Birds of the
English Channel & Bay of Biscay

<< page 3

Boobies, Gannets - Family Sulidae

Northern Gannet - Morus bassanus

World Distribution:

• This is the commonest seabird of the area - and its most spectacular! Gannets nest only in the north Atlantic mainly on steep, rocky, and often inaccessible islands. There are also some mainland colonies but the largest are on islands such as St. Kilda (c50,000 pairs). Egg-dates are April-May and non-breeders disperse in the early summer. Some birds winter around the coast of the United Kingdom while others move south to areas off west Africa.

Survey Area Distribution:

• In the recording area they breed on the Channel Islands (c.3000 pairs) and on Les Sept Isles off Brittany (c2500 pairs). During the winter there is a large population of adults and sub adult birds which are supplemented in the Spring and Summer by returning breeding adults.

• It seems likely that juvenile and first year birds spend the winter and following year further south as they are rare during this part of the year. During the autumn months during the initial post-breeding dispersal juvenile birds seem to gather at the northern shelf edge where they often feed in association with the larger Shearwaters, albeit in smaller numbers than in the English Channel and Ushant, where adult and sub-adult birds seem to prefer to feed.

Identification: Flight and Structure:

• Northern Gannet is the largest indigenous seabird of the north Atlantic. They are very distinctive seabirds and unlikely to be confused with any other in this area. However juvenile, first year and second year birds could be mistaken for either species of large Shearwater or even a Skua at long range or in bad light. However Gannet has a distinctive long neck and bill and a long wedge-shaped tail which usually give it a distinctive jizz.

• The flight can be rather Shearwater like with very stiff wing beats interspersed with short glides on rather flat wings. When feeding birds often dive from great height (c30 metres) to catch fish with a spectacular, plunging dive where the wings are brought into the body just before the moment of impact. Large flocks will often follow fishing boats in the area.

Plumage:

• Northern Gannets take around five years to reach adulthood. They have several distinctive and recognisable plumage types which indicate the age of the bird, much like the larger Gull species. The main moult occurs in the late summer.

• Juvenile, 1st-winter and 1st-summer: Predominantly grey-brown, except for whitish upper tail-coverts and paler axillaries.

• 2nd-winter and 2nd-summer: Distinguished from first year birds by the largely whitish underparts and increasing white on the head and some of the upperparts.

• 3rd-winter and 3rd-summer: Much more like adult in general appearance. with the characteristic ochre shawl and bluish bill now in evidence. The underparts are now pure white and the upperparts. are usually becoming more white with an extensive flecking of black on the rump, mantle, scapulars and upperwings, except for the flight feathers which remain black at this age.

• 4th-winter and 4th-summer: Very similar to adult and occasionally very similar (in terms of plumage) to Cape Gannet which is highly unlikely to occur in the area. Although with seabirds, one never knows! At this age, the only relics from immature plumage are the black centre to the tail and dark feathering on the secondaries. This feature can vary, as some birds show all dark secondaries, some just a few feathers.

• Adult: A truly stunning seabird. Adults have an all-white body, with the distinctive ochre shawl (grows paler in the winter) over the head and hind-neck. The upperwings are now all white before the carpal angle. The primaries and primary-coverts are all black with slightly paler primary shafts and the underwings only show some black on the primaries.

  ^^ top  

Phalaropes - Family Phalaropus

Grey Phalarope - Phalaropus fulicarius

World Distribution:

• They breed in the Arctic on tundra areas and migrate south to winter out to sea, mainly off south and west Africa. Most birds seen in the Atlantic are from breeding populations in the Nearctic which migrate well out to sea. In Europe, Grey Phalaropes are rarely seen on passage in the spring and summer but mainly occur during September and October after periods of strong westerly winds which bring them closer inshore.

Survey Area Distribution:

• Grey Phalaropes are usually sighted during the months August-October. Although they are never common, you will encounter them on most autumn trips in small numbers. They are usually seen anywhere south of the Western Approaches and Ushant sea areas. They are often seen resting or feeding on the sea, when they may employ the spinning action typical of Phalaropes. This action helps the bird to find food and bring it within easy reach. They feed chiefly on invertebrates at sea which they pick off the surface. They may also pick prey from just under the surface by stabbing with their bill or up-ending briefly.

