Fly Flatts late p.m. with very little cloud and 26 degrees. The breeze kept the temperature bearable with a NW>3 dropping as we left.
Again very quiet with nothing moving in the sky other than 1 Kestrel whilst 2 pair of Common Sandpipers and 2 juvs were on the shoreline with the Dunlin in its usual place probing in the lagoon. Even the Canadas were all ashore in the shade of the reed beds on the eastern bank leaving just the Greylag family on the water. I,ll never complain about gale force winds and horizontal drizzle again.
Regarding the mystery gull , today I received an e mail from Mick Cunningham, another gull expert alongside Keith Moir. The e mail was the best , most informative and probably the longest e mail I have ever received going into depth about, Herring gull, Caspian gull and Yellow Legged Herring gull including immatures and moulting birds.
He said the same as Keith, that it is impossible to positively identify the bird given the poor photos but he and Keith steer away from Caspian and Caspian hybird mainly through the bill and leg length as well as several other factors. Mick explained that immature large gulls can be very difficult to id, which we all know, and Caspian type can even have the top experts baffled. Mick says if he were to guess he would go for Yellow Legged Herring but without any more to go on its impossible to say.
Its very reassuring to know that MC and KM take the time and trouble to watch my blog with interest and are good enough to e mail in great detail their views on my sightings, especially as Mick now lives south of the border in Oxfordshire.
Many thanks to them both and also to unknown birder DC at Morecambe.
Mick also added that on several photos of groups of gulls I put on the blog he picks out immature Yellow Legged Herrings meaning that we are getting more in the area than we know about. Keep the comments coming Mick and Keith, ( the gull back up team).
The Raggalds gull field was void of gulls on the way home.
BS