Bigggg Seabird

[hilldweller]

Up here in the stratosphere at Lodge Moor we often see seagulls wheeling on the up-draughts flowing up the escarpment behind the golf course. They are most apparent in the colder months and especially if there is bad weather off the coast. When we drive down Redmires Road there are often gulls perch on the arms of the tall street lamps.

Today I have been watching the antics of "Supergull" for several minutes. This bird was much bigger than the normal Common Gulls and had very long thin wings with the inner parts swept forward and the outer parts swept back much more than normal. Looking at it through binoculars I realised that it's main colouring was a dark brown with white flashes at the bends in the wings. It flew very swiftly and was a brilliant acrobat.

I've had a look in my bird books and the Great Skua was a match in every respect except that according to the book it is seldom seen inshore.

Do we have any "twitchers" in the forum who know if it was likely to be a Skua ?

HD

[SteveHB]

No doubting that the bird could be a Skua,

but are you sure it was not an immature Herring gull ?

This is the best site to check out recent local bird sightings, www.sbsg.org/sightings/recent