Birding home and away

The day got off to a really good start when 9 Grey Partridge appeared in our garden, they ran and jumped about in typical gamebird manner but stayed still long enough for a few photos through the kitchen window. After breakfast we headed off to Stag Rock to look for a Bonepartes Gull reported yesterday, after a scan around the lighthouse we headed off towards Budle Point. Just offshore from the sandy spit were a group of Black Headed Gulls feeding, one bird was smaller and showed an all grey nape and head. On getting the scope onto this bird we realised it was the Bonepartes Gull, a dainty little bird with a black bill, a grey mantle,a dark cheek patch,limited black on the primaries and pale pink legs. What a delicate looking bird to have flown all the way from North America.