Polluted Gull

During a recent visit to Mossel Bay, Western Cape, South Africa we were treating ourselfs to the glory of nature and just watching our spectacular coastline and...
Read more

During a recent visit to Mossel Bay, Western Cape, South Africa we were treating ourselfs to the glory of nature and just watching our spectacular coastline and sea birds. This particular gull intrigued me because it was constantly bathing itself. It would then shake the water and do a short flight. After observing the curious behaviour and feather colours, I came to realise that this juvenile Gray-headed gull was actually trying to clean itself from probably oil dumped into the sea. Except for the frantic cleaning and feathers looking not to good, the gull appeared to be fine. This photo is cropped with slight adjustments to the lightning, and saturation.
Read less