in Russia? I think I know.
Leave a comment with your answer.
(photo from Wikimedia Commons. Click on the image to see the original)
Judging by the white head and tail, I would guess bald eagle.
Uh oh. That was my first thought, too, but bald eagles only occur in North America, not in Franz Josef Land. Look again, Cyndi.
Did a bit of online searching – is it Black-legged Kittiwake ?
Kathy, that’s what I think it is.
Stellars Sea Eagle? Aren’t there two at the aviary? Can’t quite tell if the beak is as huge as I remember.
I’m going to guess Northern Fulmar. A northern Northern Fulmar, lol. ?
No, just looked at the original photo and zoomed in – it’s a kittiwake.
Looking at the list of potentials, I narrowed it down to kittiwake. You can’t see its legs, but since Black-legged outnumber Red-legged 4-1 and the beak looks on the large size, I also think Black-legged Kittiwake.
I think it’s a Black-legged Kittiwake. My first thought was Herring Gull, but the wing pattern is wrong (white on primaries is closer to body than, not within, the black wing tips), and Franz Josef Land is nearly 80 degrees North. As far as I have found out, Herring Gull doesn’t make it that far north except as a vagrant. I had always assumed Herring Gull occurred well into the Arctic. I don’t think Red-legged Kittiwake occurs in Franz Josef Land, but the wing pattern suggests Black-legged Kittiwake.
O.K. Are these the same Black legged Kittiwakes we saw in Alaska, or the”other kind”? Can’t see the toes.
Janet, I have no idea. Two kinds of black-hearted kittiwakes. Oh my!
The guide is Alaska told us the Pacific Black-legged Kittiwakes had a hind toe, while the Atlantic ones don’t. Which leaves out the Arctic, which I wonder if they cross over?
Janet, This is the Atlantic subspecies according to the Handbook of Birds of the World at this link: http://www.hbw.com/species/black-legged-kittiwake-rissa-tridactyla).
QUOTED DIRECTLY FROM HBW:
“Subspecies and Distribution
R. t. tridactyla (Linnaeus, 1758) – Atlantic Kittiwake – N Atlantic from NC Canada and NE USA E through Greenland to W & N Europe, and on to N Taymyr Peninsula and Severnaya Zemlya; winters S to Sargasso Sea and W Africa.
R. t. pollicaris Ridgway, 1884 – Pacific Kittiwake – N Pacific from NE Siberia, Kamchatka, Sea of Okhotsk and Kuril Is through Bering Sea to Alaska; winters S to East China Sea and NW Mexico.”
Also according to HBW, climate change is causing a huge decline in black-legged kittiwakes. So sad!
QUOTED FROM HBW AT SAME LINK ABOVE:
“The Black-legged Kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) is by far the most abundant North Atlantic gull, with a global population estimated at some 15 million individuals. However, a large-scale decline has been apparent since the 1980s. As in other seabird species, declines at some colonies have been linked to rising sea surface temperatures, probably through their effects in changing zooplankton communities and reducing prey availability and nutritional value.”
Thanks!