October Gulling - Fruitful Yet Frustrating!

I love checking through the flocks of large gulls on the Axe on stormy October days - the month that is the best to see non-juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls here.  And this afternoon proved that once again...

Whilst scanning through a big gang of mostly Great Black-backed Gulls north of Coronation Corner I saw this...

Striking mantle colour

It was distant and tipping down with rain, and at first I thought it was an adult Yellow-legged Gull, but soon I could just make out it's leg's weren't exactly bright yellow and there were some dark marks on the bill, so decided it had to be a near-adult.  Not long after I saw it much closer...

A big bird!

Up close the legs did look very pale (just tinged yellow), and that marked bill combined with very adult-like upper parts says it probably is a fourth-winter, although could be a well-advanced third-winter maybe?  An absolutely massive beast though - it's going to look amazing in a year or two! 

Also in the flock were three Common Gulls, two Med Gulls (ad and first-winter), this cracking intermedius Lesser Black-backed Gull...

On the right - really long-winged

And then this appeared...

Between the male Mallard and Great Black-backed Gull

Yup - that one!

My immediate reaction, I think mostly due to the neck shawl combined with fairly mature looking upper parts, was second-winter Casp! But a bit more watching soon put me off, particularly with that feeble looking bill.

Still looked pretty good at some angles

I had to leave it quite abruptly, but thankfully when I returned an hour later it was still there - well a bit closer actually...

Looking really dinky here - sometimes even reminded me of a Common Gull!

Note mantle colour - looking pretty good for a Casp being just a shade darker than the Herring

Still from a video

And again. Wing pattern looking ok actually

So what it is?  Well for me, for now, it's going in the 'cactus' group (CaspianxHerring hybrid) - I just don't like the small bill and head, the pale eye, dusky streaks around the eye, as well as the lack of giraffe-like neck and long wings.  But, as Brett has pointed out in a flurry of messages this evening, there is a chance it could still be a pure small female Casp. If you've any thoughts do let me have them, thanks :-)

Other bits and bobs that I've seen today in the valley include; 1 Bar-tailed Godwit, 1 Greenshank, 1 Ringed Plover, 1 Common Sandpiper, 4 Dunlin, 70 Wigeon and 100 Teal.  

Looking at the weather for the week ahead, expect more gull-posts...

A Galling Gull

A quick snoop around the patch early this morning showed a flock of 15 Sand Martin feeding over Colyford Marsh, but not a lot else...

I had two more trips out today, late morning and late afternoon, with gulls being the main focus. Among the 120+ Common Gulls on the Estuary were five Med Gulls (one first-summer, two second-summer and two adult summers). There weren't big numbers of large gulls on show today, but they did include this first-summer Caspian Gull*...

First views showed exactly what can be seen in the above pic. A strikingly white headed and breasted first-year gull, with extensive (almost complete) grey saddle, solidly faded dark brown tertials, plain (although very faded) greater coverts, and narrow pink legs with comparatively long tibia.  Overall it was a sizeable bird too, larger than the surrounding Herring Gulls.

My views of it were shocking mind, as you can tell from the below pics...

Frustrating I had to go before I'd even picked this bird up, so after ten minutes of watching it I really had to go!  But when I finally and begrudgingly did drive away, I suddenly realised how I may be able to get a closer view...

Oh yes much closer and clearer, but not the most helpful of angles. And now I really really really had to go!!

I desperately hope I or someone sees this bird again, because currently I'm just not quite happy with it.  I reckon if I'd been able to give it the time it deserved then I would have come away happy, but the bill size and shape, and dull grey mottling on flanks and belly are unsettling me... 

Is it a big male Casp, or do these features suggest some Herring influence?  Any comments as ever gratefully received.

A Brief Update...

I didn't want the run of blog posts to completely dry up, not that I've got much to tell!

Goosanders have been seen fairly regularly recently, most often in flight near dawn or dusk in the vicinity of Black Hole Marsh.  A possible 'one that got away' is worth blogging about too; A small grey goose seen with the Canada flock reported by a local to Phil - unfortunately not present when Phil got down there mind.  

