Kittiwakes are gentle looking, medium-sized gulls with a small yellow bill and a dark eye. They have a grey back with white underneath. Their legs are short and black. In flight the black wing-tips show no white, unlike other gulls, and look as if they have been 'dipped in ink'. The population is declining in Scilly, perhaps due to a shortage of sandeels and the only colony is now on Gugh. After breeding, birds move out into the Atlantic where they spend the winter.

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With thanks for the use of Kittiwake Image © Ed Marshall