Stonefaction
Dundee Birding....(target 150 in 2024).
Way back before I got (back) into birding I photographed a Guillemot on the river Tay in Dundee, Scotland on 28 December 2005. Having posted a photo of the bird on flickr, a few years later I was approached by someone asking to use the photo in an article for Dutch Birding (no idea if the article ever came to fruition or not) as the facial markings were apparently more reminiscent of Brunnich's Guillemot in winter plumage, and the author wanted to show how Brunnich's-like Common Guillemot could look. The bill length and apparent dark streaks on the flanks are certainly indicative of Common though I did then wonder about the possibility of hybrids - I'd never heard of Brunnich's Guillemot in 2005, and couldn't find any indication of hybrids when I searched but thought that it was an interesting looking bird. Given the current discussion on the Fife Brunnich's and the suggestion by some of hybridisation, I thought I'd post these photos, (which I thought I'd lost bar the 1 on flickr), for discussion.