Wish I had time to go through the gulls today, as there were huge numbers present at about 2pm. I have given them a couple of scans during the past week or so, but have returned nothing better than a couple of wrong'uns...  One I am pretty sure was a second-winter argentatus Herring Gull but I didn't get to see enough to 100% convince me. And the other, well it was a Herring Gull, but it just had the stance and perfect posture of a Caspian - more so than any Herring Gull I've ever seen before.  I did wonder about hybrid but there's nothing else to suggest that's a viable option...

Just how a Caspian Gull stands... but clearly Herring Gulls can do too!

The end...

More Juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls

A fresh southerly wind and a bit of rain and cloud has encouraged me to look at the sea on a few occasions over the past couple of days.  No rewards as yet with just small numbers of Manx Shearwaters and a few Med Gulls passing, but tomorrow is looking the windiest of all the days so maybe the best is yet to come?

Black Hole Marsh has already proved popular with migrating waders, although I have managed to miss two Wood Sandpipers, a summer plumaged Knot and a Spotted Redshank (although this one is still present so there's hope yet!).  It's also been a good summer for juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls on the Axe, and today I managed to add another four to the tally.  All were on the Estuary early this afternoon...

The closest of the four

There's two here, the one stood up with head tucked in being the darkest of all four, and the bird sat down facing left being classic in all respects (and the most advanced with several 2nd gen scapular feathers already)

And this one was the largest, posing nicely here next to a Great Black-backed Gull which it was the same size as!

Gulls Only A Mother Could Love

I spent all day at work today, so once I'd clocked off at 4.30pm I had a quick whiz round hoping for my first Wheatear of the year.  Despite checking several sites I couldn't find one, so I spent the last twenty minutes of daylight watching gulls drop in at the lower end of the Estuary.

It was mostly small gulls, but among the larger ones were eight Lesser Black-backs and two birds that I am a bit puzzled by. I originally put them both down as HerringxLesser Black-backed hybrids, but now think bird one could be a pure Yellow-legged. If anyone thinks differently or has some views then please let me know. All photos were taken when it was nearly dark...

Bird one

Bird one again, with a Herring in shot to compare mantle shades

Bird two

Bird two again

Both are yellow-legged, albeit a dull yellow, which actually is fine for pure Yellow-legged or Lesser Black-backed Gulls of this age.

Bird one I'm pretty sure on bill and moult is a third-winter, but I haven't completely ruled out it being an advanced second-winter. It was the larger of the two yellow-legged birds being Herring Gull-sized, but short-legged, reminiscent of Lesser Black-backed Gull. The bird's mantle colour actually looked pretty spot on for a pure Yellow-legged Gull, I usually find these hybrids look the wrong shade of grey for YLG. I have to be honest and say I am struggling with this bird, but do think it could indeed be a pure Yellow-legged.

Bird two was built more like a Lesser Black-backed Gull in all proportions, and I think it's a second-winter despite the yellow bill. Again a short legged and cute headed gull, but mantle colour was a touch darker than bird one, more akin to the previous presumed HerringxLesser Black-backed Gulls that I've seen here.

Hmmmmmmm.... Gulls, who'd have them!

Away from these confusing gulls, there's still a decent variety of wading birds on the Estuary with Avocet, Greenshank and two Bar-tailed Godwits again present today.

Caspian Gull Yet Again

Perfect weather today for large gulls on the Axe. In the end though the numbers were disappointing and I found nothing unusual in with them, well except for the lingering first-winter Caspian Gull (last seen on 26th Feb). I'm amazed at how infrequently we are seeing this lingering bird, just where is it hiding?

I will be honest, although all views of it were distant and during dreadful weather, when I first picked it up I thought I had a new individual. It just looked big, proper Casp leggy and necky, plus it looked quite a clean bird - all unlike the lingering bird...

Look at that neck!

At rest

The whole gull flock was then flushed and the Casp took to the air...

