Monday, 19 May 2025

Audouin's Gull - Fish Eating Beauty

It's a toss-up between Slender-billed and Audouin's for the best European gull. I know there are better gulls elsewhere in the world e.g. Sooty. But it's Monday morning and I cannot deal with that right now. 

I am not discounting Little and Ross's Gull, they are dainty stunners - they're just not proper gulls. I am talking about the chip-eating, bin-diving, paint covered monstrosities that surround me at all times. I am literally typing this from within a Lesser-black Backed Gull colony. True story. 

Audouin's Gull - adult summer bird Mallorca May 2025
Audouin's Gull - 2nd summer bird Mallorca May 2025

I cannot think about Audouin's Gull without my mind wandering to one of the best ever rarity finds and finders accounts ever. The Sheffield Audouin's. Seriously, read it. Instead of the usual dweeb recounting hours pouring over a an east coast hotspot or island and then becoming 'surprised' they've found a mega... this lad is just happily birding urban Sheffield, Either side of the working day, and absolutely kicks it's tits to the moon by finding an inland Audouin's! 

I am not sure how inner city, industrial Sheffield tallies with this species allegedly been strictly coastal, pelagic and otherwise only dining on fish? I've certainly watched them eyeing chips in a Mallorca all-inclusive holiday resort, that was still a stones throw from the beach, so more believable. 

Anyway, as well as furthering ornithology by simply visiting other Jonny in Mallorca and efficiently over-hydrating, I also furthered science with some ring-reading! Can you believe it?

I had this darvic ringed individual 'CUVJ' just to the south east of Can Picafort, at Finca Son Real on Saturday 10th May: 

Ringed Audouin's Gull Mallorca May 2025

I lost a little bit of respect for this gull when the limited history came back announcing that it had never visited Sheffield, or indeed any lesser Yorkshire towns like Leeds or Bradford. The only detail received was: 'it was a ring  11/06/2021 in Islote de Na Guardis, Mallorca by IRBI'.

As a Spanish speaker I can tell you, what the respondent is trying to say is 'it was ringed' on 11th June 2021 at an island called Na Guardis off the south west of Mallorca. Nobody knows what IRBI means. 

So, a 4 year old bird and a movement of some 50 odd kilometres as the Audouin's flies - and assuming it flew in a straight line and not around the coast or via Sheffield. Pretty impressive. 

Equally impressive is the fact that this isn't the first time I've ring-read an Audouin's this year! I also saw 'BM90' near Barcelona Airport back on 12th February:

Ringed Audouin's Gull Barcelona February 2025

Ringed Audouin's Gull Barcelona February 2025

Ringed Audouin's Gull Barcelona February 2025

Ringed Audouin's Gull Barcelona February 2025

BM90 was ringed in Valencia some 300km to the south -west of my Barcelona sighting, on 13th June 2013. Far more impressive, it was also sighted a year later in Morocco at Sidi Moussa Lagoon Nature Reserve on 31st October 2014. Over 1,300km to the south west of my sighting! 

The fact that BM90 then went unnoticed for 11 years is solely down to the quality of observers. It just required a more sciencey, ornithologist - like me - to break the chain of secrecy.

… and for that - you're most welcome. 
 

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