The triple figure flock of Mediterranean Gulls spotted off Pwll in my last post were indicative of not only a larger seasonal increase across our area, but also a year on year population boom that shows no signs of slowing. Back in 2009 the annual Carmarthenshire bird report gives a max count at any Read more…
Two gull related posts in almost as many weeks is worrying news indeed but I’m finding it hard not to get dragged into their world. I of course blame fellow blogger Gavin over at Not Quite Scilly (an excellent read by the way) for my increasing inability to pass gull flocks without Read more…
Contrary to expectations we actually enjoyed a break in our recent appalling run of bad weather last Sunday, brief respite from the rain and wind which has become an almost constant presence this winter. To take advantage we headed down to Mumbles for a mooch around Bracelet Bay and spent Read more…
Last Sunday we popped down to Bracelet Bay on Gower to get reacquainted with the Mediterranean Gulls. Fortunately for us a combination of high tide and stormy seas meant that there were at least twenty dotted around the car park including one ringed individual which originally hails from Poland. Unfortunately the Read more…
It was another gorgeous day today and if anything even hotter. Let’s just say that it’s been a very long time indeed since I last saw the car thermometer read thirty Celsius! Common sense said head to the coast and who were we to disagree. Under a clear blue sky Read more…
I make no excuses for returning to Mumbles so soon after our last visit other than to say my parents were staying, we had a morning to fill and the prospect of Kittiwakes and Mediterranean Gulls flaunting their wares was simply too hard to resist (see, no excuses at all!). Read more…
I thought we’d take a short interlude from the Mull blogs this evening to focus instead on some local news. More specifically Mumbles where amongst the holidaymakers we spent a surprisingly productive couple of hours this afternoon thanks to two stalwarts of the area’s avian population. First of these were Read more…
Since returning from Edinburgh we have seen a recurrence of the dismal conditions that plagued much of November and made it one of the wettest months on record. It has rained almost every day, heavily, and where once I used to joke about the fact that we are now naming Read more…
A summer plumaged Great Northern Diver drew us inextricably towards Mumbles Saturday before last where, contrary to recent form, the bird was not only located but also found to be performing extremely well. Although too far out for a record shot, binoculars allowed its active feeding to be observed well Read more…
Life has a funny way of balancing itself out. For instance, who’d have imagined that the purchase of a particularly revolting sandwich on Friday would lead to excellent views of Mediterranean Gulls come Saturday. I probably don’t need to mention that events occurred at Bracelet Bay, perhaps one of the Read more…