Sunday, 17 September 2017

Gulls feeding by stomping in shallow water - Comox, B.C.


 
Heather paddling near Pt Holmes
By Keith and Heather Nicol
    While sea kayaking near Pt Holmes near Comox on September 14, we came across some interesting feeding behavior of gulls. They were stomping their feet to churn up some sort of food. They would move their feet up and down quickly as people might do running on the spot and then the gulls would peck down into the shallow water.  Evidently they also do this on grass as well to get worms to come to the surface. It is thought that the stomping simulates rain falling and the worms come to the surface to avoid drowning where they become food for the gulls. We had not seen this behavior before but found it fascinating. Local bird expert Art Martell has identified the birds as Mew Gulls.Since video quality is not that great, it is best viewed at full screen to see the gulls stomping the sand in the shallow water.
   

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