Great
Black-backed Gull is a common breeder and resident in
Øygarden.
It breeds mostly out on the islands with scattered pairs elsewhere.
They are a ferocious predator and I have seen them catch and eat young
Common Gulls in flight, swallow Little Auks in just one gulp and plenty
more besides.
They can chase off a White-tailed Eagle but there is one bird that will
strike panic into the heart of even the toughest GBBG - Great Skua. No
matter how many large gulls there are in a flock the appearance of a
single Great Skua will have them fleeing in all directions.
Great
Black-backed Gulls, Øygarden, 09 September 2008
Adult GBBG, Øygarden, 09 September 2008
The following book takes
a lot of the mystery of gull identification:
Juvenile
Great Black-backed Gull, Øygarden, 09 September 2008
Young GBBG, Øygarden, July 2018
Adult Great Black backed Gulls, Brage, Norwegian Sector, August 2021
Juvenile Great Black backed Gull, Brage, Norwegian Sector, August 2021
Moulting GBBG, Leman Field, August 2021
Gulls often look rather tatty during the late summer moult
Finally owning a DSLR means that I can now take pictures of flying
birds - something that I found almost impossible with digiscoping. Its
a big advantage but also has its drawbacks too - the "tiny" 300mm lens
means that I have to get a lot closer than I did with the 'scope.
digiscoping,
digibinning, bird photography
Great Black-backed Gull / Svartbak, Sleipner, 05 February
2007
Above picture taken with
a
Canon EOS400D with a Sigma 70-300mm telephoto lens
Great black-backed Gull nest, Tjeldstø, Øygarden,
15 May 2007
