More gully stuff

The picture is the answer to the question - 'which is the UK's most numerous breeding gull?

D'yer know what it is yet?

Answers please......I'm not telling you you'll have to write in.

Surprisingly it is the species that most people see the least due to the fact that it only breeds on northern sea cliffs and spends most of the year out at sea. There are a few pairs nesting on buildings in ports, particularly Newcastle. They are almost never found inland.

Best bird in the book is the Mediterranean Gull. This is an adult showing the full black head, big white eye brows, bright shiny red beak and pure white wings. A real beauty. Most of the world's population actually live in the Black Sea not the 'Med; but if I said to you that 's a Black Sea Gull you'd think I said black seagull and then you'd think I was bonkers! So I think it's OK to call them Med Gulls.


Their young look like very pale versions of Common Gulls. But just to confuse the issue so do young Ring Billed Gulls - a rare but increasing visitor to Britain from America. I've not seen one for a while now. First picture is a young Med, dark bill and legs and a pale brown panel in the wing, the second picture is a young Ring Bill with a stout black tipped pink bill and a paler panel in the wing. You've got to admit they are similar and despite being much paler on the mantle than young Common Gulls are still quite tricky to pick out, being out-numbered several hundreds, if not thousands, to one.


Below is a Little Gull. The only British species to be darker - almost black - on the underwing than above, which you can see is silvery grey. The best place to see these is Seaforth Nature Reserve in spring when often well over a hundred are present. The are a very dainty small gull with an effortless buoyant flight. They nest in eastern Europe but many years ago I was lucky enough to warden a nesting pair in Norfolk in the late 1970's.


Now we come to them more regular species. This is a Black Headed Gull in adult winter plumage. Thin dark red bill, dark flesh legs, little splurge behind the eye.


In flight the white leading edge to the wing is a give away. You can see it on the upper and under wings.

Unlike the Mediterranean Gull there is some black in the wingtip and the underwing is smokey grey not pure white.

The white leading edge can be easily seen even if the bird is coming towards you.

Just a couple more shots of Black Heads to make sure you've got your eye in.

The other species most regularly seen is the Herring Gull. This is the gull of seaside sound effects and stolen ice creams, sandwiches, etc. Large powerful, bold with a silvery grey back, pink legs and a strong yellow beak with a red blob - the gonyal angle. Very easy to identify in flight - look for the clean underwing with the translucent patch. Lesser Black Backs seen from below have a narrow black band along the trailing edge and no translucent patch.



The translucent patch is evident in all age groups as this first winter bird shows.




Even on a grey day like today the wing appears translucent, in sunny conditions it is very easy to pick out if if the gulls are soaring at great height.

Below is the bully boy of the shore line. In our part of the world the biggest bird normally seen on the beach; the Great Back Backed Gull. Very big, very powerful and very belligerent. They will fly over the top of feeding gulls disturbing them to see if there are any easy pickings. I have seen them kill Rabbits and Herring Gulls at Seaforth Nature Reserve.

This magnificent specimen is an adult Lesser Black Backed Gull. same size as the Herrings but significantly smaller than the Great Black Backed Gulls and subtly paler too. A nice tone of dark charcoal grey rather than totally black.

Below are some annotated beach scenes from this afternoon. I really must get some digiscoping equipment. But if your down on the beach with your binocs or even just the dog these are the views you will get so the pictures are quite relevant.

Enjoy your gull watching whervere you are - there's far more to them than just 'seagulls'!

This is the sort of thing they were after on the beach. Lots of shellfish washed up after the recent storms. This one is a very fresh Prickly Cockle.

Where to next? I might have some more gull info about the 'white winged' gulls. but then there'll be a safari to report on over the weekend.

In the meantime don't forget to let us know what you have found in your outback.

And just in case we've upset any Australians with our multitude of gull species - here's a crackin' picture a Silver Gull.

Well worth the wait don't you think?

A very quick bit about Shipworms

Refering back to the dunes post (Friday 7th Nov).

