LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL

The largest county gathering of this species has occurred on three occasions, when 2000 birds were counted at Heaton Park Reservoir in November 1997, Ashworth Moor Reservoir in September 1999 and on Astley Tip during February and March 2000.

It is worth noting that there are two subspecies of Lesser Black-backed Gull worth currently considering in the county: Larus fuscus intermedius, which has recently (early 2008) been regarded as a regularly occurring passage migrant in the county and Larus fuscus fuscus (also known as Baltic Gull and considered by some to be a separate species) which is almost impossible to separate from some intermedius and would require a ringed bird to be observed to fully identify this rare species in the UK.

A Lesser Black-backed Gull ringed on Plank Lane Tip, Leigh on the 28th June 1981 was recaptured at Salt Ayre Tip, Lancaster on the 27th April 2000, aged 19 years old.

Some ringing recoveries from Greater Manchester are included below: