After the Rain

The rain stopped by lunchtime so I headed out for an hour at Rufforth with the gulls. Two first winter Glaucous Gulls lumbered over the tip and nearby an advanced first winter Iceland Gull was sitting in a field. The bird had a dark eye and quite a lot of brown markings on the upper parts, so I assume I aged it correctly... Later, a Glaucous Gull was in the field just across the road from the tip which may have one of the earlier birds. Another gull looked quite interesting, with a dark eye and weedy green-yellow bill, although I decided it wasn't a Casp as the head shape just didn't look right.

  

Glaucous Gull with a dirty beak.

 

Iceland Gull with an advanced beak, like a Glauc!

On Dringhouses Pond a Great Crested Grebe was present along with 14 Coots. No sign of the former on the bird race three weeks ago.