The Shipworm isn't a worm, it's a bivalve mollusc - like Mussels, Clams, Cockles etc. The valves have been modified to 'chew' through the wood and to prevent the hole collapsing and crushing the soft worm like body the animal lines the hole with a stiff calcareous tube.

Most of the large pieces of wood washed up on the beach have signs of infestation and they were a serious problem to mariners of old in wooden ships. Christopher Colombus had a copper sheath over the hull of his ships to keep them at bay.


Where to next? If time allows there might be some more gull pictures obtained.

In the meantime let us know what you have found in your outback.

Gulls, gulls, gulls....Gulls, gulls, gulls.

A very short safari along the beach today. There were hundreds of gulls rooting through the strandline after yesterdays storm...which leads nicely in to a gull masterclass.

I couldn't see any Mediterranean Gulls and wasn't really expecting to. (One spent all last winter at Bispham beach a little to the north and to the trained eye was quite easy to pick out from the sea wall without binoculars - is it there this year?) They can be told from Black Headed Gulls as they do actually have a black head (although in winter all that remains in both species is a dark smudge behind the eye). The bill is heavier and a brighter coral red, the legs too are brighter red. The back - mantle - is much paler than the silvery grey of a Black Headed Gull. This one is a second summer bird as it has black feathers in the wing tip, adults have pure white wingtips.

This one below is an adult Black Headed Gull moulting its 'black' head. You can see the bill is a darker shade of red, more burgundy than coral and finer too. A very easy way to identify Black Headed Gulls at all times of year, and in all plumages, is by the white leading edge to the outer wing and smokey underwing when seen in flight.

Here are two Lesser Black Backed Gulls, both adults. The mantle colour is not black (it is in Great Black Backed Gulls, which are obviously bigger and have pink legs) but a very dark charcoal grey. Legs are yellow. The preening bird in the foreground is a Herring Gull with pink legs and a silvery grey mantle, very close in shade to the Black Headed Gull's colour. The brown on the wings indicates it is a young bird second or third winter plumage. How do I know it's winter - they are standing on a frozen lake and there are dark flecks on the head and neck. Both Herring and Lesser Black Backs have this but 'Yellow Legged' Gulls do not making them stand out a little.

An adult Herring Gull has learn't how to raid the bird table at base camp; and yes it does take the peanuts left out for the smaller birds. The wind has to be in the right direction for it to get the necessary fine control for a landing and it doesn't half teeter if it has to land on the top of the fence. Sorry about the glare - the picture was taken through the kitchen window. You can still see the pink legs and pale mantle.

I don't have a picture of a Common Gull (that's Mew Gull to anyone the other side of the Atlantic - I hate to be pedantic, by why can't you lot call anything by its proper name?) yet but they are intermediate between the smaller Black Headed Gull and the larger Herring/Lesser Black Backed Gulls. Also their mantle colour is an intermediate slatey blue grey. So next time you're out and about in your outback have a good look at the gulls - there are plenty of different species to sort out - unless you are in Australia where most places only have two; big 'uns and little 'uns. Would you believe it Blackpool beach has more species of gull than a whole continent!!!!! (There's a Silver Gull...oh and another one...and another...and another...and another...ad infinitum. I've got some slides of one somewhere I'll have to dig 'em out and scan 'em.)

Be wary of the 'colour' of the mantle in bright sunlight as it an look different on adjacent birds if they are not facing the same way. The aspect causes shadows and shadowing making the same colour look different - an example of this can be seen in your own living room if it is painted the same colour on all walls - look in a corner - although the colour is the same it will appear to be different. The best light for assessing mantle colour is dull and flat as on a cloudy day when there are no shadows. (This is irrelevant in Australia where they are all Silver Gulls, or the other one - what the other one is depends whereabouts in Aus you are)

More gull masterclass coming up in the future...when we might look at some immature plumages and throw in the confusing melee of 'Yellow Legged' Gulls.

