Little gulls take a shine to Ireland

SMALL things are easily overlooked.

A little gull quartered the breakers off the limestone pavement between Malahide and Portmarnock last week. It cavorted with some of its black-headed cousins and I almost failed to notice it.

Seeing a little gull wouldn’t make a twitcher’s heart beat faster, but this is a bird you don’t see that often. Gulls, the scavengers of the bird world, are generally despised, but the little gull is special.