21st June

Yesterday's Common Rosefinch remained overnight at Southwell to provide a nice mid-summer highlight: after announcing its presence with strident song for a while at dawn it became a good deal more furtive as the day went on and was never visible other in private gardens. Also in the finch line, a Siskin was an odd summer turn up at the Bill, but the day had few other surprises, with another new Chiffchaff at the Bill, 70 Swifts and 3 Sand Martins through overhead there and 18 Common Scoter, 8 Mediterranean Gulls, 5 Black-headed Gulls and 3 Manx Shearwaters through/lingering offshore.

Despite the continuing high temperatures immigrant moth activity remained quite subdued, with 29 Diamond-back Moth, 11 Silver Y, 3 Rusty-dot Pearl, 2 Rush Veneer and an Olive-tree Pearl making up the totals at the Obs.

Although the rosefinch showed well at times - usually when it visited feeders - it quickly sung much more fitfully after its noisy start and we weren't able to get a sound recording of it © Debby Saunders (stills) and Martin Cade (video):

It'll be interesting to see if this unseasonable Siskin wandering out as far as the Bill proves to the vanguard of a strong autumn passage - are they on the move elsewhere yet? © Martin Cade: