Everything I saw on this bird said 1st-winter, though I can't eliminate a slowly progressing 2nd-winter. I didn't see any gray coming in on the upperparts, and the short bill didn't show a pale base.

This was a small gull, a little bigger than the nearby Ring-bills, but smaller and more petite than any of the Herrings that I saw it near.

On the water the bird was uniform frosty, with no darker contrast in the primaries at all. The primaries usually looked paler than the rest of the bird.