If any of you are wondering -I didn't manage to get the head from the Porpoise, the tide had removed it before I got to it. Some of the spine was still there and it really stunk...not a sniff of the skull - if you'll pardon the pun.

Here's a question to ponder during the long dark nights (of the northern hemisphere at least). Not quite the meaning of life; although I believe Ford Prefect et al have sussed that one, and far less important and worrying than 'why do wellingtons always suck your socks off?' But this........

I don't know about your neck of the woods but round here the gulls spend loads of time foraging round the rubbish dumps and following the plough in muddy fields so without access to a well known brand of washing powder how do they stay whiter than white? In fact the only time they show any trace of 'dirt' is when they have been out at sea and got contaminated with spilt oil; something that, thankfully, seems to be happening much less frequently now than in previous decades.

A second question (for UK readers only) is which is our commonest breeding gull...hint...it's not the Common Gull. Answers on a post card please...to coin a phrase.

In the meantime let us know what you have seen in your outback.


Where to next? We still hope to connect with the very elusive Long Eared Owls sooner rather than later we hope.

You like the new logo?

Hi all, it's a miserable cold, wet and windy day in sunny Blackpool today. So it's time to change the safari's logo. Many thanks to Glen's sister from all the way Down Under for the design.

Where to next? If the rain lets up I could well be tempted to take the safari to see if the Long Eared Owl is showing at Marton Mere nature reserve.

Tomorrow I have the Porpoise skeleton to decapitate...someone wants the skull for their educational display. Probably have to let plenty of air out of the Land Rover's tyres to avoid getting stuck in the soft sand. Mud terrains tend to dig in to, rather than float over, soft sand.

In the meantime let us know what you have found in your outback

Life’s a beach and then something dies!

An impromptu safari today along the strandline. There were two Grey Seals, one of which was the first I’ve ever seen actually hauled out on the beach here. It had the ‘doggy baskets’ i.e. was fidgeting trying to find the comfiest position. In comparison to a nearby Great Black Backed Gull it appeared to be fairly small but was unlikely to have been a Common Seal as these are extremely scarce along our coast. A pack of approaching dogs had it quickly waddling back in to the sea, if a seal can move quickly. Just offshore were 12 Great Crested Grebes fishing behind the surf. That’s a decent count for our stretch of coast.

A Peregrine Falcon cruised past over the beach about 100 feet up then suddenly dropped and sped down the gullies between the sand banks hoping to surprise a wader. The waders it could have had a choice of were several Redshanks, more Oystercatchers and four Sanderlings.

Away from the sea wall there is an area of natural(ish) dunes. Some like the one below are in good condition showing good active growth of the Marram ( or Starr - as in Starr Gate) Grass.

This dune is damaged by the wind the Marram Grass roots have been exposed and will die off if the sand doesn't slump down and rebury them.

Marram grass can withstand being buried by upto a metre of sand a year. as long as the tip of the grass is poking out of the sand it will grow. The trouble happens when it gets trodden on and is broken. Then as itt lies flat it gets buried and can no longer grow and so dies off. If you're ever in the dunes take great care where you are putting your feet. In the words of generations of 'Park Keeepers - "Keep Off The Grass!".

If the damaged dune doesn't recover storms and further pedestrian traffic can allow a 'blow-out' to form. This one looks like a glacial U-shaped valley.

In areas which doen't get trampled at the 'toe' of the dune embryo dunes form.

It is not usually Marram Grass that is the pioneer species, this embryo is Sea Lyme Grass.

This one is Sea Couch with a bit of Marram at the back.

As soon as a small amount of sand buuilds up, in this case caught by a piece of dead Gorse one of the pioneer grass species can start to get established and a new dune is formed.

Moving along the strandline in front of the dunes there were a couple of Pied Wagtails pecking about after any insects they could find. The strandline mostly consists of small bits of driftwood, grass blown off the dunes during storms and loads of plastic bottles etc.

