The death throes of spring or a temporary blip? - today's rather abject performance from the ground, the sky and the sea was disappointing although, as we near the end of the season for numbers of common migrants, not altogether surprising on another calm, clear day. The grounded passerine situation was particularly dreadful with only Wheatear returning a double-figure total (including 40 at the Bill) and most late spring migrants not represented at all, whilst the sunny sky overhead shouldn't have been so devoid of hirundines as it was; 2 Gadwalls over Ferrybridge and an unseasonable Grey Wagtail over the Bill were the only slightly out of the ordinary sightings. The sea was again comprehensively watched - maybe simply in expectation of what ought to be passing on this date - but passage proved to be painfully slow, with 119 Common Scoter, 2 Black-throated Divers and singles of Great Northern Diver and Pomarine Skua the tally from the Bill.
With any luck a lot of the typically late migrants - the likes of Sanderling, Pomarine Skua and Swift - are just running late; 3 Sanderlings was a very poor total at Ferrybridge © Pete Saunders: