All eyes on Sandford

I had a lie in and when Marek called, I said "Greenshank?", "no" he said, juvenile Med Gull on the old tern island at Sandford. I went as I was, joggies and all and was there is 5 minutes, passing Marek walking to his car, he said it was walking left.

I couldn't see it so re-positioned my self to look to the Canadas and BH gulls sat in the shallows off the North reed bed, immediately finding 3 Black-tailed Godwit asleep with them. I called Marek and confirmed he missed the spring birds, so he turned back from his office bound journey.

Marek relocated the Mediterranean Gull for me, my first juvenile and our first July record, then we continued watching the Godwits until Brian arrived.

Sandford is always good in the early autumn, attracting Wigeon, Shoveler and Garganey, as well as various small Black-tailed Godwit flocks in 2006, 2011 & 2013.

For me the Godwits fit the pattern of records as described a few days ago, bang on time!

I went back again to try and get a pic of the Med and got the following

The Godwits woke up and were flushed by large gulls swooping in at 10:45, they returned after 1 minute and I added one more record shot, of what appears to be Islandica race birds

On the subject of large gulls, at least one of them was a dark juvenile, with a white upper tail and little pale in the inner primaries, suggesting Yellow-legged Gull. I may go out again later in pursuit of this or other YLG's.

So I did go back and saw juvenile Lesser Black Backed Gull and believe the bird I saw in flight earlier was the same individual. The Med was still around at 14;45 having barely moved. I also saw 1 Little-ringed Plover there and another on LFGP.