After seeing the Stejneger's scoter in Fife this morning we decided to have a
trip over to Loch Turret in Perthshire to have a look at a ring-billed gull
which for at least the second consecutive year has been spending time around
the common gull colony close to the dam wall.
Ring-billed gulls are always worth a look, but this adult in summer plumage is
a real stunner. When we arrived it was sitting on the dam wall and allowed
walkers and joggers to go past quite close, it didn't seem to bothered at
all. Meanwhile down amongst the rocks and shingle on the other side of
the wall there was a small common gull colony with one or two oystercatchers
also on nests.
After a short while the ring-billed gull flew down and landed on a rock about
1m away from a common gull which was sitting. The common gull didn't seem to
mind and didn't even flinch. It certainly didn't attempt to drive away the
ring-billed gull. They remained like this for about 10 minutes and I started
to wonder if they might be a hybrid pairing. Then a walker came along and
peered over the wall right alongside the nest, causing both birds to fly off.
As soon as the walker was gone the ring-billed gull was the first to return
and landed on the nest. Immediately a pair of common gulls started to harass
the ring-billed and tried to drive it off, but the American bird was having
none of it. It was clear now that the nest actually belonged to the pair of
common gulls and I started to wonder if the ring-billed was about to predate
the nest. But no, the ring-billed gull then sat down and started to incubate
the eggs! It stayed on the eggs for at least the next 30 minutes and was still
there when we headed back to the car, but as we were packing our stuff
away it flew over the car park and landed on the grass nearby.
I can only guess at what's happening here, possibly this single, lost bird is
stimulated by the breeding common gulls and has become broody and is now the
third unwelcome member of this unlikely partnership. Hopefully the chicks will
eventually hatch, at which point it will be interesting to see if the
ring-billed gull then starts to help out with feeding of the chicks.
It would also be interesting to know if this is the Strathclyde bird that I
have seen over the past several winters.
While all of this was going on there was plenty of other things to watch, an
osprey flew over carrying a fish, an adult white-tailed eagle put in an
appearance and there were at least three red kites and several buzzards.
Smaller birds included two cuckoos and a common sandpiper. All in all, a top
spot and a fascinating experience, almost worth the trip today alone.
You can see the common gull nest under the ring-billed gull.
The ring-billed gull settling down on the nest as an adult common gull tries
to drive it off.
Not the best photo in the set but at least you can clearly see an egg below
the bird.
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