Wednesday 9 April 2014

Gannets Galore.

Yesterday morning saw me on a bright and breezy cliff top at Yorkshire's RSPB Bempton Cliffs reserve.  As good friends and fellow wildlife photographers Dave and Roger and myself made our way down to the cliffs we were greeted by the cacophonous  onomatopoeic cries of the hundreds of kittiwakes nesting on the cliffs accompanied by the more guttural calls of the large numbers of gannets as they cruised along the cliffs often at eye level.  Some of them were skillfully hanging in the wind as they came in to land on the grassy top of the cliffs to collect nesting material which they then carried to their chosen spot lower down.  Although there were plenty of gannets and kittiwakes fulmars were few and far between whilst auks were scarce; we only saw a handful of guillemots and no razorbills or puffins.  It would seem that they didn't appreciate the windy conditions and were resting out at sea.  We spent a happy day, however, and returned home with full memory cards. A great day out in good company.

To view large, click on an image.
Fulmar
Fulmar
Fulmar
Gannet collecting nesting material
Gannet domesticity; two different nests
The same birds engaged in a territorial dispute
Gannet
Using the feet as air brakes
Carrying nesting material
Gannet
Gannet
Air brakes on
Herring gull
Herring gull
Herring gull
Jackdaw
Kittiwake
Kittiwake
Kittiwakes on nests
Kittiwake pair
Tree Sparrow
Tree Sparrow
Tree Sparrow

No comments:

Post a Comment