Arctic wanderer..........

22 Feb - One of the most charismatic and sought after Arctic birds was sighted in Dorset yesterday ........ an adult Ross's Gull, a diminutive, elegant Gull that breeds in remote high Arctic regions, winters along the pack ice, and is only a rare wanderer further south. I joined the expectant watchers on the south coast, having seen a flyby 2nd-year Glaucous Gull but missed the star bird on its first brief appearance - then after a wait of a couple of hours it dropped in again at Lodmoor to bathe and preen on the pools alongside its larger cousins. It's not very often that Mediterranean Gulls are outshone for me, as it's one of my favourite birds, but the Ross's was dwarfed by the other species as it swam, preened on the mud and gave several flight views - a striking white gull with a wedge-shaped tail, white primaries and a slight pink wash on the underparts, and a striking dove-like face with tiny bill. Excellent views of this elusive Arctic wanderer. Even the Spoonbill present wasn't given much attention in the excitement.