3rd AMERICAN HERRING GULL for Scilly

If accepted this will 3rd winter AMERICAN HERRING GULL at the dump this afternoon

  I wasn't thinking about a yank today while getting blown all over the shop by the gale force easterlies. However, that's what happened. I always scan the gulls when passing the dump and on this occasion, one gull on the roof looked to me a very good candidate for an American Herring Gull. But it's been easterlies for weeks! I fired of some shots then called Rocky Robin as I had just spoken to him and he's got a car. I was telling him about the gull when the damn thing got up. I had to get flight shots and in my haste all the settings were wrong. It flew off north towards Porth Mellon. I ran like the devil but there was no sign of it anywhere after ten minutes of searching the area. As Nigel Hudson lived just up road, I continued running. I needed to see the flight shots and although they looked good on the back of the camera, I needed to see them on the computer. The pics looked even better on his PC and we needed to send the pics off to the gull experts. That we did and it was only until after dark that Peter Adriaens replied with 'This bird looks perfect for a 3rd-cycle ('3rd-year') AMERICAN HERRING GULL! Not an easily clinched plumage in a European context! This one checks all the right boxes though' Magic Stuff!!

  When I left Nigel's, any birders I saw I showed the pics to and I called a few of the locals. I didn't put the news out as a possible because all the crap mistakes I've made in the past. Although I'm not a good birder, I knew this was more than likely goin to be a Smiths and on this occasion,  it was!

Cheers to Peter Adriaens, Mashuq Ahmad, Chris Batty and Nigel Hudson
   

3rd winter AMERICAN HERRING GULL

  Before all this happpened, at 08.30, I made my ways up to the Trewince fields and got 100 Chaffinch, 150+Redwing, 50+Fieldfare and 2 Mistle Thrush. There were 2 Black Redstart at Porthloo and 3 Whinchat at the golf course. Up to 16 Snipe and a single Woodcock were in the Standing Stones field.
  Three hours later Rocky Robin went up to Trewince to get the Mistle Thrush and told me there were hundreds of Chaffinch up there. At 15.00 I returned I there were now at 250 Chaffinch in the area but when a Kestrel flew over, over 600 Chaffinch flew into the pine belt with 2 Brambling, although I'm sure there were more. With them were now 350+Redwing, 150+Fieldfare, 29 Skylark, 8 Pied Wagtail and overhead, a single House Martin.

There were 2 Mistle Thrush at Trewince. Other birds were at Sunnyside, Parting Carn and the Garrison.

I had over 500 Redwing today with 350 at Trewince

and over 300 Fieldfare

The Trewince fields were covered with 600+Chaffinch

2 black Redstart were at Porthloo

3 Whinchat were on the golf course

  Other good news is that yesterdays Siberian Stonechat that Mark Halliday found at Maypole, has been re-identified as Scillies second CASPIAN STONECHAT

I saw this cat while in California at Hotel Cafe just off Sunset Strip