Bonxie ballet
Great Skuas are large birds. They’re the size of a gull.
They are powerful and barrel-chested. Bonxie is their local name, originally from the Norse.
They are sharp-eyed and keenly observant. I’m hoping to get photographs of them attacking other birds in the next few days. They either kill them or rob them of their fish.
They are quick to anger and fierce in defence of their nesting site. Having one head for your head is disconcerting the first time. It’s also disconcerting the second time.
They’re in Orkney to breed and then they will migrate south, probably to the Atlantic, off the north west coast of Africa for our winter.
They are also very cute when they float past.
Appearances can be deceptive.