The three birds already mentioned flew in from the south together, out beyond the rocks, then banked slowly into the Gate without ever getting adequately close to my viewpoint. The Black-bellieds were still in alternate plumage, easily recognizable, but the Golden was in basic or juv, and will sadly remain a G-P sp. Sadly because it was not a bright 14 karat bird like the only other G-P I've seen in town, a Pacific some years ago at the Battery, so the gray-brown dorsal color leaves space to consider that it might have been an American. The bird was slightly smaller than the B-b's, identical in shape and flight style, but lacked the white rump, and had gray underwings.
Other notable birds were a Wandering Tattler, dark enough to remove any hope of another Grey-tailed, and a very dark Parasitic Jaeger, barely showing a white flash on the underwings. Brian Fitch
