Probable Black Kite seen today at 12:30 from the coast path by Aber Rhigian, heading west towards Cwm Yr Eglwys.
I had a brief but good view of the bird as it flew along the cliffs above me, being mobbed by Herring gulls which initially drew my attention to the bird. It was immediately of interest to me as whilst clearly a kite, it was noticeably different from a Red Kite.
The bird was very dark and uniform below, with an obvious lack of rufous breast and white 'window' in the underwing, with only a shallow forked tail.
I watched it heading west in the hope that it would come back towards me but it continued in a westerly direction. Ideally I would have liked a slightly longer view to confirm 100% but confident with it being a Black Kite.
I had hoped to post the news earlier in the hope that it might be picked up further along the coast but lack of signal and then a dead battery meant I wasn't able to.
Also seen: 10 whimbrel and 1 common sandpiper at Newport Sands.