And the Winner is.......

I was back at Rufford this afternoon, and, although there were only 13 Black-headed Gulls (all adults) back from their breeding grounds, in amongst them was the first ringed bird of the winter..... 293A. This bird is now back for its 4th winter, having been ringed (as an adult) in December 2021.

293A

Checking back in the records, this was my first bird last year as well, on 15th July! As you can see, it's retained its chocolate brown hood, and looks very smart. Unfortunately, there haven't been any breeding records, so we still don't know where it breeds.

Other birds seen today were: 37 Greylag Geese, 10 Canada Geese, 1 juvenile Moorhen, c.15 Mallards, 6 House Martins and Swifts (heard only).