The amorous American
An adult Franklin’s Gull appeared in a Black-headed Gull colony in West Yorkshire, where it was seen displaying and even attempting to mate.
FIRST found on 18 May, a gorgeous adult summer Franklin’s Gull promptly bedded in at St Aidan’s RSPB, West Yorks, and started keenly displaying to the locals. Rather hot under the collar, it was even watched attempting to regularly mate with a small rock – as well as a Black-headed Gull once or twice! The site is home to a huge colony of the latter species, with no fewer than 2,000 pairs calling the site home.
A rare opportunity to see Franklin’s Gull in full breeding condition in Britain, it provided some of the best-ever views of this Nearctic visitor on this side of the Atlantic. It seems its advances were rejected, though, as the bird departed after a four-day visit – with a brief reappearance again on 24th. Amazingly, the small white mirror in the outermost right primary allowed it to be confirmed as the bird that visited multiple sites in Yorkshire between September and December 2020 before heading overseas, pitching up in Norway in January 2021 and then in Belgium for much of April. ■