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By jeffdyck
#77224
This evening while out birding I observed a loon quite a way of shore. Some very heavily cropped photos below.

I have only been up close to a single Yellow-billed Loon and it was much lighter and paler overall than this specimen and the bill was uniformly pale yellow. Through the scope the bill definitely appeared pale yellow, but I started questioning myself as to whether this might be a yellow-billed loon or common loon with a trick of the low-angle warm light. The brownish back and crest and darker area on the upper bill / culmen were throwing me off based on my previous observation, but after I got home and had a better look at examples of immature and non-breeding Yellow-billed loons, but that made it less rather than more clear.

The off-angle lighting was pretty terrible for photos and the bird very far away, so the images aren't great.

Image

What do you think? Yellow-billed or Common loon?
#77227
I am just a new birder and so I don't even trust myself yet.

I am tempted to guess it is a double crested cormorant. They usually float lower than other water birds because of heavier body. A link to a more detailed description.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Dou ... rmorant/id

Feel free to correct me.

Mario
#77228
Personally, I would go with Common Loon! Yellow-Billed are still not that common, and the roseate appearing bill(may just be the sun?!) gives it the impression of being one!

Cheers
Matyas
#77229
It's a common loon if you look at the photo in the top left corner you can see the head is very dark just like the back of the body and it has a very thick neck and steep forehead. A yellow billed loon would have a paler head than the back of the body as well. The bill is also held slightly upright in yellow-billed loons this one is holding it pretty straight and horizontal. The other photos due to distance are showing overexposed parts to the face and bill that is why that first photo at the top left gives you the best info.


Cheers,
Mel
#77230
Thanks Mel. I had looked at several images of immature yellow-billed loons where the crest and back were very dark, so I wasn't using that as a indicator, but after revisiting some of those images, your note about the steepness of the forehead definitely holds true.

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