A resurgence in the northwest wind was unwelcome but that and a heavy cloud cover at dawn that came and went throughout the morning did the trick in knocking down a decent little flurry of grounded migrants today. There were few surprises, with 120 Willow Warblers, 75 Blackcaps, 35 Wheatears and 20 Chiffchaffs making up the bulk of the tally at the Bill, where 5 Redstarts, 2 Grasshopper Warblers, a Cuckoo and a Whinchat provided some nice variety; elsewhere, singles of Garden Warbler and Pied Flycatcher were an addition to the mix at Sweethill. Visible passage didn't really get going until the sky cleared towards midday but Swallows featured conspicuously thereafter and a lone Siskin was amongst the tag-alongs. There almost worthwhile reports from the sea and Ferrybridge couldn't chip in with much more than 2 Shelducks and 2 Whimbrel.IN FOCUS SOUTH WEST Optics day this Sunday 21st April @PortlandBirdObs @DorsetWildlife for more info call Keith 01225 891352 @opticronuk @SwarovskiOptik @VortexOpticsUK @ZEISSBirding Hawke and more pic.twitter.com/kLyq1UBIof
— IN FOCUS SOUTH WEST (@MortimerKe93304) April 17, 2024
The Sweethill Pied Flycatcher © Debby Saunders:
