I have been enrolled
with the BTO as a bird ringing / banding T permit holder. This allows me to
engage in ringing birds at Beddington Farm under the watchful eye of my trainer
Mike Netherwood.
This morning was very
quiet in the nets but a white winged gull caught our eye as it flew onto the
North Lake. The bird conveniently washed up between the islands remaining for
some time.
The birds overall size
and head provoked discussion as the bird appeared particularly large for an
Iceland Gull and the plumage appeared washed out. The Farm has around ten thousand gulls visiting a day and there
are some weird looking birds amongst the masses therefore the sight of a white
winger does not always mean identification will be a straight forward matter. I
had in the back of my mind an interesting gull seen by Dave Harris the previous
evening at the Walton roost.
Obtaining pictures
was becoming imperative so I ran back to the hide to collect my camera
returning slightly breathless but able to get some shots of the bird. A large
Iceland Gull was becoming the consensus of opinion but further clarification
was sought from our onsite gull expert. The verdict so far on pictures supplied is a
male Iceland Gull.
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