Northern Holiday 2018, Post 6: Puffin Quest at RSPB Bempton Cliffs

You might well be wondering why the first bird in a post with the word 'Puffin' in the title is a ... Guillemot! Having posted a few photos of the Black Guillemot or Tystie a few days ago, it seemed only right, in the name of balance, to post an 'ordinary' Guillemot, too. Seen in this pose, there is something very 'Penguin' about these seabirds.

We were on the last lap of our holiday by this stage, and enjoying bright sunshine at RSPB Bempton Cliffs on the Yorkshire coast. There were Razorbills ...

... flapping about ...

... and long rows of Gannets and Guillemots along the chalk cliff face.

Many of the birds were with their mates, though it was the tail end of the nesting season.

Every so often a Gannet would soar past us.

Suddenly my eyes alerted on a pair of distinctive orange feet which simply had to belong to a Puffin!

There were not many Puffins to be seen, and I guess this was due to the fact that their numbers are down generally and in this part of the world; and also due to the fact that some would have reared their Pufflings by this stage and headed back out to sea. There is a fascinating RSPB post here about counting Puffins.

There may not have been many,
but the ones we saw delighted us, as they always do.

Puffins will always be the showstealers for me, but I love to see the cliffs filled with a healthy mix of seabirds. The photo below shows a Gannet surrounded by Kittiwakes.

Scarborough is not far up the coast, 

and after an excellent Italian meal on the harbourside, 

we looked up at the castle ...

and across to the sunlit cliffs ...

... as the sun set over the water.