County Gulling doc.

Above: So, looking at this photo, what do you see? A dirty great big 'orrible seagull looking to nick your pasty at the first opportunity or a fine non-breeding plumaged adult argenteus Herring Gull still undergoing primary moult? Your answer may determine whether you could make it as a 'guller' or not! (Photo by Ian McKerchar)

So, ‘seagulls’ then, dirty, filthy, horrible things, scavenging on refuse tips, pooing in our reservoirs (which are our drinking water remember!), nicking chips when we’re at the seaside and usually making tons of racket, not a nice bunch of birds all things considered aren’t ‘seagulls’, but to some they’re heaven on earth!

To those some, of which I’m one, they can offer a real challenge, a chance to study difficult identification problems, a chance to further not only our own knowledge but also to push forward the frontiers of bird identification. They often have complicated moult strategies, can look bewilderingly similar to one another, regularly throw up all kinds of oddballs and misfits and have without doubt probably the widest variations in plumage within a species. They are reasonably predictable, they like refuse tips and roost on reservoirs, they often (but unfortunately not often enough) attract rarer species amongst them, they are large and generally easy to observe, although loafing in the middle of reservoirs towards dusk can be incredibly frustrating when you want to observe the open wings, especially as all our gull roosts are out of stone throwing reach- apparently! There’s no chasing about after little brown jobs, peering into bushes for hours on end, no trudging around until your legs ache, just find a nice spot, plonk yourself down, eyes down-look in! Heck, you could bring your favourite armchair with you; a flask of tea (or hot water with an oxo cube in for us Heaton Park boys) is a prerequisite, sandwiches, chocky bars or your Sunday roast, can all be eaten whilst looking down into the scope- ideal! (Caution: the use of chairs, flasks and food at the Audenshaw gull roost may result in harm; probably from the regulars ‘cos they’re a much tougher, more resilient type of guller than you’d usually encounter and such things are far too namby pamby for them, we at Heaton Park on the other hand…..).

To the beginner, gulls are confusing; whilst to the experienced guller they’re not as confusing most of the time. Mistakes will be made especially whilst you are attempting to get to grips with what’s what, so the best route is to get yourself down to your local reservoir afew hours before dusk in an attempt to learn the easier species, their variation in plumages according to age (dirty brown through to white and grey?), their subtle differences in jizz and colouration (watch those shades of grey though, often very difficult to assess according to the lighting conditions and a real pitfall) and don’t even think of attempting your ‘large white headed gull’ complex just yet (if you don’t know, don’t ask!).

Above: Ooooh, check out those primaries, all mirrors and tongues! A gullers utopia: a brief but conclusive glimpse of the open wings, here displaying the distinctive primary pattern of an argentatus Herring Gull. (Photo by Ian McKerchar)

Above: Sometimes gulls attempt to make it easy for those watching them by sticking out 'like a sore thumb', which is exactly what this 2nd winter Iceland Gull at Heaton Park Reservoir was attempting to do- and very much appreciated it was too! (Photo by Ian McKerchar)

Above: Here, this adult Yellow-legged Gull at Audenshaw has rather ridiculously made this site's gullers life's easy by brazenly displaying it's yellow legs, when it should really be sat in the middle of one of the reservoirs where gullers will happily argue about structural features, the Kodak grey scale and wing moult. (Photo by Rob Adderley)

Seriously though, gulls brighten up many a late winter evening (and beyond!) for those interested and once you get past that initial confusion, that initial will to give it all up, to go back to your nice warm, cosy house, you may just find yourself encapsulated by these regal beasts and becoming a life long member of the bunch of cold, wet and windblown but optimistic, observant and happy (as long as there’s gulls to look at anyway) guys and gals we call ‘gullers’.

Although gullers will look at gulls at any given opportunity at any time, specific periods of the year are dramatically more productive than others.

Large gulls return to the county around late July with the annual passage of Lesser Black-backed Gulls, which usually include afew Yellow-legged Gulls, although the latter usually continue their rather scarce presence throughout the winter period. Later on in the year Herring Gulls build up in numbers as they 'flood in' to the county to gorge themselves on our refuse tips at Astley (now with extremely difficult viewing and apparent regular scaring of gulls) and Pilsworth Tip, with much movement of birds between other tips in the northwest such as Arpley Tip (Cheshire) and Whinney Hill Tip (Lancashire). Numbers increase to a peak in January, which includes rather remarkable numbers of Great Black-backed Gulls at Pilsworth Tip and Heaton Park Reservoir and now is usually the prime time in the county for 'white-wingers', although they can occur earlier. There is a reduction in large gull numbers from late February as birds begin to depart for breeding grounds but good numbers can still be found into March and 'white-wingers' have been recorded into May on occasion. The late spring and summer periods are the quietest for large gulls, although the county's first proven breeding of Lesser Black-backed Gulls can not be too far away.

