Bonaparte's Gull on The Plym

I had planned to catch the train down to Penzance on Saturday 7th March to look for a Ross's Gull found in Newlyn a few days ago but with it seeming to have moved on I switched plans and decided to visit the River Plym and Saltram instead. I still wasn't feeling great and the thought of a 4 hour return trip on the train didn't really appeal to me even though there are also some other good birds around in the Penzance area at the moment and including a Bonaparte's Gull.

Anyway, high tide on The Plym was around 8am and so I arrived off the bus at Marsh Mills at around 9:30am to start my walk. I headed straight down to Blaxton Meadow for the high tide roost although with The National Trust continuing to mess around with the sluice gates I wasn't sure what the water levels would be like there. Despite it being a high high tide there was very little water on the Meadow but there were birds to be seen out on the mud with 12 Curlew, Oystercatchers, 4 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Shelduck, Common Gulls, a 1st winter Great Black-backed Gull, Herring Gulls and around 100 Black-headed Gulls all present.

I decided to go through the Black-headed Gulls to look for a Mediterranean Gull amongst them, I was out of luck but I did find a 1st winter Bonaparte's Gull instead! At first I dismissed it until my brain caught up with my eyes and I realised what it was but its bubblegum pink, dumpy legs, black bill, large black neck splodge and smaller size were obvious. It was resting out on the mud a little way away from the Black-headed Gulls but after I took a few record shots it promptly took to the air and flew off upriver before disappearing from sight.

Bonaparte's Gull,  Blaxton Meadow 

Bonaparte's Gull, Blaxton Meadow 

I carried on with my walk and it was good to hear 3 Chiffchaffs singing away and see Wood Anemones in flower under the trees as Spring continues its onwards march. The usual birds were all seen on my walk with 2 Snipe, a Common Sandpiper, a Kingfisher, 2 male Goosander and a Redwing the highlights but it was too cool and overcast for any butterflies. 

Wood Anemones

Goosanders

Robin

As I headed back towards Marsh Mills to carch the bus home I had a quick look off the viewing platform overlooking the river near the gas pipe and was pleased to refind the Bonaparte's Gull flying around before it settled on the mud amongst the Black-headed Gulls to have a good preen. The views were a bit more distant and I didn't have my scope with me but its smaller size was very apparent along with the pink legs, black bill and black neck splodge.

Bonaparte's Gull (centre)

Finding a 1st winter Bonaparte's Gull on The Plym was so not on my radar this morning  but it was a very nice surprise and I was pleased a few other birders saw it after I put the news out and before I headed home, hopefully it might stick around for a bit. I'm also very glad I didn't go down to Penzance after all!

Back Home

The weather since my return to the UK has been pretty good but unfortunately I haven't felt well enough to make the most of it as I continue to struggle through jetlag and a shitty virus. I did get out for a short walk at Saltram on Tuesday 3rd March where I was pleased to finally see 2 pairs of Mandarin Ducks and the female Red-crested Pochard back on the duckpond for the first time this year but I was also very glad to return home to the comforts of the sofa.

I also took a short walk down to the allotment on Wednesday 4th March which provided me with my first proper butterfly sighting of the year in the form of a Comma sunning itself on a fence before dashing off and out of sight.

Comma

I felt a little better on Thursday 5th March as I headed out to Wembury on the bus for a slow walk, it was overcast and cool after a few days of warm sunshine so there were no reptiles or butterflies to be found but it was good to be back out birding locally after my trip to Japan.

The coast at Wembury has taken quite a bashing while I've been away on my holidays with the seemingly constant wind and rain we have been experiencing so far this year continuing in my abscence. There has been more cliff slippage, the beach has been gouged out in places including the area where the Sea Kale grows (or used to) and I sadly found 2 dead Puffins washed up on the tideline, a trend reflected elsewhere in the UK and around Europe as seabirds have "wrecked" due to the ongoing difficult weather conditions.

Puffin, 1 of 2 washed up along the beach

There may not have been any reptiles or butterflies around on my walk but there was a feel of spring in the air with Daffodils in flower and a pair of Canada Geese prospecting for nest sites on The Mewstone although a Great Northern Diver feeding close inshore just off the beach was a reminder that winter is not yet done.

Daffodils

Canada Goose feeding in the Sheep field

A pair of Bullfinch were feeding together at The Point where the National Trust have undertaken yet more "habitat management" and cleared tracts of Gorse and shrub right through the Dartford Warbler territory, they have also cleared most of the Gorse along the footpath where a colony of Green Hairstreak resides - oh dear.

The Water Pipit was still present along the beach but was showing no signs of moulting into summer plumage. The Siberian Chiffchaff was still present too and feeding amongst 4 collybita Chiffchaffs, its facial plumage was a bit of a mess though so presumably it has been feeding around blossom, probably Sloe blossom, which is beginning to flower in the nearby hedgerows.

I have also received my BirdTrack summary for 2025 from the BTO, always an interesting read and with Wembury and The Plym sharing first place as my most visited birding site for the year.

My BirdTrack Year 2025