In amongst all the little bits are the odd large pieces of driftwood washed down the local rivers. This piece is riddled with Shipworm.

In the background is one of the marine nightmares, of which sadly there is a lot along the beach - nylon rope and fishing nets.

I came across these tracks in the sand. I've no idea what might of made them. The tracks of what was probably a Pied Wagtail is over the top of them so they may have been made during the night. The tracks either started from or finished at this little hole. Any one got any suggestions as to the maker.

Whelk's egg cases are a fairly common find.

This piece of unattached Marram Grass could be blown against an obstruction in the strandline and start building a new dune.

Back at the base of the sea wall there were few Meadow Pipits beadling about on the Bladderwrack (seaweed) I was unable to turn any of them into a scarcer Rock Pipit.

It was very peaceful with only the calls of a couple of Skylarks over the beach and a distant curlew out over the sea breaking the silence. In the runnels left by the tide there were hundreds of tiny Sand Gobies (see earlier blog ‘Salt & fresh today’ from 19th August). On the sea itself we managed to pick up a solitary Guillemot and somewhere in the region of 500 Common Scoters. These looked surreal as if they were floating in the ether of the ‘white-out’.

And well what died?

Sadly this is all that's left of a Harbour Porpoise.

If anyone finds a dead or stranded live cetacean along the Lancashire coast please let me know either through this blog or at the Solaris Centre.

Not bad for an unexpected safari.

Where to next? You’ll have to wait and see.

In the meantime let us know what you have found in your ‘outback’.

Autumn glory

Just had to share this superb Blackpool sunset from the other day with you all . It isn't often we get a perfect cloudless sky with the right atmospheric conditions that produces colours like this. The pictures are straight off the camera - no photoshop, no nothing - just nature in the raw.

The bird, a Black Headed Gull - which incidentally never has a black head, it's chocolate brown, and at this time of year is nothing more than a 'black' spot on the side of the head - would have made a better photo if it was flying in to rather than out of the picture; but that's possibly being a bit pedantic as I never even saw it in the viewfinder - smack on the artist's 'rule of thirds' - total fluke!!!

There was a Grey Seal about 200 yards offshore this afternoon. Anyone not following BBC's Autumn Watch can catch up with breeding Grey Seals on their website (see links on right). They don't breed along the Fylde coast so our chap today may well be a none breeder. (I'm not sure if they breed on Walney Island across the bay, anyone know the answer to this?)

Autumn is also the time for mushrooms and fungi. These are all growing in the raised flower beds at work quietly decomposing the woodchip we use as a mulch to retain moisture and keep the weeds down. I've no idea what any of them are I just like 'em.

The holes in this large white one were made by tiny black slugs.

This brown one is being ''eaten alive' by a blob of white mould - a fungus eating a fungus.

Where to next? The chance would be a fine thing but with the recent light north easterly winds set to continue the sea is flat calm and this gives the perfect opportunity to look for Porpoises if time allows during the day. Fingers crossed, I've not seen them since early September.

In the meantime let us know what you have seen in your 'outback'.

All muxed ip!

Today's safari was just a short afternoon trip out to Marton Mere nature reserve on the east side of Blackpool. There were a few plants flowering that really shouldn't be. These Dandelions are supposed to be spring flowering. If they come up in your lawn or flowerbeds leave them, don't 'weed' them out they are a superb source of nectar for bees and butterflies emerging from hibernation after the winter. Dandelions are so called because their leaves (bottom right of the right hand flower) look like lion's teeth - French for teeth = dents (the dan bit) French for of = de, the French for lion = lion teeth of the lion; 'nuff said! The French don't call it by this name but refer to its involuntary diuretic qualities! Wet-the-bed.

We also came across the grass Yorkshire Fog, a summer flowering grass.

We also found Timothy, another summer flowering grass - sorry about the earthquake if you live in Mere View or have you started to slide in to the bed of the old Marton Mere.


Ox-eye Daisy is another spring in to summer flowering plant. So called because the flowers are so much bigger than the daisy found in lawns and other short grassy places.

