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by
Thomas D. Hill Jr.
30 March 00
Where I live in Alberta Canada, my house is across the street from a wonderful lake that's populated with a sizable colony of Ring Billed and California Gulls that roost during the night on the beach and fly to a local landfill in the morning for breakfast. I used this colony as my practice field for learning to closely approach wild-life. Even though they're fairly tame, the gulls are just challenging enough emphasize any mistakes one may make while working close.
I've read dozens of articles stating the importance of being able to closely approach animals. Usually, they're incredibly frustrating and I've found with practice my success has increased dramatically. Approaching slowly is the rule of the day. Starting low, staying low and moving when they really aren't looking at you is the whole key.
The best thing about these gulls was they prefer to maintain their favor perches, roosting areas. Unless something approaches that demands their retreat from these favorite locations, they won't move. Unlike ducks and other water fowl in the local area, gulls won't run at the first approach of a human. So, extremely slow moves usually reward themselves. Ducks and other water fowl are nearly as productive.
| CANADA GALLERY | UNITED STATES GALLERY | WHITE SANDS NM |
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