Above: An adult Yellow-legged Gull 'graces' the roost at Heaton Park Reservoir, flanked by argenteus Herring and Greater Black-backed Gull. (Photo by Ian McKerchar)

The smaller gulls, particularly Black-headed Gull, maintain a presence throughout the year with current breeding colonies at 3 locations in the county, although numbers are swelled enormously in the 'winter' period as with the large gulls. Mediterranean Gull too maintains a year round presence, albeit a precarious one, with sporadic attempted and even rarer successful breeding. Juveniles have become more prominent from August as birds move in from out of county breeding colonies and afew birds can often be found in winter gull roosts with more than a little perseverance. Little Gull can potentially be found almost throughout the year, from wind-blown birds in winter, to the more usual spring first-summer and adult birds in early April through May, through to immatures in July and August. Kittiwakes maintain a predictable status of regular daytime spring passage through the county, mainly in March and April but can be found at any time of year, particularly after strong westerly gales.

Above: A nice Mediterranean Gull (here a 2nd winter), is still a good county bird and something gullers are always on the look out for and appreciative of, should they find one. (Photo by Ian McKerchar)

As with most rarities- expect the unexpected! The occurrence of 'white-wingers' has been covered previously but influxes into the country or surrounding counties with have gullers increasing their efforts for one of these real 'gullers gulls'. Yellow-legged Gulls too have already been covered but Caspian Gull (currently still considered a sub-species of Yellow-legged Gull), of which there is only one accepted county record remains a genuine 'holy grail' of county gulling, although surely set increase with increased observer awareness/understanding and if the current increase in their status nationwide continues; one only has to look at the status of Caspian in Derbyshire to wonder if we have been overlooking them? Ring-billed Gull has several county records although recent years has seen records dry up considerably and a future record would undoubtedly be greatly appreciated by all county birders. Sabine's Gull has two remarkable records, both in the late summer, although autumnal gale-blown individuals would perhaps be more expected. Kumlien's Gull currently only has one accepted record (which is no surprise given their rare status nationwide!), although one other was atleast suspected and narrowly missed the required criteria for acceptance. American Herring Gull too, has been suspected (and photographed) at a county gull roost but likewise failed to meet the full and stringent acceptance criteria required by BBRC for this vagrant.

Bonaparte's, Laughing and Franklin's Gulls are all currently unrecorded in the county but it is surely only a matter of time and intense gulling before one or all of them occur, although it's location could potentially be at any of the counties gull roosts and at almost any time of year- I can only hope I'm there to witness it!

Above: Always something to look at! This Herring Gull (centre) is not sporting coloured 'leg irons' and pink 'hair dye' as some rebellion against society or in support of it's favourite pop group, but as part of a study into the movements of large gulls between landfill sites, the bright colours enabling instant recognition even amongst large gatherings of gulls. (Photo by Ian McKerchar)

Gullers- birders who specifically target gulls as their desired watching, in our county usually found at either refuse tips (nice!) or more usually at evening roosts at reservoirs but often venturing to coastal gull gatherings at any given opportunity. Probably the most dedicated, patient and optimistic of birders, to an extent which often defies belief (you try Audenshaw every evening through winter!), they are of course a much nicer and more approachable bunch than you may think, it's just that they're always preoccupied with staring contently down their 'scopes and they do atleast occasionally look at other, non-gull type birds.

White-winger(s)- the term used for Glaucous and Iceland Gulls due to their white primaries, which is usually applied when generally talking about either species i.e. "I'm hopeful of a white-winger tonight", "were due a white-winger soon", " we haven't had a white-winger for ages". The term could also be used to notify other gullers about a Glaucous or Iceland in flight or which has just dropped in and has not given sufficient opportunity to be specifically identified, but most really good gullers would have identified it already anyway, whatever the circumstances! The same term doesn't apply to adult Mediterranean Gulls (which too have white primaries), nor adult Ivory Gull which would almost certainly promote altogether more explicit terminology should one ever be found in a roost!

