Bonaparte's Gull hoodoo and bogey birds
April 14th 2024 was a good day. I saw my first Bonaparte's Gull at Frampton Marsh. The bird went missing for hours during the day, but after much waiting and checking of Black-headed Gulls, it was suddenly the closest gull to the waiting crowd. A great experience, and I took some decidedly rubbish photos and studied the bird to learn it for future reference. I did this because this level of scarce bird felt to me like many other unusual birds found in Britain - one that is possible every year. It's a bit more rare than Wryneck and so on, but once I'd seen my first I saw a dozen more in quick succession. Same with Red-breasted Flycatchers, and Grey Phalaropes, and White-rumped Sandpiper and so on. I assumed I'd see another Bonaparte's Gull in 2025. 2025 saw no shortage of Bonaparte's Gulls come into the UK. There were birds at Hornsea Mere and in north Wales at Conwy and I went for both, twice each, and missed them both, by less than half a...