A gull on the bridge over the Foveran Burn

This is a black headed gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus. It is only black-headed in the breeding season and in reality it is then a dark chocolate brown. Chroicocephalus comes from the Greek word choria meaning colour and cephaluswhich means head. Thus  Chroicocephalus means coloured-head. Ridibunduscomes from the Latin ridere which means laugh. So essentially the scientific name means laughing coloured-head, or coloured-head laugher.

This individual is extraordinarily tame and is often seen on the bridge waiting to be fed.