The Lincolnshire Bird Club

A good response.
As far as I can see from photographs available to me the bird has 5 adult primaries these are numbers 10,9,8,7, and 6. It's hard to say if any are missing but if not then the 3rd summer primaries remaining are 5,4,3,2,and 1. As I said before the moult cycle normally begins with primary 10 and ends with primariey 1.I cannot tell if the body plumage is new or old although it looks new. I have not said that it is an Adult only that it is no longer a 3rd summer bird. Anyway it's really too late in the year for Gulls to still be in full summer plumage.
I rest my case and will say no more.

It is rare to find a time of year when gulls (actually, birds in general) are not in some kind of moult (except perhaps really fresh juveniles and fresh adult summers). Based on what you are saying, it would be near-impossible to age any bird at all. When I see a 2nd-summer Yellow-legged Gull in heavy moult in summer, I don't say "this is a third-winter because it has begun to acquire some feathers associated with this plumage". The Audouin's is a 3rd-summer which has begun to moult into adult plumage. There is nothing more to it.

Thanks Kev, Only had this morning free so in the absence of any info took a chance on Woolla and saw it.

Hugh

I am getting a lot of requests for information on the best strategies for seeing the GULL, and this forum topic is also getting lot of hits from out of county birder looking for gen. With the weekend coming up, could someone (more local than myself) post suggestions for the best place to park (including grid references), and the most regular locations for seeing the bird?


Thanks, Andrew

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Andrew Chick
Website: http://www.forktail.co.uk/

Surely the best thing to do is just to get to the area and start looking as opposed to waiting on news. I've spoken to a few people who waited on news and then dipped because the bird had gone again by the time they arrived. It is perhaps best to arrive early on in the day to maximise time present and therefore increase chances of connecting.

Perhaps the best place to be based is between Chapel Point and Wolla Bank, as this seems to be the most regular area that the bird is coming ashore. If not there, then looking on the beach anywhere between Sandilands and Ingoldmells would be a good idea, checking the beach whenever possible!

I've seen that some are questioning on other forums why news is so sporadic (e.g. 10-minute updates when present and then no news for hours) - surely this is just self-explanatory, the bird is being updated when it is present to give the latest on its movements, and then no reports means it's simply not there..!

Oh, and there's no need for bread with this one.

Josh

if as the sages predict it is sunny on Saturday (a bank hol weekend) the beach may well be festooned with holidaymakers from Mable - Skeg so the best chance may be to find a square meter of beach without a rotund, naked body on it! Tides are falling from high springs at the start of this week to medians by the weekend so there will be more beach available at high water;
Last Sunday it was sleeping next to a mobile disco on the beach so it may be worth taking along a ghetto blaster and some nice Ibiza type music to make it feel at home.

Righto - I'll go get my Hardcore Nation and Hardcore Euphoria CDs and I'll meet you there.....

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The best place to park is a place north of Chapel Point. You take the road to Chapel St. Leonard's from Skegness, go past the bus station (signposted in blue) in Chapel St. Leonard's and turn right. You will see another wooden bus station (I think it's wooden but not sure). Continue along, until you reach a bend that curves the road parralell with the sea (although you can't see the sea because of the bank), next to it as well. On the corner though, you will see buildings. Go to the next rigght turn and park in that car park. Go through the dunes and about circa 300 yards to the left of the dune bank, you will see some beach huts. It's around there, or that's were I saw it. This is a place called Wolla Bank.

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Alastair Carr

Where there is a will, there is a way....

Report on the news services today(Thursday) -3pm:
Audouin's Gull in the Chapel Point area on the beach from 2pm-2.50pm at least.

Regards,

Freddy

I have had 2 e.mails from my friend Andrew Paterson who lives in Spain re our Audouin's. He is a Gull expert having written books and papers on the subject.
He has seen 2 photos of the bird on the deck(in Surfbirds) and it looks good for an adult, the bifurcation of the subterminal mark on the upper mandible occurs at the end of the breeding season.However, he adds that Graham Catley's photos on his website show moult of outer primary coverts and is sure that his ID of a 3CY(third summer bird) moulting to adult plumage is correct as there are vestiges of black on the outermost covert.
He concludes that the bird is rather small, probably a female at the extreme lower end of the biometric range.
Hope this is of interest to members.
Richard Gunn

Thanks for this Richard. Just one tiny correction; third-summer birds (such as this bird) are actually in their fourth calender year (4CY), not 3CY as has been stated previously.

Andrew Paterson apologises for his faux pas. He says 'The bird is 4CY, in moult between 3rd summer and adult winter(sounds better to me as they are indistinguishable from adults)'

Audoin's Gull last seen 1 kilometre south of Chapel Point, but flew off around 0800.

(Report by BirdGuides)

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Alastair Carr

Where there is a will, there is a way....

The bird was located this morning by myself and a few other birders at 6.30 am,about a quarter of a mile south of the seawtch shelter at Chapel Point.It was loafing with a mixed flock of Sandwich and Common Terns,and we watched the bird until about 8.00 am,when it was flushed from the beach by a very helpfull and obviously blind dog walker.It then proceeded to circle around and then landed on the sea for a few minutes before taking off and heading in the direction of the lovely new wind turbines which are now off our coast.On leaving at 4.00 pm the bird had not been seen again since this morning,much to the dissapointment of 200+ birders.
The only other birds of note where a couple of smart adult Med Gull's,which included the 3k45 bird from previous years,and a few Arctic Skuas harrying the offshore terns.


Regards


Steve

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Graham as long as the ghetto blaster dosent start playing"i was alone,...this bird has flown",..........name the song and group for 10 points.
rog.