The place I am allowed to view the landfill site is useless in the morning if the sun is out. This morning I arrived just before the sun was above the horizon. Many gulls were already feeding and amongst them a juvenile Glaucous Gull appeared. There wasn't much time, as the sun was starting to make viewing difficult despite still being hidden. It was a smaller individual than last week's and its mantle was noticeably pale. I was able to take a short bit of video to at least record it. John Judge confirmed that out of the two juveniles roosting at Draycote Water one was smaller and paler on the upperparts.
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For best viewing of the video change the setting to HD.
Caspian Gulls were in short supply this weekend: only one adult was present in a field near Shawell Village and a first-winter was in the same field, but that one was most likely to be a hybrid. Its greater coverts were a bit too chequered for my liking and its scapulars were a bit heavily marked too.
Last week I made one visit to Shawell and managed to see three Caspian Gulls, two adults and a third-winter.
Last week I made one visit to Shawell and managed to see three Caspian Gulls, two adults and a third-winter.
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| Third-winter Caspian Gull, 15/01/16 |
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| Female Caspian Gull, 15/01/16 |