Charlie Wright found a Black-tailed Gull on Commencement Bay, a part of Puget Sound, in Tacoma, WA on October 13.  Not surprisingly, I was thousands of miles away in Quebec when it was found.  Last year, a Variegated Flycatcher was in eastern Washington in September.  Me?  I was in Barrow, Alaska at the time.  Unlike the flycatcher, the gull had the good manners to stick around until I got back home, and as of today (Nov 4), it’s still there.

Black-tailed Gull; Tacoma, WA, 27 Oct 2009

I’ve seen it three times now, and on my second visit, I was able to get some pretty good photos.  Besides the one above, you can see the rest here.  If you go, don’t expect to see it this well unless you’re in a boat.  Otherwise, you’ll be at least 100 yards away, and you’ll definitely want a scope.  In fact, you’ll probably need a scope.

I had several requests for directions after I first posted my photos to Tweeters, and I know birders are still coming to look for it, so here are directions from I-5:

- take Exit 137 (the Fife/Milton/Hwy 99 exit) and go north (a right turn if you’re coming from southbound I-5; I believe it’s also a right turn if you’re coming from northbound I-5).  You will be on 54th Ave E.

- continue north for 1.0 mile on 54th Ave E.  This distance is measured from where the southbound I-5 exit meets 54th Ave E.  There’s a traffic light there.  After you pass this traffic light, you’ll go through another three intersections with traffic lights and then come to a fourth light at the intersection with Hwy 509.  (FYI, shortly before 54th Ave E. meets Hwy 509, it makes a slight bend to the left, and when it does, it’s name changes to Taylor Way.)

- turn right on Hwy 509.  It is also called Marine View Drive.

- go 3.9 miles on Marine View Drive/Hwy 509.  Note that at 1.7 miles you’ll need to get into the left lane.  The right lane is right turn only.  Along the way, you’ll pass Hylebos, Chinook Landing, and Ole & Charlie’s marinas.

- there is a pull-off on your left at 3.9 miles (marked on a map here).  You might notice a street sign here that says “NE 5000″.  Park here.  If you end up driving past this spot, you will reach Tyee Marina at 4.2 miles.  You can turn around here.  Also, you’ll pass several other pull-offs before you get to the “NE 5000″ pull-off.  You might want to try these, too, if you aren’t having any luck.

Here’s a photo of the bay from the pull-off:

The gull is usually sitting on the log boom, often on the right side, which as you see, is marked in the photo.  Today, it was sitting right in the middle of the near side.  I took this photo around 2 PM.  As you can see, the light isn’t terrific and it just gets worse as the day goes on.  I’ve heard that the gull is usually off feeding in the morning, so late morning to early afternoon is probably the best time to look for it from the road.

Other birds seen here today included Barrow’s Goldeneye, Red-necked Grebe, and three species of comorants.