A Bonaparte

The weather was terrific so I headed out to do a bit of birdwatching. I decided to go to Oare Marshes because I've not been for ages and because the RHD isn't running today but is on Tuesday and Wednesday (so I might head to Dungeness later in the week). I dug out my winter coat so that I could get my flat cap out of the pocket; my dad always said not to trust a driver wearing a hat but I wanted to make sure that I didn't burn my head again. 

I got to Oare and there was excitement and more birders than might be expected on a Monday. As I left the car-park carrying my scope and tripod people sidled up to ask if I knew where the Bonaparte was or whether I'd seen it. Regular readers might remember that a Bonaparte's gull is virtually indistinguishable from a black-headed gull. In fact, shy of it sitting on my shoulder and whispering in my ear I'm not sure that I'd recognise it as not being one of the herd. I didn't stay with the body of my fellows but headed out to the hide at the end of the creek, that's where I took this shot. At the tip of the spit of land behind this yacht, there were seals basking in the sun. I saw a family of Shelducks, parents and 7 chicks, swimming across the creek. There were wall-to-wall avocets, both types of godwits, pintails, sandpipers, coots and a heron on the east scrape but I didn't see the Bonaparte's.