In the UK this bird is known as (just) the Kittiwake - elsewhere the Black-Legged part is added to the front of the name. This is a nice example of why the scientific name is useful, because whatever its local name, its formal name is always Rissa tridactyla.
This is a rather gentle looking birds - and although its in the same general group as most gulls, it is not in the classic gull genus - Larus.
It name seems to be an onomatopoeic rendering of its call on the nesting site - described in BWP as "kitti-wa-a-k"! However, for most of the time this bird is rather less noisy than most other gulls.
As you can see it nests on sheer cliffs and rock faces. I can only assume that the chicks are born with a head for heights!
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| with razorbills and guillemot |
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| photo-bombed by a puffin! |
such a pretty nesting colony! love the soft look of their plumage.
ReplyDeleteAwesome!!!! You have shared some fantastic birds with us.
ReplyDeleteFantastic birds! Love how they nest on the rock ledges, and their chicks are so cute! Do they fall into the water learning to fly, I wonder! I am so impressed that you used the word onomatopoeia in a post! :-) That isn't something one often sees! :-)
ReplyDeleteThat nesting colony is certainly busy. The kittiwakes are more delicate-looking than other gulls. I saw both Black-legged and Red-legged Kittiwakes in Alaska.
ReplyDeleteThey are beautiful birds. It's really neat to see the colony up close.
ReplyDeleteLove the little photobomber!
Kittiwakes certainly do build their nests in precarious places!
ReplyDeleteThe fluffy chicks against the rock face are great shots!
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't mind a Puffin photo bombing any of my pictures. From Findlay
ReplyDeleteOh those are sheer cliffs! And what stunning photos of the birds and chicks on the nests. thanks for sharing. I'll add my link tomorrow when my post appears. Greetings, Jo
ReplyDeletewalking down the memory lane :)
ReplyDeleteSo nice to see your images and remember my own trip to Scotland 2 years ago.
And now, I´m off to Australia. :) Will be birding in Queensland for three weeks.
Your first picture depicts the sheer beauty of a Kittiwake Stewart. Unfortunately here on the west coast of Lancashire the only real time we see them is a fly bys after a South Westerly gale.
ReplyDeleteThanks for hosting Wednesday's birds again.
I love the little, fluffy baby!
ReplyDeleteLooks like a fascinating place for birding.
ReplyDeleteA beautiful bird with cute chicks. The nesting colony looks busy and dangerous. There's not much room on the ledges.
ReplyDeleteThe Kittiwake is a lovely bird and your first picture of it does it proud.
ReplyDeletebeautiful birds. We can forget that since they are so ubiquitous.
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing nesting colony. The advantage to building nests in those places is that it makes it hard for predators to reach!
ReplyDeleteGreat photos and it would be wonderful to see so many birds like that.
ReplyDeleteYou're on a roll with the shorebirds! I like how you showed them in their cliff environment, too. Beautiful photos!
ReplyDeleteExcellent images Stewart.
ReplyDeleteA definite rarity for me in a land-locked County but its call will give it away if one ever flies over.
I'm amazed at their nesting location...that's living on the edge, no doubt. Wonderful series of photos and beautiful birds, Stewart.
ReplyDeleteYes you wonder why the chicks don't just roll off. MB
ReplyDeleteIncredible sights!
ReplyDeleteI have never seen so many nesting together.
Most excellent rock face with a great bird! How do you get such wonderful pics of these incredibly hard birds??!!! Nice work!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pictures, Stewart,
ReplyDeleteSo many birds nest on the rock together.
Cute young birds.
Best regards, Irma
Sweet looking gull the Kittiwake, and great pictures ot them Stewart.The cliff face looks like a precarious place for them to raise their young, it's just amazing how they do it.
ReplyDeleteBrilliant post Stewart. Amazing bird, amazing behaviours, amazing pictures! Thank-you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteLove the sound of their name!!
ReplyDeleteAwwww, how cute! Love the shots of their nesting area--and the Puffin! Thanks, Stewart!
ReplyDeleteNeat. What a great find.
ReplyDeleteGreat photos Stewart, loved seeing these nesting birds.
ReplyDeleteThat little Puffin snuck right in there, Stewart! How wonderful these pix are!!!...:)JP
ReplyDeleteLove, love these photos. Great header photo!!
ReplyDeleteAhhhh... seabirds. Wish I saw more of them. Your photos are wonderful. You seem to have captured a softness to their heads - just lovely, Stewart!
ReplyDeleteGreat pics and of course my favorite is the one photo bombed by the Puffin...SWEET timing~
ReplyDeleteStewart, the textures you have captured in these photos are outstanding, and I adore this photo ofthe adults tending to their fuzzy chicks. Well done.
ReplyDeleteGorgeous photos Stewart!
ReplyDeleteI don't know how you got those great shots, but they are fantastic...
Wonderful -- you definitely don't need to go to Alaska.... same birds again.
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