Audouin's Gull - Icthyaetus audouinii
Audouin's Gull - 3rd summer very similar to adult but lacks white primary tips. Salinas de Tavira
Twenty-five years ago it was a real treat to find an Audouin’s Gull in the Algarve. Then, around the turn of the century, a few pairs bred on the dividing bunds of the salt pans at Castro Marim nature reserve and did so for several years without a great deal of success. Feral dogs were a problem for the nesting gulls and they abandoned the site in favour of the Salinas de Santa Luzia where they were similarly unsuccessful. In the meantime, the post breeding passage of Audouin’s Gulls at the latter site was becoming a feature of late summer with 500 and more gathering to loaf away the day. Then a small colony was found on one of the islands close to Faro in the Ria Formosa reserve and its remarkably rapid growth has resulted in a more than 3,000 pairs now breeding there and that number continues to grow.
Audouin's Gull - juvenile. Salinas de Tavira
Outside the breeding season Audouin’s Gulls may be found at any of the salt pans east of Faro, at Lagoa de São Lourenço where birds come to bathe, the Quinta do Lago lagoon and the Alvor estuary.
Audouin's Gull - adult summer. Faro.
Pictures by Ray Tipper - More about Ray...
More about Ray Tipper
Ray Tipper began his birding on the North Kent Marshes at the age if eleven. He left his native Britain in 1973 spending most of the next 22 years in Hong Kong. As a trustee of WWF he was intimately involved with its renowned Mai Po Nature Reserve. It was in Hong Kong that Ray turned to bird photography, which quickly became his major interest. He gained associateship of the Royal Photographic Society in 1990, and his photographs appear in journals and books throughout the world. Ray guides specialist birdwatching and bird photography tours and since 1997 has led more than 100 tours in Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa and Madagascar. He now lives in the Algarve, where his intimate knowledge of its birds has been recognised by his appointment as Chairman of the Portuguese Rarities Committee.
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