Mediterranean Gull high over the village

Looking-up, soaring overhead, Mediterranean Gulls mixed-in with Ashford's Herring Gulls and Lesser Blackbacked Gulls can be seen just about daily. They've become a new addition as a fly-over to our garden bird list. In the space of 15 years or less this gull has gone from a rare visitor from Southern and Eastern Europe, to a local coastal breeder with non-breeding birds happy to loaf around fields and towns. Indeed my son has told me there was one in the school playground at Tenterden, scavenging around the litter bins. Mediterrnean Gulls are still admired by birders for their handsomely simple but striking plumage - all white wings, black cap and bright red bill (in summer) and even from a great height they're easy to spot.