It's time.

The sun is in the sky. The sun hats are in your backpack. The children are calmly looking out of the window in the back of the car. For now.

It sounds like a day trip to the coast.

Will it be Bempton Cliffs? Towering chalk cliffs on the Yorkshire coast, home to over half a million sea birds over the summer. Or maybe Tetney Marshes, a patchwork of sand dunes, mudflats and salty lagoons located on the Humber Estuary. Or perhaps you're heading to the very top of the UK. Troup Head in Scotland. A cliff face spectacular home to Scotland's largest mainland Gannet colony. And porpoises, Minke whales and dolphins offshore, if we're shining a light on some of the non-bird residents.

You can check out our full list of coastal reserves here , but wherever you're heading, we hope you've got your eyes peeled and binoculars packed. Because between the coastal cliff walks and sandcastle building, we hope you find time to spot some of our beautiful coastal birds.

25 species of seabird regularly breed within the British Isles. You can learn how to recognise each type here. But before you learn to identify some of the rarer species, we'll give you a run down of some of the most common seaside visitors.

1. Herring Gull

Did you know, there's more than one type of sea gull? There's 50 species worldwide, and 6 that regularly breed in the UK. The Herring Gull is one of these. The one known for steeling your chips. They're large and noisy, found flying round rubbish tops, fields and lakes all year round. Adults have light grey backs, white under parts and black wing tips with white mirrors. They have pink legs with webbed feet, and heavy, slightly curved bills marked with a red spot. Young birds are mottled brown. Sadly, Herring Gulls are on the Red List due to ongoing population decline.

2. Guillemot

Guillemots are one of the most common types of seaside birds. They nest on coastal cliffs, especially in the North of England and Scotland. In the breeding season, they breed in large colonies. Over the winter, they're more solitary birds. They're known for their chocolate-brown plumage and white belly, and have a sharp, dagger-like beak. Fun fact? Their eggs are pointed at one end. This helps them roll in a circle, stopping them rolling off the cliff.

3. Razorbill

Razorbills are so-named because the edges of their hooked upper beaks are very sharp. This lets them catch fish well, and defend themselves against predators. On the outside, the beak is black, deep and blunt... somewhat misleading considering its razor sharp inside. These medium sized birds are black on top and white below. Their future massively depends on the health of our oceans. Fishing nets, pollution and falling fish numbers are some of their biggest threats.

4. Gannet

Gannets are some of our largest sea birds. Northern Gannets are the largest seabirds in the North Atlantic, with a wingspan of up to two metres. That's taller than most people. They are white birds with yellowish heads, black-tipped wings and long bills. They dive from heights of 3om, hitting the water at speeds of up to 60mph. Ouch. Or not. Gannets have plenty of air-sacs between their muscles and skin to help cushion this

5. Puffin

We couldn't do a summary of seabirds without mentioning the puffin. A firm favourite for many thanks to their stocky build and large orange beaks. Puffins don't get as attached to their beaks as we do though. They shed the outer part after the breeding season, leaving a smaller and duller beak. Still capable of catching plenty of fish such as sand eels, herring and capelin, though. And still recognisable all year round due to their black and white plumage, short wings and orange legs.

And there we have it!

A quick summary of our top five spectacular seabirds. All that's left for you to do is don the sunglasses, apply the suncream, and get spotting!

What's your favourite seaside bird? Comment below.