Portland Bird Observatory and Field Centre: January 2002

January 31st Another 8 Red-throated Divers off the Bill during the morning where the only birds of note today. January 30th A very quiet day, with the only news from the Bill where 8 Red-throated Divers and 2 Common Scoter passed through on the sea. January 29th With the weather having calmed down a little, small fishing flocks of Gannets, gulls and auks gathered again off the Bill, where they attracted 2 Little Gulls and a Sooty Shearwater during the course of the morning; 22 Black-headed Gulls, 3 Red-throated Divers and 2 Common Scoter also passed through there. The only noteworthy sightings on the land were of 4 Purple Sandpipers and a Golden Plover at the Bill. January 28th A Great Skua and a Little Gull were in Chesil Cove during the morning, but there was little other sea passage of interest either there or off the Bill. Two Eider, a Black-throated Diver, a Slavonian Grebe and a Goldeneye were in Portland Harbour. January 27th The wet and windy spell continued, and the only noteworthy sightings were of 2 Little Gulls lingering all day in Chesil Cove and 7 Common Scoter off the Bill. January 26th Heavy rain and gale-force winds again made birding pretty difficult today. In the relative shelter of Chesil Cove some seawatching was possible: a Balearic Shearwater passed through in the morning, and an Iceland Gull and a Little Gull were present for a while in mid-afternoon. Watches from the Bill in the occasional clearer spells revealed a lot less birds than in recent days, and nothing of note was reported there. January 25th There were 7 Red-throated Divers, a Sooty Shearwater and a Common Scoter past the Bill during the first couple of hours of the day, but heavy rain set in by mid-morning and no more seawatching or other birding was possible. January 24th After a very stormy night, the fishing flock of Gannets, gulls and auks off the East Cliffs at the Bill had increased in size and contained 2 Sooty and a Balearic Shearwater for the first couple of hours of the day. One Sooty Shearwater reappeared offshore for a while during the afternoon, before flying off west past the Bill. Single Red-throated and Black-throated Divers also passed the Bill, and there was a lone Little Gull in Chesil Cove. The only other news from the area was of 14 Black-necked Grebes in Portland Harbour.

Sooty Shearwater - Portland Bill, January 23rd 2002 © Martin Cade

January 23rd The Sooty Shearwater remained off the East Cliffs at the Bill for most of the morning, but there were no reports of it in poorer weather during the afternoon. The sea was otherwise busy with feeding flocks of Gannets, gulls and auks, and there were also 7 Red-throated and 2 Black-throated Divers, 3 Common Scoter and a Great Skua off the Bill. January 22nd Strange events at sea again today. A Balearic Shearwater spent most of the morning with the feeding Gannets, Kittiwakes and auks off the East Cliffs at the Bill, and in the late afternoon a cursory check of the same feeding flock revealed first a Manx Shearwater and then a Sooty Shearwater joining the flock; both birds remained offshore showing well until dusk. The sea also produced 3 Red-throated Divers and 3 Common Scoter, but the land came up with nothing better than 8 Purple Sandpipers and 4 Turnstones. The only other news from the area was of 3 Black Redstarts at Weston, and a Great Northern Diver and an Eider in Portland Harbour.

