December 2007

December 30th

Sorry but there'll be no updates today or tomorrow - next update on New Year's Day.

December 29th

Just seawatch news so far today: 50 Common Scoter, 7 Velvet Scoter, 3 Red-throated Divers, 2 Mediterranean Gulls and an Eider from Chesil Cove and 4 Mediterranean Gulls, a Black-throated Diver, a Mute Swan and an Eider from the Bill.

December 28th

One or two additional grebes in Portland Harbour today but otherwise more of the same as in recent days: 2 Red-throated Divers and 2 Mediterranean Gulls passing through off the Bill, 50 Common Scoter and 5 Velvet Scoter still settled off Chesil Cove and 4 Great Northern Divers, 4 Black-necked Grebes, 4 Velvet Scoter, 3 Long-tailed Ducks, 2 Slavonian Grebes and a Red-necked Grebe in Portland Harbour.

  

 

   

       today's Mute Swan and one of yesterday's Long-tailed Tits - Portland Bill, 26th/27th December 2007 © Martin Cade (Mute Swan) and Joe Cockram (Long-tailed Tit)

  December 27th

Overcast and breezy but very mild today. The Bill area produced 11 Purple Sandpipers, 3 Turnstones and a Redwing on the land and a rather incongruous-looking Mute Swan settled off East Cliffs, whilst elsewhere there were 70 Mediterranean Gulls, 2 Pale-bellied Brent Geese and one of the Black Brants at Ferrybridge and 4 Black-necked Grebes, 3 Long-tailed Ducks, 3 Velvet Scoter, 2 Great Northern Divers, a Red-throated Diver and a Slavonian Grebe in Portland Harbour.

  

   

  

       A couple of closer views of the Long-tailed Ducks from before Christmas - Portland Harbour, 23rd December 2007 © Pete Saunders

  December 26th

Boxing Day was almost as quiet as Christmas Day for birders in the field and the only reports received were of 10 Long-tailed Tits, 3 Fieldfares, a Dartford Warbler and a Brambling at the Bill and a lone Mediterranean Gull passing through on the sea there. 

The handful of moths in the Obs garden traps this morning included the first Winter Moths of the season together with singles of Dark Chestnut and Satellite.

  

   

       Christmas Day sunset - Portland Bill, 25th December 2007 © Martin Cade

  December 25th

With most people out of action due to the festivities or the lousy wet morning the only reports were from Portland Harbour where there were 4 Black-necked Grebes, 3 Velvet Scoter, 2 Great Northern Diver and a Long-tailed Duck.

  

 

   ...who's that overhead just as darkness fell? - Portland Bill, 24th December 2007

  December 24th

Very few reports for today: 3 Red-throated Divers, 3 Mediterranean Gulls and 2 Common Scoter passed through on the sea at the Bill and at least 1 of the Long-tailed Ducks was still in Portland Harbour.

A single Rusty-dot Pearl provided some immigrant interest in the Obs garden moth-traps overnight; Angle Shades and Epiphyas postvittana were the only other species trapped.

December 23rd

Considering the still and sunny conditions this morning's list was disappointingly thin. A trickle of Chaffinches, 2 Snipe and singles of Brambling, Siskin and Reed Bunting provided the only signs of late movement at the Bill where 35 Common Scoter, 3 Red-throated Divers and a Mediterranean Gull passed through on the sea. News from elsewhere included 20 Mediterranean Gulls, 7 Great Northern Divers, 4 Velvet Scoter, 3 Black-necked Grebes, 3 Long-tailed Ducks and singles of Red-throated Diver, Black-throated Diver and Tufted Duck in Portland Harbour, 69 Common Scoter and 2 Velvet Scoter still settled off Chesil Cove and a Black Redstart near the Sailing Academy.

A rare mid-winter mothing attempt produced just a single Angle Shades in the Obs garden traps.

  

   

       Long-tailed Ducks - Portland Harbour, 22nd December 2007 © Martin Cade

   ...way too distant for anything other than another 'first for the website' record shot!

  December 22nd

What a difference a day makes: the grey skies and bitter wind of the last ten days were replaced by pleasant sunshine and the lightest of mild south-westerlies. Much better coverage of the Bill area produced signs of renewed late passage along with a fair selection of the cold weather birds of recent days: 110 Linnets, 38 Song Thrushes, 20 Chaffinches, 12 Lapwings, 3 Snipe, 3 Redwings, 2 Siskins and singles of Pheasant, Jack Snipe, Dartford Warbler, Brambling, Redpoll and Reed Bunting. Seawatching at the Bill came up with 21 Common Scoter, 5 Red-throated Divers, 5 Velvet Scoter, a skua sp and a Mediterranean Gull, whilst news from elsewhere included 60 Common Scoter and 6 Velvet Scoter still settled off Chesil Cove and 5 Common Scoter, 4 Great Northern Divers, 4 Velvet Scoter, 3 Black-throated Divers and 3 Long-tailed Ducks in Portland Harbour.