Large white-headed gull complex- no really, if you need to ask.........................

Yellow-legger(s)- Yellow-legged Gull(s). Still a fair prize at county gull roosts, especially since it's elevation to a full and distinct species from Herring Gull and still a potential pitfall especially for up and coming gullers, just remember, not every dark mantled 'Herring' Gull is a Yellow-legger, they are much more than that!

Med(s)- Mediterranean Gull(s). Another fair prize at county gull roosts although their scarce presence in the county is now virtually all year round and not the preserve of winter gull roosts it once was.

Shitty-headed- a much more affectionate term than it sounds for gulls with obvious, very heavy dark streaking to the head, usually reserved for the more distinct argentatus Herring Gulls (those that breed around Scandinavia and the Baltic region).

A nice cup of filth- any hot beverage, usually tea, coffee (if you need artificial stimulation to stay alert when watching gulls, stick to passerines!) or more preferably (at least for us Heaton Park boys) hot water with an Oxo cube in.

Kodak Grey Scale- a handy sized chart made by Kodak which was originally used in photography to assess different tones of grey and has now been widely utilised by gullers attempting to assess the grey upperpart colouration in gulls. Sounds great but in practice is difficult to use as gullers can often perceive grey tonal values slightly differently from one and other, lighting conditions affect the perception of grey tones dramatically and assessing from photographs is typically fraught with potential danger, however, used carefully and with experience it can be useful.

Mirror(s)- the term used to describe a small white or pale patch just inside the tip of the outermost primaries.

...and remember, the term 'seagull(s)' is the preserve of children and dudes, not gullers, and why would we? Here in Greater Manchester we're some 30 miles from the sea anyway, so just plain gull or gulls is fine!

Audenshaw Reservoirs

The ‘daddy’ of the county gull roosts since time began and despite being recently overshadowed by Heaton Park Reservoir for large gull numbers, it still attracts plenty to keep the most avid guller occupied. Access was once by permit only (and legitimately still is) but people now roam free and birders can often be clearly outnumbered by walkers, runners, dogs, stone-throwers, muggers, head-cases and the like but Audenshaw still has THE most dedicated, persistent, experienced and hardy bunch of gullers known to man.

The site is very open to the elements and despite having a nice brick hide overlooking one of the reservoirs, the other two reservoirs don’t, so you’ll have to stand and look in what ever weather Manchester has decided to muster, usually wind and rain! Most afternoons there is a build up of birds in a pre-roost gathering on numbers 1 and 3 reservoirs, but inevitably the roost is usually on the more sheltered southerly, number 2 reservoir. To view the roost, the best place is by the hide on the central causeway, unless the wind is from the south, when you may want to walk down to the end of the causeway by the motorway. Most gullers tend to view from the central well area where all 3 reservoirs can be easily 'scoped. Large gulls in the roost have decreased over the years with the closure of local refuse tips but the site still manages to attract regular Yellow-legged Gulls despite the relatively small numbers of other large gulls. Glaucous and Iceland Gulls are struggling to remain an annual event but the site still provides plenty of incentive with recent appearances of Caspian, Ring-billed and Sabine’s Gull. Black-headed and Common Gulls are a large feature of the roost (with up to 10,000 and 5,000 respectively) but Audenshaw' s reputation as the premier Mediterranean Gull site in the county has sadly slipped somewhat in recent years, with birds now more regularly early spring passage migrants from mid-February through March.

Above: Audenshaw during an evenings gull roost, but don't get carried away, as like most county roosts, it doesn't always appear this attractive! (Photo by Rob Adderley)

Heaton Park Reservoir

With the close proximity of Pilsworth Tip (which see below), Heaton Park Reservoir attracts big gulls like a magnet, allowing them to drink, roost and generally wash all the crap out of their often filth encrusted plumage. With much less human disturbance than Audenshaw due to the site being surrounded by fences and strictly permit only, this site, despite receiving a small proportion of the coverage of the former site, still continues to provide top quality gulling and as the birds leave Pilsworth tip they can be watched flying towards the roost with often thousands in the air at once with gullers waiting in desperate anticipation as they stream in.