During the recent pond construction this chunk of Bog Oak was excavated from the peat. It is from a tree - not necessarily an Oak, possibly an Elm - that fell in to the swamp about 4 - 5,000 years ago.

Below is Field Maple. This small tree turns the most beautiful pure yellow in the autumn. This one is not quite there yet.

Some of the fencing rails at the side of the path have been up for about 15 years and are beginning to weather nicely; some have even started to become habitats in their own right. This particular one is providing a handy hold for this yellow Lichen.

Moving round the reserve there is evidence that there was actually some decent weather this year. The Apple Trees and Dog Rose bushes are covered in fruit; not indicating a hard winter to come but a warm spell when the bees could get out and pollinate last May. Below are the Rose hips. At school they used to be crushed to make itching powder, something that is probably seriously frowned upon in today's risk adverse, no fun world.

The Apples are a huge food supply during the winter for the birds and mammals on the reserve. Thousands of them get blown off the trees as windfall. These are eaten by Foxes and small mammals which can't climb into the trees. However, many are picked off the trees by people, there are tracks leading to every Apple Tree off the path. This is really stealing from the wildlife. The birds prefer to feed on Apples still on the trees as they have a better view to see if any predators are approaching. They have to last the wildlife until the insects start emerging next April! If you want apples buy them from the shops - don't steal them from the wildlife that needs them to survive the winter!

One of the species reliant on them is the migratory thrush the Redwing. There were a few about today along with Blackbirds.

Silver Birch trees stand out amongst their companions at this time of year. To the left is an Oak and to the right is an Ash. In amongst this stand of young trees was a small flock of Long Tailed Tits. Despite scouring the nearby bushes we could not find the Long Eared Owls. They are becoming something of a bogey bird for the safari.

Hogweed was another summer flowing plant still going strong. Gorse too is still flowering. Although 'they' do say that kissing goes out of fashion when the Gorse stops flowering! On warm sunny days the yellow flowers smell strongly of coconuts; but don't get your nose too close - its very prickly.

At one of the hides the water looked to be terribly polluted. Fortunately this isn't an oil spill from an engine but natural oil from decaying plants in the reedbed. A Chiffchaff briefly darted around the edge of the reeds

The reserve's feeding station was very busy with a good mix of birds and a lone Rabbit. The birds included Chaffinches, Great Tits, Blue Tits and a single Coal Tit.

As dusk began to fall we moved round to look over the water. a good selection of birds included the reserve's first Goldeneyes of the season. Little Grebes, a good flock of Gadwall and a solitary lost Pink footed Goose, flying over calling plaintively, were the highlights as we watched these Grey Lag Geese climb the grassy bank in front of the hide. In the fields to the east a huge flock of Starlings was gathering and eventually moved in to the reed bed to roost and was joined by others all the while. In the end we guestimated 89,000 had come in to the reserve to roost. Despite all that 'meat on the wing' there was only one Sparrowhawk that didn't hang around and a single Kestrel that was more interested in mice, beetles or worms. So we didn't get the awesome sweeping cloud formations of synchronised 'escaping being the unlucky one' flights!

Just before it got fully dark we moved on to the embankment hoping for a Barn Owl to show. They usually come out at that point when it is too dark for us humans to be able to see colour. Sadly it didn't appear, or perhaps we were a few minutes too early. We did have good views of a fine male Stonechat in the last of the light.

Making our way back to the Land Rover we were still hoping for a sighting of either the Long Eared Owl or the Barn Owl or even a Bittern flying over the reedbed towards the Starlings and a night time feast but we were unlucky. The sunset, however, was worth the trip out on its own!

Not a bad haul for a short, afternoon only, safari.

Where to next? That Ross's Goose is still flitting around Lancashire, and then there's the bogey Long Eared Owls, and I learned today that a Cetti's Warbler has turned up at Marton Mere so there's loads to go at.

In the meantime let us know what you have found in your 'outback'.