Bonaparte's Gull

Bonaparte's Gull is named for zoologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte, a nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte. A widespread gull, it is one of the smallest. In Oregon it is a migrant, passing through in the Spring to breed far north in the Arctic, and back through in the fall to winter further South.  Jeanette's sharp eye's picked out this gull as different than the others collected on the beach in the area of the Carter Lake Trail yesterday. I was almost giddy as I clicked of some photos for later identification, knowing it was a gull I did not know. When I checked my bird Apps on my iPhone it was clear it was a non-breeding Bonaparte's Gull.  It's a "Lifer" for us, meaning the first time we have seen and identified this species.