With Storm Doris in full blast this morning I couldn't resist a walk around Arrow Valley Lake to see if it had produced any storm blown waifs.
Sadly it hadn't. Ten years ago, during my previous burst of enthusiasm for the lake, which lasted four months, a similar day in January had brought me a Kittiwake. I guess I was hoping for a second coming, but all that was in amongst the Black-headed Gulls were a few Lesser Black-backed Gulls.
However, one of the Black-headed Gulls was worth a photograph.
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| A pink-chested Black-headed Gull |
I don't know why the occasional Black-headed Gull exhibits a pinkish flush. I have heard it said that it is related to diet, but a surfeit of shrimps seems unlikely in Redditch. It is not due to oil or mud getting attached to the feathers. I noticed that this bird had an abnormally long upper mandible, giving it a slight overbite.
A couple of Little Egrets were perched on the shore in front of the yacht club, but other than that there was little of interest to see.
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| The Little Egrets |
The wind was quite exhilarating causing many branches to fly past me during the stronger gusts. The conditions are hard to demonstrate in photographs, but this picture of Black-headed Gulls gives some idea.
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