Sooty Tern – Cemlyn Lagoons National Nature Reserve, Anglesey, 19^th July 2005

Thank fuck!!!!

In July 2005, this bird had been tantalising off Anglesey since Tuesday the 5th. It was seen at Rhosneigr on that date, before then being seen intermittently at The Skerries between Thursday the 7th and Sunday the 10th.

However, although still intermittently, it was then seen at Cemlyn Bay from the 10th July onwards..... . This was much more accessible and somewhat more reliable....... . I had previous with Cemlyn Bay obviously, dipping the Bridled Tern there in July 1988 when I abducted Carol Carrington in my attempt to see it (whereas Paul Pugh did!) and seeing the Whiskered Tern there on the 19th June 1993, the day after seeing Lesser Crested Tern at Spurn.

As I had a long planned weekend in the Highlands on the weekend of the 16th and 17th July (having worked at Castle Stuart the previous week) I wasn’t able to twitch it then.

I had hoped that I might have been able to make a ‘strategic diversion’ on Monday the 18th July when I was driving from Edinburgh to Ryton-on-Dunsmore to have a week with Elizabeth, but I was thwarted by a lack of any news whilst en route.

I was though rescued by belated news on the Monday, and so negotiated with Elizabeth to go for it the next day if it was reported. There was an argument to just go, but as ever, I opted to bide my time.

When the news eventually came through the following day I was off within minutes for what proved to be a 3.5 hour drive, taking in the M6, the M56 (as it happened!) and the A56. This was longer than anticipated, and included a refuelling stop, as well as something of an inadvertent diversion on Anglesey itself. However, I made it, with some increasingly frantic driving.

Perhaps this was unnecessary as the bird proved to be constantly on view from my arrival onwards, at least until it eventually departed out to sea.

During the intervening time it was either resting on the tern island or flying over or round it, although once or twice it flew further afield and also briefly alighted on the beach amongst the other roosting terns.

It often got harried by the nesting terns, possibly due to its superficial skua-like appearance.

It was a tern of large-ish size, which basically had distinctive black-and-white plumage. However, in the very good light conditions and with some scrutiny the black plumage proved to be dark brown at least partially, particularly so in the wings.

The under-parts were brilliant white, with the under-wings being white overall, excepting for the trailing edge and the primaries, which were black. The upper-parts were black, as described, with white outer-tail feathers. The crucial head pattern was a combination of black and white also, with a black cap, white forehead and black eye-stripe meeting the bill and extending beyond the eye, both of which were also black.

A brilliant scoop after a fraught delay...... . Five years later Dad, Ellen, Tessa and I had a lovely holiday in North Wales and we visited Cemlyn Lagoon, which was again nostalgic.

Sooty Tern, Cemlyn Lagoons NNR, Anglesey, July 2005 (photograph credited to Stuart Elsom).