Guillemots and Razorbills - Portland Bill, January 21st 2002 © Martin Cade

January 21st Although conditions did not seem at all promising there was quite an increase in sea passage off the Bill. A Balearic Shearwater - only the second mid-winter record for the island - was the highlight, but there were also more than 5000 auks, 400 Kittiwakes, 250 Gannets, 2 Common Scoter, a Red-throated Diver and a Red-breasted Merganser. The land produced just 10 Purple Sandpipers and a Lapwing. January 20th More comprehensively miserable weather today that kept most birders firmly indoors. Seawatching was hampered by reduced visibilty, but it seemed apparent there was little more on the move than slightly increased numbers of Gannets, Kittiwakes and auks. The wintering Buzzard was again the only noteworthy bird on the land. January 19th Another pretty dismal offering from the island today. Three Common Scoter passed through off the Bill, and there were 2 Purple Sandpipers and a Turnstone on the land there. The only report from elsewhere was of a Red-throated Diver off Chesil Cove. January 18th Auk numbers off the Bill increased again to more than 5000, and 6 Red-throated Divers passed through there. The wintering Buzzard was the only noteworthy bird on the land. January 17th A pretty miserable day, with rain only clearing through late in the afternoon. The only reports from the island were of the wintering Buzzard at the Bill, and 51 Linnets - the highest count of the winter - at Reap Lane. January 16th A very quiet day. Gulls were still abundant off the Bill, but auk numbers had dropped to near-normal levels. Thirteen Common Scoter and 7 Red-throated Divers were the only other birds of note offshore, and 12 Purple Sandpipers and the wintering Buzzard were the only worthwhile sightings on the land at the Bill.

Razorbills - Portland Bill, January 15th 2002 © Martin Cade January 15th Large feeding flocks of gulls and auks remained off the Bill, where they again had a Great Skua in attendance during the morning; 4 Common Scoter and 3 Red-throated Divers also passed through there. The Bill area itself produced nothing much more than 6 Purple Sandpipers, 2 Turnstones, a Golden Plover and a Lapwing. No divers could be found in Portland Harbour today, but there were 210 Red-breasted Mergansers, 15 Black-necked, 12 Great Crested, 2 Slavonian and a Red-necked Grebe, 3 Eider, 2 Little Egrets and a Goldeneye there; nearby there were 350 Brent Geese at Ferrybridge. January 14th The sea continues to provide most of the worthwhile sightings. Auk numbers remained high off the Bill, with more than 6000 counted in an hour early in the morning; also past there were 8 Common and a Velvet Scoter, 3 Red-throated Divers and 2 Black-headed Gulls, with 12 Purple Sandpipers on the rocks at the Bill itself. Counts from Portland Harbour today included 10 Black-necked Grebes, 7 Black-throated Divers and 2 Great Northern Divers. January 13th Very little to report today. Large feeding flocks of gulls and auks remained off the Bill, where there were also 3 Common Scoter, 3 unidentified divers and a Red-throated Diver; 12 Purple Sandpipers were the only birds of note on the land there. Portland Harbour produced just a few divers and grebes, including 9 Black-necked Grebes, and nearby, a Curlew was at Ferrybridge. January 12th Large numbers of gulls and auks - sample counts suggesting there were well over 5000 of the latter - were still a feature off the Bill, but the only birds of note on the sea were a Red-throated Diver and a Great Skua. The Bill area otherwise produced 9 Purple Sandpipers, 'the' Buzzard and a Chiffchaff, and elsewhere there were 9 Black-necked Grebes, 7 Black-throated and 2 Great Northern Divers, and an Eider in Portland Harbour.

January 11th The sea was busy again at the Bill, where shoaling sprats attracted large numbers of gulls and auks during the morning; 7 Red-throated Divers, 6 Common Scoter and 2 Brent Geese also passed through there. Highlights on the land were a Golden Plover and a Goldcrest at the Bill, 2 Siskins and a Goldcrest at East Weare, 3 Yellowhammers at the Grove and a Fieldfare at Easton. Elsewhere, there were 4 Black-throated and 2 Great Northern Divers in Portland Harbour. January 10th All the interest at the Bill today was on the sea, where auks were passing at around 3000 per hour in the morning, and there were also 12 Red-throated Divers, 3 Common Scoter and a Brent Goose. Elsewhere, the first visit to Pennsylvania Castle for a long time produced 3 Goldcrests, a Firecrest and a Siskin, and nearby there were 6 Redwings at Wakeham.

