Coldest day yet on my quest for new Gulls

Thought I 'd do a few sites today but as it turned out I just managed Ditchford with the cold getting the better of me. Was around -13 this morning and while it reduced some what by the time the sun came up it was still well below zero. The countryside this morning was a proper winter wonderland, was stunning with the bright sunshine.

Recently I have to say I've become a little addicted to sifting through Gulls, especially with the glut of white wingers on offer. Therefore Ditchford would be my first port of call. I arrived around 9am and headed out through the snow straight for the watersports pit, the only pit with a decent amount of ice-free water. It soon became apparent that I really should have added that extra pair of socks and while everywhere else was warm, ski socks and wellies were not going to cut it in these temperatures!

An initial look at the Pit showed that the light wasn't quite right yet and there was a fair bit of mist about. So, with increasingly painful feet from cold, I headed down to the Viaduct Pit to see if there was any free water there or if there might be a Bittern knocking around on the fringes. There was a pair of Goosander on the river as well as several Canada Geese and Wigeon. Viaduct Pit did indeed have a small strip of ice-free water. There were a fair few birds there though nothing of any real note.

Back at the Watersports Pit the visibility had improved nicely and I began sifting through all the birds on show. I was keen to find myself both Caspian and Med Gulls, both seen there in the last week or two. With shed loads of Gulls on show I thought my chances were pretty high.

It wasn't too long before I found a 2nd-winter Iceland Gull on the ice, though it wasn't long before it disappeared. I also picked out a nice looking adult Yellow Legged Gull tip-toeing between other Gulls on the ice. Was a handsome beast with particularly bright yellow legs, the dark mantle and quite a meaty bill.

2nd-winter Iceland Gull. Ditchford GP. 11.02.12

It wasn't long before a drake Smew (presumably the same I saw here last weekend) showed up among the Ducks on the far side of the lake, again associating with Goldeneyes. An additional female Goosander was on the river in front of me.

Didn't think it'd be long before a 'Glauc' showed up and low and behold one of the regular 2nd-winter beasts suddenly appeared sitting on the ice at the front of the pack. Managed to rattle off a few pics, although my feet (especially the left one for some reason!) were becoming increasingly painful and the thought of cranking up the car heater and cracking open the thermos of coffee were getting just a little temping to say the least!

Top to Bottom: 2nd-winter Glaucous Gull (first two) and the Watersport Pit mele

It was quite clear how sparse food was for a lot of birds on-site with Robin, Meadow Pipit, Dunnock and Blackbird all feeding unusually close-by. By 1 o'clock I was feeling just as cold and ravenous and despite my earlier intensions to get over to maybe Summer Leys or Pitsford, I'd had enough!