SCILLYSPIDER: Gulls taking ants on the wing!

Wednesday 16 August 2017

Gulls taking ants on the wing!

Mediterranean Gull just about to snatch a flying ant at Carn Morvel yesterday

Yesterday in the afternoon sun, I was observing a Hobby with Ren catching flying ants on the wing at Carn Morvel. Ren wasn't catching the ants with Hobby. I know he's called Wren but that would be stupid as he can't fly! A small number of Black-headed Gull arrived and one of them pushed the Hobby off and that was the last we saw of that. Ren also moved on and I stuck around for another 30 minutes. Now there were 4 Mediterranean and over 50 BHG all feasting on the flying ants that were all over the shop around the carn area. Both Herring and Lesser-black backed Gull were also attempting to catch the ants but gave up easily and flew off.

Sunday morning just gone and Higgo called to tell me that he was two miles south of St Mary's on Joe Pender's pelagic and there were good numbers of Cory's Shearwater moving. Between 10.00 - 12.00 I was at Giants Castle with 5 Cory's Shearwater close in sitting on the water. Twenty minutes later there were 14 hanging out with others moving west with 2 Sooty Shearwater. A scan further out to the SSE and there were 100's of both Cory's and Great Shearwater feeding with Bluefin Tuna that I observed out of the water. Joe was to the SW and I called Higgo and told him there were over 800 large shearwaters some two or yhree miles to your east. He came back with 'We've had 4 Wilson's Petrel and there are large shearwaters everywhere!' In total they had an impressive 2 Balearic, 200 Sooty, 4000 Manx, 1200 Cory's and 550 Great Shearwater with 100 Bluefin Tuna and 5 Minke Whale!! Including my birds I saw to the SSE there were over 2000 Cory's and 750 Great Shearwater!! I also got single Wheatear and Whimbrel and in off the sea 3 Swift..
At 18.00 I returned with 'Rocky' Robin and John Headen but the wind had picked up a frac making it little more choppy out there. As a result we only got 35 Cory's, 5 Sooty, 200+Manx Sheaterwater and a single Great Skua in an hour.
The only other birds of note were a Melodious Warbler showing well in Mick Scotts garden at Longstone, 14th, and the Lapwing still at Porth Hellick.

I was hoping the Hobby would stick around but this BHG quickly moved it on.

Gone a bit crazy on gull pictures. OK, I went over the top. Observing Lesser and Greater black-backed, Herring Mediterranean and Black-headed Gull twisting and turning to snatch an ant in mid-air!

And here's another gull. Dave looking messy after getting some grub down her neck after I just fed her! Also, helping me out with cleaning me wagon or maybe making it dirtier.

And here's Rosie the Collard Dove who is just about to make her ways into my room. She can hang around for around picking around on the carpet for quite some time not bothered about me when I mve to get on with whatever I'm doin.