January 9th Very little change today. The Bill area produced 12 Purple Sandpipers, 2 Redwings, a Golden Plover, a Lapwing, and the wintering Buzzard and Water Rail, as well as 5 Red-throated Divers and a Brent Goose passing on the sea. The only other reports came from Portland Harbour where there were 11 Black-necked Grebes and a Black-throated Diver, and Easton where there was a Great Spotted Woodpecker. January 8th Once again most of what little news there was came from the Bill area, where the wintering Buzzard was still in residence, and there was also a Golden Plover, a Lapwing and a Fieldfare; auk numbers increased again offshore, but the sea otherwise produced just 2 Red-throated Divers and 2 Common Scoter. Elsewhere there were 3 Chiffchaffs at Easton. January 7th All the reports today came from the Bill area, where there were 9 Purple Sandpipers, 5 Fieldfares, 2 Redwings, a Grey Heron, a Lapwing, a Golden Plover, a Goldcrest and a Yellowhammer. Seawatching there produced a Red-throated Diver, a Great Skua and a Little Gull. January 6th Interest dwindled somewhat today in mild but rather damp and misty weather. A Chiffchaff was an unexpected new arrival at the Bill, where there were also 10 Purple Sandpipers, 2 Redwings, 'the' Buzzard, a Golden Plover, a Lapwing and a Snipe. Three Little Gulls lingered off the Bill in the morning and 2 Mute Swans passed by. Divers and grebes remained fairly conspicuous around Portland Harbour, and there were still 2 Eider there. January 5th Another surprisingly productive day that was even mild enough to tempt a Skylark into song at the Bill. The Bill area produced 17 Lapwings, 14 Purple Sandpipers, 8 Golden Plovers, 2 Turnstones, 'the' Buzzard and a Redwing, with 4 Red-throated Divers, an Eider and a Little Gull passing through on the sea. A Firecrest was found at Verne Common, a Black Redstart at Portland Castle, and Portland Harbour produced 2 Eider and a few of the usual divers and grebes, including a good count of 11 Black-necked Grebes; nearby, there were 3 Little Egrets at Ferrybridge. January 4th A peculiar selection of birds, including several island rarities, made this the most interesting day for some while. Song Thrushes increased again to 23 around the Bill area, where there were also nearly 50 Meadow Pipits (by far the highest count of the winter), 15 Lapwings, 6 Purple Sandpipers, 2 Turnstones, 2 Redwings and the wintering Buzzard. Seawatching there produced 4 Little Gulls, a Red-throated and an unidentified Diver, and a Pintail. Elsewhere, there were 2 Mute Swans and a Coot at Chesil Cove, 2 Black Redstarts at Weston, a Mediterranean Gull at Ferrybridge, and 3 Common Scoter and a selection of divers and grebes in Portland Harbour. January 3rd The strong wind continued to keep most birders indoors and most birds out of sight. The Bill area produced just 'the' Buzzard, a Golden Plover and a Redwing, as well as 6 Red-throated Divers and 3 Eider passing through on the sea. Elsewhere, a lone Pale-bellied Brent Goose was with the Brent Goose flock at Ferrybridge. January 2nd Birding anywhere on the island today was difficult in a blasting south-east wind. A few cold weather refugees, including 15 Golden Plovers, 8 Lapwings and a Snipe, were again found around the Bill area, where the wintering Buzzard and Goldcrest were also still present. Seawatching there produced nothing better than 3 Red-throated Divers, whilst the rough conditions saw to it that only a few divers and grebes, an Eider and a Mediterranean Gull could be found in Portland Harbour. January 1st There was hint of some more cold weather movement today with the arrival of 34 Golden Plovers, 3 Lapwings and a Brambling at the Bill. The wintering Buzzard remained at the Bill, and there were also several Purple Sandpipers and a Ringed Plover there. Three Red-throated Divers passed through offshore, but numbers of Kittiwakes and auks had fallen again and were back to almost normal levels for the time of year. Portland Harbour again provided a sprinkle of divers and grebes, and there were 5 Little Egrets at Ferrybridge.