Viewing is excellent via the purpose built hide complete with wheelchair access, although space is limited to about 5 or 6 at a push (for a rarity perhaps) and entry to the site requires a key supplied to permit holders only (which are now being limited and a waiting list already exists!), enabling them to access the locked gates and hide. Heaton Park Reservoir attracts excellent numbers of large gulls during the peak months (late August/early September through to March), with Herring Gulls regularly numbering upto a couple of thousand, Lesser Black-backed Gulls up to a thousand (more usually at passage periods) and Great Black-backed Gulls recently up to a mightily impressive 500. Black-headed Gulls roost in smaller numbers than might be expected with usually 3-4000 and Common Gulls are conspicuous by their absence but recent county rarities and scarcities offer great expectancy with Iceland Gull currently averaging 4 records a year, Yellow-legged gulls in seemingly almost every roost and whilst Glaucous Gull precariously clings on to it's annual status, Caspian and Kumlien’s Gull both recently recorded, endeavour to continue the site's run of county first gull records. Large gulls are often present in small numbers during the week (Monday to Friday) and swell enormously at the weekend, probably due to the influx of coastal birds coming to feed on nearby tips, although even in the smaller numbers during the week, scarce and rare species are often found.

Above: The dusty, spider infested hide at Heaton Park Reservoir, complete with access for wheelchairs or perhaps your favourite armchair for more comfortable viewing! The hide often feels like one of the coldest places on earth during mid-winter evening gull roosts and is not for the faint hearted, when thousands of gulls descend 'on-mass' with only a short period of useable light left. (Photo by Ian McKerchar)

Pilsworth Tip

Whilst this site does not have an evening roost it can be one of the best locations to watch gulls in the county, giving unique views of them actually doing something (usually arguing, vomiting, eating incredibly disgusting items but also great views of open wings etc) rather than just sitting around in the middle of a large body of water. As one of only two currently fully operational refuse tip in the county, this place is like McDonalds for gulls (possibly tasting the same?) with often-vast numbers of large gulls present, gorging themselves on all the scraps and crap we throw out- yummy! With only recent coverage by gullers, observing the gulls on the tip is reliant on the location of the current tipping in this large site which regularly changes, although locating that position is easy- just follow the often deafening racket made by the gulls! Gulls from the site leave towards Heaton Park Reservoir as dusk approaches, often in huge numbers forming one constant stream from one site to the other, not renowned as a great spectacle of the natural world but impressive never the less.

Remember the site is private and a health hazard (no surprise!) so viewing must only be carried out from around the perimeter fence and may not be possible at all if tipping is taking place out of view, although recently a sand quarry across the road has afforded better views of gulls as they come to drink and bathe (would you drink your dirty bath water?), including both Glaucous, Iceland and Yellow-legged Gulls in the past few years.

Pennington Flash

Over 20 years ago Pennington Flash regularly attracted large gulls courtesy of the nearby Plank Lane Tip but unfortunately the tip is long gone and more or less, so are the large gulls. Despite still attracting very good numbers of Black-headed Gulls (up to 8000, some of which spend all day there with thousands more streaming in from all directions towards dusk), often decent numbers of Common Gulls (more recently into the 200's) and much smaller numbers of large gulls the roost receives scant (at best!) attention and much must go unobserved. Serious and regular observation would undoubtedly pay dividends.

The roost is well served for observation, although on clear evenings checking the roost from Horrock’s hide, which faces directly into the setting sun, is actually useless for observing anything other than the opticians eye charts after you’ve wrecked your eyes, the hide can also be locked early, so you can get ‘turfed out’. It is much better to view the roost from past the Yacht Club, opposite Sorrowcow Farm pond and it’s only a 10 second dash to the car when the heavens open. Alternatively you can also view from off Ramsdales Ruck and gulls can be quite close here, but the same proviso as from Horrock’s hide applies. Gulls in the roost often include Mediterranean Gull (infact they’re probably more regular than we think) and have included Yellow-legged Gulls in recent years despite the site regularly failing to crack 100 a piece for Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls, whilst the site has also recorded atleast 4 Ring-billed Gulls and could still conceivably attract the odd ‘white-winger’.

Hollingworth' s roost is mainly Black-headed Gulls (up to 3000 in January), with smaller numbers of Common Gulls (peaking at about 500), whilst Mediterranean Gull has been recorded. Large gulls are normally in single figures although this can fluctuate from night to night as birds pass through the site on route over the Pennines, which certainly seemed to be the case with the March 2005 Iceland Gull there. The site is perhaps one of the best locations in the county (along with Audenshaw) for passage Kittiwakes in March or April with records annually, despite relatively poor coverage there. The roost is probably limited by disturbance from the large amount of boating activity and roosting gulls often run the risk from regular power boats ploughing through the middle of them!

