Seabirds at sea, September – November 1990 (Ship-based observations)

Surveys on board MV Tridens II included trips to east Scotland and east England in Sep (CJC, MFL, PW) and journeys into the German Bight and the Central North Sea in Oct (CJC, MH, EVK, PW). MV Holland was manned in Sep (AvdN) and Nov (BC, WvL). On board MV Aurelia and MV Navicula surveys were conducted in the southern part of the Dutch sector in Oct and Nov (MFL, MH, PvdW et al.). Sightings off the British east coast were rather spectacular, including Great Northern Diver, a Black-browed Albatross (5 Sep, PW, MFL), many Storm and Leach’s Petrels, Sooty and Manx Shearwaters, Grey and Red-necked Phalaropes, Pomarine and Long-tailed Skuas, and a Dougall’s Tern. More interesting for our surveys, however, were massive numbers of auks feeding in Herring-rich areas. Feeding Gannets were spotted in association with feeding cetaceans (one of the more spectacular records was a mass-feeding inlcuding 11 Minke Whales, 34 Harbour Porpoise and 50 Gannets, 10 Sep 90, MFL, PW). Violent weather on 19 and 20 Sep prevented us from seeing much apart from scattered records of Storm and Leach’s Petrels, some shearwaters, and relatively low numbers of auks and Gannets (CJC, PW).