Franklin’s Gull

Not the world’s greatest, but this photo confirms the distant presence of a Franklin’s Gull at Olympia’s KGY point on 16 August 2020. Reported the day before, Erika and I decided to drive the two miles from our home to search for this bird. We sat on a park bench when another birder appeared and asked “are you looking for the Franklin’s Gull?” We replied, “Yes, but we have not seen it.” A few moments later, we spied a small gull. “Is that the gull?” I asked. Indeed, it was. 

Franklin’s Gulls breed in the northern Great Plains and the central Canadian Prairies. Most migrate south Mexico and along the Pacific Coast of Central America, to winter in the Pacific Ocean west of South America. This gull is uncommon in Washington during the fall migration, and is rare to casual in other seasons. During the past fifty years, the breeding range has drifted westward, with nesting birds discovered in Idaho and Oregon. Increasing observations in Washington may reflect post-breeding dispersal rather than southward migration (Wahl et al. 2005; Berger and Gochfeld 2020).