Viewing the roost is perhaps most convenient from the road by the duck feeding area or by the Fisherman's Inn Pub (now rather pretentiously called 'The Wine Press'), although the light and panorama is better from the opposite side of the lake near the cafe at the Pavilion Wood. Hollingworth Lake's gull roost is undoubtedly underwatched and with it's rather unique location, so close to the Pennines and with the passage of gulls (albeit in relatively small numbers) across them, more regular watching there may well produce dividends.

From December to February large numbers of gulls gather at the reservoir with the peak of numbers being reached towards the end of January. Black-headed Gull numbers at this time can easily reach 2000 and is by far the commonest gull at the site. Common Gull numbers are also strong here with 250-300 being seen here on an average night but over 400 have been recorded. In the last few years Great Black-backed Gulls have begun to roost at this site too, although previously this species was very scarce in the area and double figures flocks were almost unheard of. Now 3-figure flocks at Ashworth Moor Reservoir are almost common in January with a peak of 230 in 2006 and Herring Gull is another large gull where large flocks were very scarce in previous years; again a flock of 100 or 200 is becoming more frequent at the site. Of course, the reason for the sudden increase in large numbers of gulls is Pilsworth Tip with about 75% of all the gulls that fly into the reservoir appearing to come from this site, with the other 25% flying in from Rochdale and Rossendale. From July to September large numbers of Lesser Black-backed Gulls appear at the site with birds again flying in from the Pilsworth Tip direction but others from over Oldham and Rochdale. Most birds do come down onto the water but will only hang around for a short period before flying on and this can go on all day with the largest groups reach 500-600 hundred at one time, but smaller flocks fly in and other flocks fly out which makes the true number of individual birds passing through well into the 1000’s, moving away from the reservoir north-west towards Haslingden and beyond.

Viewing is excellent with all the reservoir visible from no matter where you stand! There are two places to park; the first is on Edenfield Road, opposite Owd Betts pub, the second is down the east side of the reservoir, on Ashworth Road. The latter may be preferable where you may climb over the style and walk around the south side of the reservoir. Since intense watching during 2006, 3 Mediterranean Gulls and 2 Yellow-legged Gulls have been recorded.

The following locations, although not noted for their evening gull roosts, often have gulls and can be worth a look:

Scotsman's Flash

As another result of a nearby refuse tip closure many years ago, Scotsman's, once host to regular ‘white-wingers’ in the late 80's and early 90's, has currently often no roost at all and regularly the flash may not have a single gull on it by dusk! Generally, Scotsman's is more likely to hold afternoon flocks of loafing/bathing birds or pre-roost assemblies, with large gulls heading for roosts on the River Mersey, a typical example of which was the Iceland Gull, winter 2005, which drifted in with Herring Gulls from the north-west late afternoon and then departed south-west at dusk as a single flock. Black-headed Gulls tend to stream off in the direction of Pennington Flash before dusk and Mediterranean Gulls are very rare with probably only two records for the whole of the Wigan Flashes.

Viewing is from the canal bank or embankment on the western edge, where you often run the risk of being mown down by scramblers (a type of motorbike and not some form of rambler) or accosted by a local ‘nutter’. Despite this, the site may well be worth a look in the afternoon (perhaps as a side show to looking for winter Bitterns) and always has the potential to attract something rare, with Ring-billed Gull a past example.

Rumworth has no evening gull roost but manages to attract daytime gulls both to roost and to feed. Most of these gulls comprise Black-headed Gulls and Common Gulls, with the former often in decent numbers as they feed on the surrounding farmland or drink, wash, roost on or around the reservoir (and often in any one of the surrounding fields). Larger gulls are less common but drop in from time to time and there are fairly regular records of Little Gull, with Rumworth offering a good chance to catch up with Mediterranean Gull, especially at the end of the breeding season when juveniles from nearby breeding colonies in Lancashire regularly use Rumworth as they pass through (Rumworth also recorded the second county record of Mediterranean Gull back in late October 1982!).

The is only one footpath to view Rumworth, so viewing any gulls follows the same directions (see the Rumworth site guide from the County Birding Sites and Map page here) but they can be flighty if they are around the islands or the near shore, so it is best to scan them first to ensure you're not flushing that elusive first for the county!

