01/11/2014 Franklin's Gull in Hampshire - a difficult "twitch"

Saturday 1st November 2014
Blashford Lakes
Hampshire

With poor weather forecast for Sunday onwards I took the opportunity to travel down to Blashford Lakes in Hampshire, in good weather, hoping to see my first ever Franklin's Gull as it went to roost on Ibsley Water.  The Tern Hide was jammed full of birders but I managed to squeeze in and get ready for the big event.  This rarity has lingered in Hampshire since mid October and had been seen here from 28th October.  Received wisdom was to visit at roost time to ensure a sighting.

Word came through, on the phone, that the bird was heading our way but it took the combined efforts of all birders to find it on the lake with no one managing to see it land on the water.  It was finally spotted on the water, directly out from our hide, on the opposite side of the lake just before 17.00.  Once spotted you dare not take your eye of it for fear of losing it.  There were thousands of gulls in the way and it took a real effort to get keep your eye in.  Over the next 15 minutes or so we enjoyed distant but good views before the fading light drew events to a close.  A difficult twitch but a very enjoyable one.  We all left with a sense of achievement - of having found the proverbial needle in the haystack!




Franklin's Gull
Library picture

Franklin's Gull Franklin's Gull breeds on marshes and lakeland wetlands from southern Canada to South Dakota and Iowa and in scattered marshland in the western USA. It spends the winter mainly along the western coastline of South America. The species was named after the Lincolnshire born Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin. It was originally named Franklin's Rosy Gull after the rosy-coloured hue to its breast in summer plumage. Franklin's Gull is unique among Laridae in that it has two complete moults each year rather than one. This equips it for the demands of the 5,000 mile migration it undertakes. This is what the bird looks like in it's breeding plumage  Franklin's Gull breeding plumage Library picture  Addition to UK 2014 Year List: Franklin's Gull   (270) Addition to UK Lifetime List: Franklin's Gull   (282) Well worth the long drive down into Hampshire!