BA46 FLT CREW TAXIES WITHOUT CLRNC AT FAR.

Narrative

APPARENTLY WE TAXIED FROM THE TERMINAL RAMP TO RWY 36 AT FAR WITHOUT A TAXI CLRNC. AFTER A DELAY LEAVING THE GATE DUE TO A FUELING ERROR; ENGS WERE STARTED AND TAXI COMMENCED TO THE PRE-BRIEFED DEP RWY; RWY 36. BEFORE TKOF CHKLIST WAS CALLED FOR AND COMPLETED DURING THE INITIAL TAXI FROM THE RAMP ONTO THE TXWY LEADING TO THE RWY. MY ATTENTION TURNED TO OBSERVING FOR BIRD FLOCKS AS LARGE NUMBERS OF SEAGULLS WERE PRESENT ON THE ARPT AND HAD BEEN OBSERVED ON THE EARLIER FLT INTO FAR BY THIS CREW. I REMARKED TO THE FO THAT THE FLOCKS SEEM TO HAVE MOVED AWAY FROM THE RWY. WE CONTINUED THE TAXI S BOUND ON TXWY A AND CROSSED RWY 31 PROCEEDING TO THE DEP END OF RWY 36. NEARING THE END OF THIS TAXI; I REMARKED AGAIN TO THE FO THAT THE LARGE FLOCKS OF BIRDS SEEMED TO BE AWAY FROM THE RWY AS I LOOKED TOWARD THE RWY. NEARING THE DEP END OF RWY 36; FAR GND QUERIED US ASKING; 'ACR X ARE YOU ON FREQ?' FO REPLIED; 'AFFIRMATIVE; IS THERE A PROB?' (I WAS ANTICIPATING INFO CONCERNING A GATE HOLD IN MINNEAPOLIS OR PERHAPS A BIRD RPT.) FAR GND REPLIED; 'YOU TAXIED WITHOUT A CLRNC.' WE BOTH WERE IN DISBELIEF THINKING WE HAD BEEN CLRED TO TAXI. GND THEN ASKED US TO CHANGE TO FAR TWR CTL WHICH WE DID AND WERE SUBSEQUENTLY CLRED FOR TKOF ON RWY 36. JUST AFTER LIFTOFF WE DID ENCOUNTER A GROUP OF SEAGULLS; ONE OF WHICH STRUCK THE ACFT ON THE LOWER FORWARD FUSELAGE. ALL ENG INDICATIONS WERE NORMAL AND THIS FLT CONTINUED TO MINNEAPOLIS AND LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. THE BIRD STRIKE WAS REPORTED TO FAR TWR AND THE LOG WAS ENTERED AND LOGGED AS TO A BIRD STRIKE. MAINT WAS NOTIFIED AND AN INSPECTION WAS COMPLETED AT MSP.