Just a few days ago, two rare Black-legged Kittiwakes, locally known as gawwi tal-Ingilterra, were observed at the Salina Nature Reserve.  

The first one was seen on the 27th January while the second one was seen just last week, on the 2nd February.

The rare bird is typically found at sea and away from land. However, during its breeding periods it is usually found along seaside cliffs.

This is mainly along the cliffs in the northern Atlantic coasts of northwest Europe, northeast America and the Pacific coasts of northwest America and northeast Asia.  

Additionally, the gull also breeds in the Siberian islands of the Arctic region, on Greenland and the Canadian coast.

The gull usually seeks cold climates which is why sightings in Malta and Gozo for the bird are quite rare.

“It is considered as a vagrant along the west coast of Africa, the south Mediterranean Sea and east to the Black and Caspian Seas”, BirdLife Malta expressed.

“In Malta its status is that of rare, with sightings of mostly single birds during the winter months (November to March), most often offshore”, they continued.

Facebook/BirdLife Malta