A New Record for LBBG Colour Ring Reads at Chouet

Although the weather was dull this morning, Chouet landfill Beach was on fire...back to its very best (after a somewhat quiet start to the spring). A new record of 147 colour rings were read on Lesser Black-backed Gulls (all local birds...except one metal ring London GC76778). In addition 51 Herring Gull rings were read, including Pale Blue B67A (ringed at Le Havre, Seine-Maritime, France). Only three GBBG rings were read, and two of these were  metal rings - the birds having been ringed locally as chicks in 2006 and 2007. A beautiful 2nd winter Yellow-legged Gull completed a stunning early morning at Chouet.

 2nd winter Yellow-legged Gull

 Chouet Landfill Beach

 LBBG London GC76778

 Herring Gull Pale Blue B67A

 GBBGS Jersey J0076 & J0583

Gulls in the Rain

A day full of rain today, but it didn't put the gulls off their courtship at Chouet. Another morning with more than 100 colour-ringed LBBGs recorded, along with smaller numbers of Herring and GBBGs (including a few French and English birds).

GBBG White P:12A at Chouet (ringed at Portland Harbour) (c) PKV

Another Fine Morning with LBBGs at Chouet

This morning I focused on LBBGs at Chouet landfill, recording another 130 of our colour-ringed birds, along with Orange T121 the bird ringed by Vicente López Alcazar in Salamanca, Spain last December  and now building a history of sightings in Guernsey this spring. It must be one of our locally breeding birds. I also recorded c 60 Herring Gull rings and 17 GBBGs, including E5508, which I ringed as a chick on Herm in July 1993!

LBBG Orange T121 at Chouet (c) PKV

Another 200 Gull Colour Rings Read at Chouet this Morning

Although viewing at Chouet Landfill is more distant at the moment, the large flat area between windrows does enable a lot of gulls' legs to be checked for rings. As a result in a little under two hours this morning I recorded another 200 rings (roughly evenly split between LBBG and Herring, with GBBGs just reaching double figures). Courtship behaviour, which has been common amongst the Herring Gulls for a couple of weeks, is now also prevalent with the LBBGs - summer is definitely on the way!

First Channel Islands Herring Gull Reported in Belgium!

Simon Feys has just reported Herring Gull White 0HA4 at Nieuwpoort, Vuurtoren, Belgium - our first sighting of one of our Guernsey colour-ringed Herring Gulls in Belgium! We have worked quite hard this winter to try to colour ring a sample of wintering Herring Gulls. Chouet Landfill clearly acts as a magnet for a large number of immature Herring Gulls from outside the Channel Islands. 0HA4 was ringed in our garden (1 km from Chouet) on 02 December 2012. Of course we do not yet know if 0HA4 is a Belgian or French bird that has visited Guernsey in the winter, or one of our local birds wandering north (further than most!). I suspect it is the former...but hopefully time will tell. Many thanks to Simon for this exciting report and for the very nice photos too!

Herring Gull White 0HA4 at Nieuwpoort 11 April 2013 (c) Simon Feys

Spring is in the Air - Kind Of Hard to Believe Isn't It?!

Despite the unseasonably cold weather, Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls are very busy pairing on the beaches in Guernsey...and in recent days a few pairs are beginning to take this further...as can be seen below:-

Amorous Herring Gulls on Chouet Beach

Another 100 or so cr reads were taken this morning on LBBGs at Chouet  and a smaller number of Herring Gulls. One metal-ringed LBBG was close enough to tempt me to try to read the ring, and with only the final digit missing I hope we can trace this gull at least to the date of ringing and location - London GC7930?.

Another hat-trick of Foreign Colour Ringed LBBGs at Chouet

The temptation to lie in bed for that extra hour this morning was strong  given how bitterly cold the strong NE wind is today! However...it proved to be another excellent day to be at the beaches early! At Chouet amongst more than 100 cr LBBGs were three foreign-ringed birds. There were two Norwegian LBBGs on Chouet Beach at the same time (another first for me in Guernsey). One of these birds (Blue JL9S) had been ringed as a chick on Rauna, Vest-Agder in July 2004, and never subsequently reported until today - a run of almost 3,200 days! The other Norwegian bird (Black JR42) had been ringed as a chick in July 2006 at Loppa, Finnmark way up in the Arctic Circle! This gull already has an interesting life history of observations in Belgium, France and Spain. The third LBBG was carrying a Spanish colour ring (from the Malaga region). 

 LBBG Blue JL9S Chouet Beach (c) PKV

 LBBG Black JR42 on Chouet Beach (c) PKV

 LBBG White N06F on Chouet Beach (c) PKV

 Gulls on Chouet Beach (c) PKV

No Large White-winged Gulls in Guernsey This Winter

Normally this blog contains positive news...but I ought not to overlook a posting on the complete absence of large “white-winged” gulls in Guernsey this past winter. For the first time I can remember there were no reports of Iceland or Glaucous Gulls in the islands...despite the fact that we had a colder than average winter, and there were certainly plenty of storms and gales over the winter period. Last winter I even recorded both species in our garden.

LBBGs Back from Canaries and NW Africa

In recent days some of the LBBGs that are known to winter as far south as Western Sahara and the Canary Islands have been returning to Guernsey. With little time this morning before work, a very quick scan of Chouet Beach revealed the presence of LBBG White 6S9 a bird recorded in Western Sahara in two different winters. A couple of days before Black 9AA9  (also known to winter in Western Sahara) was back, and before that Black 9K5  (a regular in Gran Canaria in winter) was back for the summer. It is always really thrilling to record these long distance LBBGs back in Guernsey after their epic flights to and from wintering grounds.

 Gulls on Chouet Beach

LBBG White 6S9 back from NW Africa

200 Gull Colour Ring Reads in Chouet This Morning

With the weather still four or five degrees C below seasonal norms, it was another chilly morning at Chouet Landfill, but the gulls were both  numerous and very active feeding today. Apart from single French and English GBBGs (both familiar birds in Guernsey), every one of the 216 colour ringed gulls observed was locally ringed. Yet again the landfill staff were most helpful in enabling me to get a very good location to record rings, and it was marvellous to once admire the flight skills of the gulls at close quarters.

Gulls at Chouet Landfill 30 March 2013 (c) PKV