KITTIWAKE - mother to be

Had a late night and was going to have a lie in but was woken by the postman.  I realised I wouldn't be able to go back to sleep so I just stayed up and had breakfast.  

I needed to go to The Sage to pick up a ticket for an event I'm going to next week so I got the bus there this afternoon.  The security at The Sage was on " high alert ".  Only one entrance was open and you had to pass through " bag security " outside before you were able to go inside.  The guy said it wasn't due to  any particular threat or for any particular artist - just a response to the Manchester bombings.  Another sign of the times I guess along with an increased armed police presence on the streets.

After the Sage I wandered into The Baltic Contemporary Art centre which is nearby.( no security here )  I wanted to check on the kittiwakes which always nest there at this time of year.  They were all in position - see extra shot.  Eggs should hatch in around 4 weeks time.  I will be back.

As I was watching I saw one of the kittiwakes stand up, groom herself and then begin turning her eggs before settling down again.  I took some shots which capture this sequence and made a collage.

If you want to know more about the kittiwakes at the Baltic check out this LINK

I then walked across the Millennium Bridge to the Newcastle side of the River Tyne. Got the shuttle bus into the centre of town and popped into Tesco for fish and fruit  before coming home.

The weather today wasn't as hot as yesterday but it was still warm and very pleasant.