Yet more sites suffering from the closure of nearby tips long ago, there is no gull roost at either and peak counts of gulls are relatively poor, with no distinct pattern to their occurrence although most record perhaps refer to birds that have been foraging at nearby playing fields. Large Gulls are a distinct scarcity, especially at Chorlton Water Park, with birds seen flying over from the NE at dawn presumably to-ing and fro-ing from Audenshaw Reservoirs.

Access is excellent at both sites, with footpaths around their entire shores, so viewing any gulls present is ideal especially at Chorlton where birds are relatively close.

Above: 'Back in the day'! Chorlton Water Park in it's gulling prime attracts an Iceland Gull, circa 1990, a reoccurrence nowadays would be a major event. (Photo by Pete Berry)

Another county reservoir that has no evening gull roost of note, but as with all other sites this does not necessarily mean it is not worth having a look! Gulls, especially during the main gulling period of winter, are almost exclusively Black-headed and are present throughout the day. There are periodic pre-assembly and daytime roosts of the larger species of gulls with numbers peaking during January and February and often involving birds flying over and/or having a quick 'wash and brush up' before heading off towards the Pilsworth Tip (gull restaurant!) and Heaton Park Reservoir roost.

Most effective viewing, especially during the morning and in bright sunlight, can be obtained from the embankment on the south side (known as the wall side), which importantly also offers elevation to watch any birds present, whereas during the late afternoon/evening the opposite side, by the sailing club, becomes the most suitable viewing position. As an undeniably underwatched site for gulls, it has never the less recorded perhaps half a dozen Mediterranean Gulls, with most of these in more recent years and recorded a single Glaucous Gull but as yet, no Iceland Gull.

There is no overnight gull roost at Watergrove and at sunrise there are normally few gulls present. However, small numbers of Common and Black-headed Gulls do roost during the day with numbers peaking between mid-morning and mid-afternoon on days when there is not too much disturbance form windsurfers! Gulls often feed on the improved grassland to the south of the reservoir and around Wardle village, with birds departing in a southerly direction at sunset. Peak numbers of Common Gulls occur between August and February, Black-headed Gulls between August to March, with usually only single figures of Herring, Lesser Black-backed and Greater Black-backed Gulls. Despite the small number of gulls present the site has attracted records of Little Gulls (2 in July 2006) and one of Ring-billed Gull (May 1997), proving it's always worth checking gulls out, regardless of the numbers involved!

The main roost point is the spit (which disappears when the reservoir is full) on the east side of the reservoir, which runs out from the shoreline in front of the visitor centre/windsurfers club house, although gulls also roost on the north shoreline near the hide. The best place to view them is either from the top of the dam above Trap Farm car park, or from the track on the east side of the reservoir.

Castleshaw is not noted as a site for gulling, with only a daytime roost but gulls also come in towards the early evening but tend to fly off in the direction of Audenshaw, which was certainly the case for the Iceland Gull that dropped in briefly there before being refound in the evening roost at Audenshaw. The site also recorded a single spring Mediterranean Gull in 1994.

The best viewing for any gulls is from the walls of the lower reservoir, although it is possible to view from the road going up the wood but some areas are obscured.

Above: Whilst still a county gullers 'holy grail', it's appearance during the winter of 2005/2006 has ensured Caspian Gull (centre, taken at Heaton Park Reservoir, with Common and Lesser Black-backed Gull above and argenteus Herring Gull below) has been indelibly added onto the county list, whatever it's current taxonomic status! (Photo by Ian McKerchar)

I would like to thank those who very generously offered to impart their unique and intimate knowledge of the gulls and gull roosts on their local patches for me to use, without which this article would not have been possible, they are: Rob Adderley (Audenshaw Reservoirs), Steve Atkins (Watergrove Reservoir), Peter Baron (Elton Reservoir), David Broome (Scotsmans Flash), Kath Butterworth (Castleshaw Reservoirs), Pete Hines (Chorlton and Sale Water Parks), Simon Hitchen (Hollingworth Lake) and David Winnard (Ashworth Moor Reservoir). I would also like to thank Rob Adderley and Pete Berry for permitting the use of their photos and Pete Berry for his enthusiastic and typically informed conversations on the subject of gulls during our regular 'county gulling sessions'.