I think the ODOW's information about gizzard shad production may help
to explain in part the recent appearances of large numbers of gulls
inland at Oberlin Res, Hoover Res, and Deer Creek Res. I'm not sure how
it explains the utterly unprecedented new records (at these spots and
others) of Iceland, glaucous, and lesser and greater black-backed gulls
well away from Lake Erie (where gizzard shad are just as easy to find,
after all). Why would surprising numbers of gulls rare inland show up?
Surely this is not a once-in-a-lifetime shad event.
        A few others have offered interesting opinions about this phenomenon. I
heard from a friend in Ontario who pointed out there's a brief period in
spring when bodies of water are thawing, refreezing, and generally in a
state of flux when gulls can find dead fishes trapped in the ice more
easily. That fits recent Ohio conditions inland: see Tom Bain's post. He
went on to explain the strange numbers of species very rare inland by
suggesting they may have, for one reason or another (such as an
abnormally cold and snowy winter: see Matt Erickson's post), chosen a
route from the Atlantic coast to the breeding grounds that brought more
of them to Ohio. Thus, these gulls may not be dropping down from Lake
Erie, but rather coming a bit further west on their way from the coast
to the breeding grounds. He speculated that the kittiwake at Hoover,
quite rare as a spring migrant, may have gotten swept up in a movement
of ring-bills arriving from the coast. That's where we stand now.
Bill Whan
Columbus, OH

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