Living on small island obviously are the various types of Gulls that are around .
Looking out of my patio doors even though I am ten minutes walk from the beach They are all around , on roof tops , on my lovely wall and on the patio its self if they get the chance .
There are around 50 types of gulls worldwide and 6 types found in the United Kingdom. these are
I see a lot of gulls on the rooftops near me and they tend to often nesting unused chimney pots . They protect their young and are devoted parents and will dive bomb if they think the young are at risk or they feel threatened.
Gulls typically breed once a year with their breeding season usually beginning in April and lasting through till August.They build nests , lay eggs , and raise the young during this time.
Chicks generally begin to fly in July or August and then take four years to reach maturity and breed . Herring gulls tend to nest in colonies and once roof nesting birds get a foothold other gulls nest on other buildings near .If left unchecked a colony can develop.
an older name for gulls is MEWS , this still exists in certain regional English dialects which is connected to German Mowe , Dutch Meeuw and French Mouette .
large birds are long living and often live to to a maximum age of 49 years .
Gulls found in the UK
As mentioned earlier there are six species of gulls found in the UK .
Herring gull. They are loud noisy birds found throughout the year around the coasts and inland around rubbish tips especially in the winter . Adults have light grey backs ,white under parts and black wing tips.
Yellow legged gull . Adults have larger grey backs and wings than herring gulls .Their legs are bright yellow and there is a red ring around their eye.
Lesser black – backed gull This gull has dark grey to black back and wings yellow bill and yellow legs .The UK has 40% of these European gulls.
Great black – backed gull A very large , thick set gull with a powerful beak. It will fight off any other gulls and can be quite aggressive.
Black legged Kittiwake Kittiwakes are medium sized gulls with a small yellow bill and a dark eye .They have a grey back with white underneath .Their legs are short and black .In flight the black wing tips show no white unlike other gulls . After breeding birds move to the artic for the winter.
Little gull This is a small gull. Adults in summer have black heads ,while young birds have a black mark n each wing which forms a W pattern.Little gulls are seen around the coasts from July to April usually in Tayside and Yorkshire , with smaller number further south.
The Law
All gulls are protected in theUK under the wildlife protection act of 1981. This makes it illegal to intentionally harm any gull or an active nest or it’s contents.However , the law says that in certain circumstances control measures may be neccessary.
Guss the Gull
This beautiful gull ( I call Guss ) comes to my wall by my widow most days . He or she stays a while , sometimes tapping on my patio doors . Other birds that come are not threatened by him and he is not bothered by them ..Often other birds gang up on each other but not when Guss is around.
All photos are taken by me on the Isle of Wight .
Moving on to Bembridge 