A taste of the Mediterranean

A look at Mons Pool this afternoon produced the three Mediterranean Gulls (2 ads and a 2nd summer) that had been found here yesterday; they flew in with a small group of Black-headed Gulls and bathed, before flying off north - where there were some more gulls wheeling around. Not finding much else (although 2 female Pintail were nice) I decided to go and check these gulls out (after giving Collingham Pits a very cursory look - 1 Green Sand on Carlton Ferry Farm Pit).

I found the gulls in a bare, partially flooded field on the north side of the access track to Besthorpe NWT North (beyond the track down to Mons Pool). Scanning through the several hundred Black-headed Gulls, I came across at least 5 Common Gulls, and a 2nd summer Yellow-legged Gull with a few Lesser Black-backs. The 3 Med Gulls were also present - and amazingly so was a fourth - this time a 1st summer Med Gull.

2 adult Med Gulls at Besthorpe 

Ad Med Gull at Besthorpe

2nd summer Med Gull at Besthorpe

1st summer Med Gull at Besthorpe

2nd summer Yellow-legged Gull at Besthorpe

Lots of gulls at Besthorpe

Earlier, I'd had a bit of a look round Langford, hoping for some waders. As I was just about to leave, having only seen single Common Sand and Green Sands, a nice Black-tailed Godwit dropped in. I managed some distant record shots, but unfortunately in the time it took me to get round to the viewing screen it had vanished. Also here, a Hobby hawking overhead, and a Peregrine flying south with a Wood Pigeon in its clutches (tailed by the 17 Common Terns that were feeding over Phase 1!).

Black-tailed Godwit at Langford Lowfields