Quality completely naff as its a video still

Ditto, but it does at least show some of the classic Casp features

A minute later once most the gulls had gone with only about 25% of the original flock remaining, I picked it up again, now a little closer. It was then obvious that on plumage it was the lingering bird, with the distinctive patterning on the greater coverts a perfect match...

Looks really beaky in this shot. Again totally different to how the lingering bird usually looks

The weather was so awful this photo almost looks black and white!

A good lesson in how different postures can alter the overall look of one gull.

First-winter Argentatus?

Lots of large and small gulls on the Estuary this evening, they all seemed reluctant to fly out to sea to roost presumably due to the east wind blowing into the bay.  Looking at the forecast they are going to have to get used to it!

Considering the numbers about, surprisingly still no Axe white-wingers for me this year (there were brief singles of Glauc and Iceland (IMc) in January but nothing since). The best among the throng of gulls off Coronation Corner was this strikingly dark and large first-winter Herring Gull-type, which showed unusually solidly dark tertials and plain greater coverts...

In the middle at the back

At the back preening

One big Herring Gull!

Quite a snooty beast

A bit more detail on the wing feathers

Annoyingly throughout the whole time I watched it I didn't see it fly or flap once, so can't add much more to what these photos show.  At the time I thought a first-winter argentatus Scandinavian Herring Gull was probably the best option, but I know there's no way I could prove this. Less moult would have helped my case that's for sure, and possibly a frostier appearance.

If there's anyone out there willing to comment on its ID, or probable ID, then please do. Many thanks to Brett Spencer who has already given his thoughts.

Also on the Estuary this evening, I was surprised to see the wintering Ringed Plover (which in itself is very unusual for the Axe) had been joined by a second bird.  And although I saw neither this evening, the Glossy Ibis and Marsh Harrier have been around during the last few days.

The Axe Estuary this evening

With snow forecasted for next week, along with proper cold temperatures, we may well see some cold weather bird movements, especially with so much snow set to dump in the east of the UK. I always find it sad to see birds having to move literally to survive, but there's no argument of just how spectacular this can be. A quick scroll back through my blog reminded me of not just the best cold weather bird movement I've ever seen on patch, but the best bird movement I've ever seen here full stop, back in December 2010; http://stevesbirdingblog.blogspot.co.uk/2010/12/cold-weather-birding.html

Wrap up warm folks. But be sure to keep the binoculars around your neck as during cold weather, anything really can turn up anywhere.

Another Yellow-legged Gull

Last Wednesday was a day of large gull passage, and Sunday just gone was a day of small gull passage.  A walk along Seaton Beach that morning revealed almost constant flocks of Common and Black-headed Gulls flying west, with two adult Med Gulls in one of these flocks.  Later that day Ian Mc and Twilight Tim had superb numbers of small gulls on the Estuary, including impressive counts of 18+ Meds and 350+ Commons, but only modest numbers of large gulls.  

Yesterday seemed to show fewer small gulls, but more big ones again.  Among them was this third-winter Yellow-legged Gull, which sadly remained distant but always looked nicely chunky and well built (unlike last weeks small second-winter). I really do apologise for these photos, not only was it distant but the light was dreadful too...

It only showed pale yellow legs, but due to its age this isn't a problem. Great to see this bird after last weeks second-winter, as these two ages are the least frequently seen ages of Yellow-legged Gull on the Axe.   

The south westerly wind yesterday kept me at the Spot On Kiosk for a good hour earlier in the day.  Gannets and Kittiwakes were constantly trickling through, along with a few auks, but the only other bits and pieces included two lone Common Scoter and a Red-throated Diver.  Today there were still at least four Cattle Egret at Colcombe Farm, Colyton. All the egrets were well spread out so the fifth could still be present.

Lastly, James Mc gave me some teasing news yesterday, with three Egyptian Geese in fields just north of Axminster.  I really hope they wander a little further south...

Excellent Gull Passage

What an exciting few days. February is a great month for gull passage and the last few days have not disappointed. Today I had quite a bit of free time and could barely tear myself away from the Estuary.  It was nice to spend time gulling with Gav too, just like the old days!  What was telling was that he wasn't even working in the area today...

