Gull Counts 2025

Ted and I are once again so honoured to write a blog about our most recent visit to the most beautiful place on Planet Earth.

The anticipation and excitement that had built up for weeks was suddenly upon us and we arrived on the 8^th May for 6 days of counting Lesser Black-back (LBB) gulls, hopefully finding some scarce birds, fresh air, flowers, seabirds and all with the most friendly, lovely, warm, welcoming human beings 😊

We were soon meeting up with familiar faces, people that now feel like family! Leighton + Sarah, Ceris, Amy and later Will and Molly. I wasn’t sure whether the smiles on their faces were because they were just happy or was it the doughnuts that accompanied us 😊

We walked up to the farm, emotions were high, we were so happy to be back – amazing, breathtaking Skomer !

We caught up with Leighton some more and discussed the gull work ahead, chucked our bags into the accommodation, loaded up with food, drink and the gull maps and we were off.

We headed south to start, onto South Plateau where some large ‘Barrel Jellyfish’ were below us by the Mew Stone, and an apparent new sub-colony of both LBB and Great Black-backed (GBB) gulls was clearly increasing in numbers.

 

Pic 1 – Jellyfish - Mike

We encountered 2 Chough very close to us, one of Molly’s projects, and that’s just another wonderful thing here, your sightings, your observations are all valuable and help build the scientific picture of Skomer over the season and over the years.

Pic 2 – Chough - Ted

We counted gulls up until tea-time and then began 'migrant bashing'.

We were at North Valley Crossing, now the best area of bushes, all now numbered off so we can get onto birds quicker. There were some Willow Warblers/Chiffchaffs and then a bright warbler popped out in front of us, a delicate and lovely Subalpine Warbler! We watched, took pics and got the news out really quickly and soon anybody who wanted to see it had, a nice little Skomer twitch.

Subsequent analysis of the photos (particularly the tail pattern) suggest it is probably a Western Subalpine, but females are very tricky and without a feather for DNA we might not resolve which one of the recently split ‘Subalpine Warblers’ it is, over to BBRC.

Pic 3 – Subalp – Ted

Wow, what a sunrise to start day 2, and with clear skies and easterly winds surely more good birds were coming- and they duly arrived.

Pic 4 – Sunrise-Mike

Early morning start to where else, but North Valley Crossing, no sign of the Subalp, but we soon found a Reed Warbler and then a beautiful Cuckoo which was really difficult to see perched in one of the bushes, the first one this year on the island.

Pic 5 – Cuckoo – Ted

We then went out west of the farm into Well Field and soon enough found another decent bird, a stunning male Redstart – what a cracker, and we hadn’t even had breakfast yet.

Pic 6 – Redstart - Mike

We were counting gulls for the rest of the day, but being out all day long with eyes and ears open, we picked up Ringed Plover and Red Kite.

In the evening the Cuckoo was still about and it was a stunning evening with Short-eared Owls everywhere you looked.

Day 3 – another early start (obvs) and we’d decided to go seawatching at Skomer Head, banking on the fact that any migrants would either turn up later, or at least hang around.

Seawatching from Skomer in the Spring is traditionally hard work, it is, but good birds came in the form of terns, dolphins were feeding - how magical, and with the sun behind us and a calm sea it was very pleasant. Then suddenly a diver, a Great Northern Diver in winter plumage flew past, very close to us at eye level, what a spectacular sight. As we discussed our good fortune only 5 minutes later Ted saw another, over our heads! Another Great Northern Diver but in full summer plumage – Wow, just wow!!!

Pic 7 – GND in front of Grassholm – Ted

Hirundines and Swifts were coming in and then the most unexpected bird of the morning came in off the sea, a Sedge Warbler!

The gull counts continued all day, in wonderful weather and then just before lunch we found the most important birds of our trip- 3 Curlew chicks 😊

11^th May - After the success of the seawatching we decided to return to Skomer head and seawatch the next morning, so at 0630ish we were settled in our spot staring at the sea, this turned into a crazily exciting morning.

Another Great Northern Diver flew past, at up to a metre long and in summer plumage these really are awesome birds, an incredible sight.

Pic 8 – GND in SP – Ted

A flock of Curlew Sandpipers flew north and hirundines and swifts were coming in off the sea.

We then picked up a falcon on the south coast as it seemingly also arrived in - it looked different and exciting! The excitement rose to ridiculous levels when Ted looked at it in the scope to see that it was ‘blue’ all over. I then watched it through the scope as Ted took pics (how on earth he managed to get something is beyond me), it was over half a mile away, but undeniably a male Red-footed Falcon – the stuff of dreams. We looked at each other in dis-belief, once it was gone - big hugs and a desperate run across the rocks to get the news out. The adrenaline was flowing so hard at this point that I (Mike) had to literally sit down!

Frustratingly the bird looked to be heading for the mainland and no-one else on the island saw it.

On with the gull counts after a late breakfast/ brunch and out to the west where we encountered a Short-eared Owl doing its distraction display – it worked! We’ve never seen one do this before, it was quite weird to watch, we took a video and quickly moved on.

Video 1 - Short-eared Owl distraction display

More excitement in the afternoon when Ted picked up an Egret spp, neither of us had ever seen an egret here. Frustratingly it went straight out of view but then just as quickly reappeared and was quite close to us, a Little Egret.

Pic 9 - Little Egret- Ted.

Lots more Gull counts in the afternoon, lots more Short-eared Owls and there were quite a few Spotted Flycatchers around in the evening migrant hunt.

The next day, our last full day had to start with another seawatch and this time we had the wonderful company of the gentleman known as Will 😊

More divers, Great Northern and Red-throated, we had 6 Turnstone go north just around the head at eye level, more terns too - Arctic and Sandwich. But the highlight was 2 Arctic Skua the second of which came really close (in seawatching terms) which we all thoroughly enjoyed.

Pic 10 - Arctic Skua underside – Mike

Pic 11 – Arctic Skua upperside- Ted

Later in the day between counts we confirmed at least 2 more Curlew chicks with a second pair of Curlew, it’s so important that Skomer hangs onto its breeding Curlews.

Pic 12 - Curlew Chick – Mike

Tuesday the 13^th, our last morning and we couldn’t resist it could we, early morning seawatch with both Leighton and Will, another great morning, a Black-throated Diver completed the diver set, pretty good for Skomer in May, 12 terns of 3 species and some Common Scoter going south. We also watched a Gannet close in below us swallow a large Garfish.

Pic 13 – Gannet – Ted

A check on a couple of counts on the return to the farm with a final look at North Pond and our time was up.

The gull numbers looked to be down again, but hopefully not by much, fingers crossed in the next couple of years the numbers will plateau and start going back up - we do hope so!

The gull counts were pretty much complete and it was time to say our goodbyes.  

It was difficult watching the Garland Stone getting further away as the boat took us back to reality, leaving behind our little bit of paradise, and the most wonderful, wonderful people 😊

 

Mike + Ted Wallen

May 2025