Exceptional day for Gulls and Waterfowl today. Sunny with light westerly winds, incoming tide. After reading Patrick Comin's report from yesterday regarding the Gull feeding bonanza off Russian Beach in Stratford yesterday, I decided to head down there in the afternoon today. On the way down, I stopped along all the usual Gull roosts along the West Haven shore. At the boat ramp, the 1st cycle ICELAND GULL continues. No sign of the Thayer's Gull that Julian found a week and a half ago (although I have been looking). I was at Russian Beach around 2:00 pm and spotted a large group of approx. 2,000 feeding Gulls and 1,000 Brant plankton feeding that stretched from Russian Beach to Stratford Point. I spent about two and a half hours watching and the birds slowly drifted west and ended up quite close off shore. Gulls continually flew in and flew out, and in the time I was there, I found 2-1st cycle ICELAND GULLS and 2 LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS (1 adult and 1-1st cycle). I also saw about 18 Bonaparte's Gulls. Their numbers fluctuated as some came in and some left. A pair of Oystercatchers flew by heading towards the point. The Gulls slowly drifted towards the sea wall and I left for half an hour to get a cup of coffee. When I returned the wind had shifted to strong and blustery easterly and all the birds had vanished. Frank Mantlik had been at the sea wall during the wind change and he went over to Long Beach. As I stood at the sea wall, approx. 750+ Brant had flown by the sea wall heading east towards Stratford point. The large group split up; some flying around the point, the others flying south towards Long Island. I drove over to Long Beach and found Frank there as well as the feeding horde of Gulls and Brant. He had relocated one of the Iceland Gulls on the jetty. After Frank left I also re-found one of the Iceland Gulls and the 1st cycle Lesser black-backed Gulls. Brant continued to fly into the area and my approx. count was 1,500-2,000 Brant. I never relocated the Thayer's Gull that Patrick Comins found last week.......although I tried hard!! :^) On the beaches and jetties were many flocks of Sanderling and Dunlin. I can only estimate their numbers to be 300+ (?). 3 Red-throated Loons were fishing close off Russian Beach and Long Beach. There was a bounty of Waterfowl mixed in with the Gulls and Brant so I started looking through the ducks. In one of the small flocks of feeding Scaup were a high percentage of Lesser Scaup. I never checked the others. I was also surprised to find tow small bunches of Shovelers ( 6 drakes, 3 drakes, and 1 drake/2 hens) mixed in with the Gulls, Scaup and Brant. As I watched the birds from my jeep (it got cold with that NE wind :^) ) small groups of Scaup started pouring in, and one group had a hen Ruddy Duck in it, I never expected that! Also 20-24 Red-breasted Mergansers, Black Ducks, a few Gadwall and 2 hen Common Goldeneyes joined the feeding frenzy off the beach. Tere were good numbers of birds there today. Migt be worth a trip down there and take advantage of this gathering of birds before they are gone which should be very soon! Keith Mueller