Decent morning at Middleton Moor

I spent yesterday morning at Middleton Moor and certainly felt that I had got my monies worth by the time I left!

First thing, looking from the hide it was immediately obvious that there was a Great Black-backed Gull stood with the Lesser Black-backed Gulls on the edge of the lagoon. I've often wondered when looking through the gulls could I overlook a Great Black-backed and certainly when seen with Lessers the size difference is so obvious that the answer has to be no!.

I think this bird is in its 3rd summer, so not quite adult as can be seen from the brown feathers in the wing and the dark barring on the tail. There has recently been a sighting of the very similar Cape Gull, probably from South Africa, in West Yorkshire but that was an adult so this certainly isn't it.  The Great Black-backed Gull is a rare visitor to Middleton Moor and probably even scarcer now than it was in the past.

Great Black-backed Gull with two Lesser Black-backed

Great Black-backed Gull

Having watched the gull for a while I took a walk, eventually viewing the lagoon from the other side.

As well as the currently resident Little Ringed Plovers a single Ringed Plover was feeding on the shoreline and I noticed another bird landing that looked small for a Curlew and sure enough it was a Whimbrel a scarce but annual visitor.

Whimbrel

I scanned the shoreline again a little later and was very surprised to see another Wood Sandpiper, my third in a week for this very rare visitor which is on its way to breeding grounds in northern Scandinavia.

Wood Sandpiper

There was a lot of heat haze and the birds were distant, but the photos are just about good enough to see what they are.

What else will May produce?