Gulls

I didn't get out birding yesterday as the weather up here in the Northwest was pretty awful, with wind and rain virtually from dawn to dusk.

This morning was a different story and I managed to get out for the morning, and even though I am not a 'Laruphile' by any means, Gulls did feature quite a bit in my birding.

I joined Ian at the Point for my first sea watch of 2015, and although it was better than New Year's Eve it still wasn't rocking. And then I had to remind myself of the date! Visibility wasn't too bad and Walney Island was visible across the Bay, and we had two oktas cloud cover with a 30 mph westerly wind.

Kittiwakes were the main feature of the morning and we had 14 flying east out of the Bay in a flurry of short-lived activity. In addition to the Kitti's were just two Common Scoters, seven Red-breasted Mergansers, three Great Crested Grebes, a Guillemot, an Auk sp. and seven Eiders.

After a short pit-stop at Ian's for some high octane coffee we headed out again to have a look through the Gulls. There were approximately a thousand Gulls to look through and straight away Ian was picking out some 'Scandinavian' Herring Gulls and then I located the adult Caspian Gull. I was quite surprised at how much it stood out from the Herring Gulls, but then again I was looking for it.

After a few Reed Buntings, Sparrowhawk, 150 Lapwings, 50 Wigeon, a Peregrine, 30 Tufted Ducks, a pair of Pochards and a Water Rail it was lunchtime and I headed home.

It's forecast for light rain in the morning, but as there's a tide I'll probably start the day with a spot of sea watching.