Identification: Flight and Structure:

• Grey Phalarope is a fairly easy bird to identify, although it can be difficult to separate from other waders which move through the area on passage. Structurally, they average 10% larger than Red-necked Phalarope which is the main confusion species, although it has yet to be recorded in Biscay to my knowledge. They are also more bulky with a shorter and stubbier bill.

• The flight is perhaps the best way to tell these two species apart at distance. Grey Phalarope has a very distinct flight action which enables separation from this species as well as other small, predominantly grey waders such as Sanderling and Dunlin which are not infrequently seen from the Pride of Bilbao. They are strong fliers with a bounding and rather erratic action suited to their pelagic habits. They tend to crisscross between wave troughs rather than take the very direct flight action of most other small waders.

Plumage:

• Although Red-necked Phalarope has not been recorded in Biscay it is possible they may pass through the area. In terms of plumage, the best way to tell these two species apart in flight is the less marked tonal contrast of the upperparts. of Grey in first-winter plumage.

  ^^ top  

GULLS - Laridae

Little Gull - Larus minutus

World Distribution:

• Predominantly a European species, although the main breeding sites are in eastern and western Siberia. In Europe itself they are a sporadic breeder on freshwater lakes in various countries such as Finland, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Sweden as well as in Poland and the northern Black Sea. They can be seen in large numbers on spring and autumn passage, especially along the coasts of northern France, Belgium and the Netherlands. The main wintering grounds are coastal where they favour low-lying, sandy habitats. Birds can be found in many areas, including the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, most coastlines of the more southerly United Kingdom and the Baltic.

Survey Area Distribution:

• In the survey area they are found in most months of the year, but especially September to May. Small numbers winter and are usually found over shallow water, near to shore.

Identification: Flight and Structure:

• Little Gulls,as the name suggests are very small, being barely 2/3 the size of a Kittiwake. They are more dainty in build than this species with a lighter, more erratic and varied flight. This, combined with their small size gives them a Tern like appearance. However the rather broad wings with rounded tips quickly dispel this initial impression.

Plumage:

• Adult birds are pale with light grey upperwings and white primaries. However they always show blackish underwings with a white trailing edge, which can be a good identification clue, even at long distance.

• Immature birds are rather harder. They share the same basic colouration and patterning as three other small Gull species, Ross’s Gull, Kittiwake and Sabine’s Gull. The latter two are listed below.

^^ top

Kittiwake - Rissa tridactyla

World Distribution:

Juvenile Kittiwake

• Kittiwakes are widely distributed in the northern hemisphere. In the North-East Atlantic, they breed along most northern latitude coastlines from northern Spain and France north to Spitzbergen in the Arctic Circle. In Britain, nearly 500,000 pairs breed (1985-1987) where possibly the largest colony in the North Atlantic, at Flamborough Head and Bempton Cliffs (East Yorkshire), is found. Nesting usually takes place on high, sheer cliff faces but they also sometimes make a home for themselves on buildings or piers.

Survey Area Distribution:

• In Biscay they are commonest during the winter months, when they are found in the greatest numbers in the shallower waters of Ushant and the English Channel, but also all the way south to Bilbao. During the spring, summer and autumn they are less widely and more northerly distributed, often occurring near nest sites in the English Channel and Ushant sea areas. During the autumn Sabine’s Gull can outnumber Kittiwakes in the Bay of Biscay itself.

Identification: Structure and Flight:

• The main confusion species is Sabine’s Gull and to a lesser extent Little Gull although the differences are greater than some observers perceive. With a little practice it becomes very easy to distinguish even distant Sabine’s Gulls from Kittiwakes.

• Kittiwake is rather larger than both species, being slightly larger than a Black-headed Gull (larus ridibundus) with a comparatively larger head.

Adult Sabine's Gull in flight.

^^ top

Copyright of BDRP, 2003