Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis), ad, 9.8.2009, Vejle Harbor

This Yellow-legged Gull has a typical heavy bill with strong colours, red orbital ring and yellowish iris, warm yellow legs, darker upperparts with more saturated blue grey tone than on argentatus in direct comparison, slender and long-winged appearance with elongated body profile. On the opened wing the five inner most primaries are all of new generation with p5 still growing and with a typical black band, both p6 and p7 are missing and p8, p9 and p10 has not yet been shed luckily allowing us to view the large amount of black on these feathers and the isolated mirror on p9 and p10. On the underwing the classic darker ash grey tone on the primaries is apparent especially on the renewed feathers giving a stronger contrast to the white coverts.