Iceland Gull was the rarest of the days birds, found by Ian Mc at about 08:55 down by the tram sheds. It was a first-winter/juv, so not last weeks bird and probably my third different Iceland Gull in as many weeks!  I would have been able to post a nice photo of it here but for the bait digger who decided to flush the lot just after my arrival, so this is my only pic of it...

The middle bird. Yes I know it looks to have dark in the wing tips but that's just shadows

Next best bird was this second-winter Yellow-legged Gull.  I first saw it mid morning but sat with a bunch of Lesser Black-backed Gulls in the rain it looked short legged and rather unimpressive in overall structure, so I put it down as a probable hybrid-type. But Gav picked it up again later and we both watched it for much longer and in better light, and he soon managed to change my mind. Yes it was not long legged at all, and didn't have a strong bill, but everything else was absolutely perfect for second-winter Yellow-legged Gull. It was such a smart and clean bird, really pristine looking, hybrids always seem to look 'messy'. So a small female Yellow-legged Gull it is, but do drop me a line if you (Tim/Mike/Matt?) don't agree...

For me though today was all about the Lesser Black-backed Gulls.  There were 75 along the Estuary mid afternoon, but with birds coming and going all day, and no fewer than 40 birds on the river at any one time, who knows how many really passed through? As always with Lesser Black-backed Gulls at this time of year they came in a variety of mantle shades...

One of them was colour-ringed though, and it looks like 'V6VU' was ringed in Denmark. I will let you all know when I hear back about its ringing details, as this would be a confirmed intermedius if it originates from here. I do wonder whether all these spring passage Lesser Black-backs are intermedius though - even the slightly less black mantled birds!?

I only saw two adult Med Gulls today, but at least one of them was different from the five of yesterday. The five yesterday included a green-ringed second-winter, which was another new bird for me.  The last few weeks have seen a steady turn over of Med Gulls, I've seen at least 20 different individuals on the Axe this month, only two second-winters and one first-winter though.

Also yesterday the Lesser Black-backed count got to 44, and there were 135 Common Gulls which is more proof of gull passage.

Right let's leave the gulls for now, and I'll try and tidy up all my other patch birding sightings for the last few days. I'll start with the sea, and that's where I started today (as usual!). In 45 minutes I had eight Red-throated Divers and three Common Scoters west, along with a lovely pod of Bottlenose Dolphins.  There were at least six animals, including three calves that were jumping around all over the place, but they always remained distant and quickly headed off west.

Yesterday the sea gave twelve Red-throated Divers, but little else.  And on Monday I gave it an hour despite how quiet it was, and was rewarded with a fine drake Pintail close west with a Wigeon. Also two Red-throated Divers and a Razorbill.  I just WISH I stayed on an extra ten minutes or so though, as Ian Mc from another spot had a Velvet Scoter fly west shortly after I packed away my telescope. So gripping!!  I've given the sea so much time and effort this year hoping for something like this, and each watch one or two Scoters go by, but for me so far none of them have had white secondaries.  I suppose something like this was always going to happen though, I can't watch the sea all the time!

The Brent Goose is still knocking around with the Canada Goose flock in the valley, but another bad miss was a Goosander seen by others flying down and then upriver at dusk on Monday. Bums.

Dark-bellied Brent Goose

On the western boundary of our patch there's still Golden Plovers about, had 16 last Wednesday and 47 on Sunday morning. Also saw 50+ Snipe today in a field near Hangman's Stone (the Beer turn off on the A3052) which was a bit of a surprise.  

It's been nice to finally see some more Siskin about, I had 15 alongside the River Coly just north of Chantry Bridge last Saturday, and another couple over Lower Bruckland Ponds (yeah on my PWC patch finally!).

And last but by no means least, Chiffchaffs. Both Colyford and Branscombe sewage works are still home to plenty of Chiffchaffs, with many of them singing in recent days too which is nice.  The ringed tristis is still at Colyford WTW and there were at least two grey birds at Branscombe too.

Even wetter and windier tomorrow, can't wait to see what the Estuary has to offer us...