A Few Gulls at the Park

Still working through the pre-lockdown photos. It's rationing!! However, there haven't been many gulls on recently, so as I'm a fan, here are a few taken in a local park, with something a little special at the end.

I think this is a young Herring Gull

  

And an adult

And one who's just showing the last few traces of immaturity

This, on the other hand, seems to be a young Lesser-black Backed

And an adult

They were all flying over a little pond and I was trying to spot the odd one out that I knew had been roosting there for a while. Finally spotted it on the water attacking a BHG but it had calmed down when I got close enough to take its photo!

An adult Iceland Gull. Luckily, I'd just got a couple of photos when someone scared the flock and they all left en-masse. Unfortunately, I missed getting it in flight. I'll take an exercise around that park soon and see if it's still there (although it does have other places to go as well). 

  • Lovely shots Nige and impressed with your knowledge of gulls, I struggle after BHG and no chance at summer or winter plumages lol Looking forward to more pics if you still have some to go through.
  • Lovely pics Nigel, and I second Hazy and bow to your knowledge. I am woken up each day with a couple of gulls that seem to be residing close by, one on the roof yesterday was demanding food from it's Mum in the afternoon when I was in the garden, that was spotted and I thought Herring Gull, but looking at your photos now I wonder if they are lesser black-backed, all very similar to my eyes.
  • Thanks
    I do have just a few photos left before the stock runs out!
    The most frequently seen gulls aren't too difficult to ID once you get your eye in, at least when they are adult. It's the immature ones that are a nightmare. Personally, I need a good wing photo to tell a young HG from a young LBBG and even then it's a bit like differentiating Willowchaffs, so the above ID's of immature gulls are just educated guesses … and there are still plenty of times when I have to admit I've seen a "seagull"!
  • "and there are still plenty of times when I have to admit I've seen a "seagull"! "

    Thank heavens for that Nigel:-)