14th September

The grounded migrant famine continued but a fresh easterly saw to it that there was some compensation in the form of a steady passage of visible migrants today. The highlight was a Honey Buzzard over the Bill that looked intent on departing before having abrupt second thoughts and heading back towards the mainland. A good push of Swallows over the Bill totalled a minimum of 3000 through the morning, with 500 Meadow Pipits and smaller totals of a good selection of other hirundines, pipits, wagtail and finches also logged; the first few moving Skylarks of the season and singles of Merlin and Sparrowhawk were the best of the oddities tagging along. It really was pitifully quiet on the ground with 7 White Wagtails at the Bill and another 4 at Ferrybridge, a Grasshopper Warbler at Southwell and singles of Little Stint and Curlew Sandpiper at Ferrybridge providing the only interest amongst some seriously low totals of what ought at this juncture to be numerous 'common' migrants. Sea interest came in the form of 27 Balearic Shearwaters through off the Bill. Late news was also received of a juvenile Rosy Starling seen near the Obs at midday yesterday.

Another pulse of Large White butterfly immigration included a sample count of 79 in 10 minutes moving north up the West Cliffs at the Bill.


Today's Honey Buzzard was no easier to get to grips with than any of the others this year - it appeared from the north over Top Fields but chickened out of making a Channel crossing and hightailed it back towards the mainland © Martin Cade:


It seems like it's a pretty good autumn for Curlew Sandpipers around the country but, thus far at least, this area hasn't been favoured and today's brief visitor to Ferrybridge was only the third that's dropped in there this season © Pete Saunders



Yesterday's Rosy Starling looked to be a very obliging bird but, sadly, it couldn't be found today © Matt Minnis: