Most of the months birding was on Saturdays when I visited my usual gull watching sites around the area.
Without doubt the highlight of the month for me was to pull a second-winter Caspian Gull out from under the net during a canon netting session with the ringing group mid month. Caspian Gull is my favorite gull, could you guess with the number of photos I have of them, and I've always wanted to see one in the hand. I was to go one better than that and actually have one in my hands. Simple stunning. I also got to show a few lucky local birders who happened to be nearby at the time which was made even sweeter as it was a lifer for one of them. He was a quick bugger as he got hold of my fingers several times, the gull not the birder, and wouldn't let go. This really was one of those birding moments that will stick with me, smashing.
The gull watching sessions throughout the month threw up several surprises including another different Ring-billed Gull on the tip. This bird I had seen in November 2008 at Hole Haven Creek and then subsequently by Mike and Griggsy the following January. It was easily identified as the same bird as he still had the gammy right leg.
Other notable gulls included another different adult presumed GlaucousxHerring Gull back cross hybrid that more than resembled Iceland Gull, eleven Caspian Gulls, the hybrid MedGullxBlack-headed Gull again and a host of Yellow-legged and Mediterranean Gulls plus a few other oddities. Rossi the Ring-billed Gull down at Westcliff was seen several times mid month to making my Ring-billed tally to three birds locally this year alone.
Oh the joins and pain of gull watching.
Away from the gull watching the only real excursion was a failed attempt at the Red-necked Grebe at Fambridge but was followed up with a fine showy Slavonian Grebe and Kingfisher at the old disused sewage tanks on the east end of Two Tree Island mid month.
I was hit with the worst cold I've had in a long time and actually kept me out of work for a week, again first time that's happened in a long time and as such I wasn't really getting out as much as I should have, still got me a couple of sightings of Great Spotted Woodpecker on my garden feeders in between bouts of coughing and sneezing.