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MOSSEL BAY NEWS - Birders have flocked to Mossel Bay from as far as Gauteng since yesterday, 7 February to celebrate, according to birding experts, a most rare occasion.
This rare event constitutes the first ever sighting of a laughing gull (Leucophaeus atricilla) in South Africa. The bird, named for its laugh-like call, is found in North and South America.
“This bird mostly migrates around the Gulf of Mexico,” explains local birdwatcher, Rudi Minnie. The bird was spotted by a bird watcher, Don Reid who went for a swim at Santos Beach on Sunday, 6 February.
He identified it as a Franklin’s gull, which too is most rare sight on South African shores. After sharing the find with a local bird watching group, questions about the true identity of the bird arose.
The first photograph of the gull was taken by Edwin Polden, yesterday morning.
“We contacted bird expert, Trevor Hardeker, who sensed that something truly unique had been seen. He asked us to photograph the bird in flight, specifically the upper side of the wings for identification purposes.”
The bird was then identified as the laughing gull.
“As soon as news of the sighting broke, the first birdwatchers from Gauteng boarded a plane at 10:00 yesterday and at 13:00, they were chasing around town to find the laughing gull,” Minnie told the Mossel Bay Advertiser.
This morning, a large group of bird watchers were seen at the Point, to photograph the gull. It is believed that the gull may have lost its way in bad weather.
Birdwatchers from Gauteng on Quay 4 taking photographs of the laughing gull. Photo: Tersia Marais
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