Great shearwater at a bait ball

The highlight of todays whale watching trip, apart from the bait balls themselves, was this wonderful great shearwater that was feeding in amongst the feeding frenzy of mainly kittiwakes and auks. I took lots of photos of the bird and rather than overwhelm the post about bait balls, I thought that this bird deserved a post all of its own.

It was very aggressive, holding it's wings in this very menacing way.

Such a fantastic experience to see the bird feeding in this way. It's one thing to have them fly past a headland or alongside a boat, but to see one feeding at a bait ball is just something else! Amazing to think that this bird breeds on just four islands in the South Atlantic, all in the Falklands area.

Great shearwater flying below Kilt Rock.