Four Bottle-nosed Dolphins lingered off the Bill for much of the morning.

Late news for yesterday: 2 Short-eared Owls were at the Bill.

December 21st

A dismal bird list for today: 80 Linnets and 15 Lapwings at the Bill and just 3 Black-headed Gulls through on the sea there.

Local fishermen reported a party of 15-20 dolphins heading west off the Bill this morning.

December 20th

Less wind and more sunshine today but rather quieter on the bird front. Most of the news was from the Bill where there were 32 Song Thrushes, 3 Lapwings, a Water Rail, a Redwing and a Chiffchaff on the land and 7 Common Scoter, 4 Brent Geese, 3 Red-throated Divers and a Pomarine Skua through on the sea. The only report from elsewhere was of a Brambling at the Grove.

December 19th

Quite a bit more of the same today including further evidence of some cold weather arrivals. Birding on the land was very hard work in the strong wind but still produced 95 Linnets, 40 Song Thrushes, 30 Chaffinches, 15 Lapwings, 4 Golden Plovers, 4 Redwings, 2 Fieldfares, 2 Chiffchaffs, 2 Bramblings, a Common Buzzard, a Snipe, a Woodcock, a Short-eared Owl, a Dartford Warbler and a Reed Bunting at the Bill and 2 Black Redstarts at Weston. Sea interest was limited to 18 Common Scoter, 2 Great Northern Divers, 2 Velvet Scoter, a Red-throated Diver and a Red-breasted Merganser passing the Bill and 31 Common Scoter and 6 Velvet Scoter still settled off Chesil Cove.

  

   

       Gadwall (and Common Scoter) - Portland Bill, 18th December 2007 © Martin Cade

...an image that has absolutely no merit beyond being - we think - the first photograph of a Portland Gadwall. We quite like the idea of trying to get at least some sort of image of Portland rarities but fly-by ducks at long range on a dull as ditchwater day are almost beyond the limit of what's possible!

  December 18th

A surprise today was a little hint of cold weather movement - it's certainly chilly but we didn't think it was that cold - with 57 Lapwings and 3 Golden Plover turning up at the Bill; 72 Linnets, 4 Redwings and a Water Rail were also there and 6 Redwings, 2 Fieldfares and a Black Redstart were at Weston. As in recent days the rest of the interest was on the sea with 9 Common Scoter, 7 Gadwall, 4 Brent Geese, 4 Black-headed Gulls, 3 Red-throated Divers, 2 Pomarine Skuas, 2 Mediterranean Gulls and a Black-throated Diver logged at the Bill, 40 Common Scoter still off Chesil Cove and a Great Northern Diver and a Slavonian Grebe in Portland Harbour.

December 17th

It remained too windy to allow for any serious coverage of the land where the only reports were of 2 Black Redstart and a Redwing at Weston and a Fieldfare and a Brambling at the Bill. The sea was still worth a look with 14 Black-headed Gulls, 8 Teal, 6 Eider, 5 Red-throated Divers, 2 Shelduck and singles of Brent Goose and Pomarine Skua passing through off the Bill and 40 Common Scoter, 12 Teal and 6 Velvet Scoter settled off Chesil Cove.

December 16th

No change in the weather but far fewer birds to report. Seawatching at the Bill produced 14 Red-throated Divers, 10 Black-headed Gulls, 6 Wigeon, 5 Common Scoter and 2 Brent Geese, whilst 41 Common Scoter and 5 Velvet Scoter were still settled off Chesil Cove.

December 15th

Feeling really raw today in a stiff easterly wind with heavily overcast skies. What little legwork was put in on the land revealed just 6 Redwings, 4 Fieldfares, a Lapwing, a Short-eared Owl and a dead Barn Owl at the Bill. The sea was a little more productive with 17 Red-throated Divers, 10 Mediterranean Gulls, 3 Wigeon, 2 Mallards, 2 Teal, 2 Pomarine Skuas, a Pintail and a Red-breasted Merganser passing through off the Bill and 4 Velvet Scoters still settled off Chesil Cove.

December 14th

Another dreary and quite chilly day. New arrivals continue to trickle through with today's list for the Bill including a noticeable influx of new Blackbirds, along with 16 Song Thrushes, 10 Redwings, 2 Fieldfares and a Brambling; long-stayers weren't so easily found in the brisk south-easterly but did include singles of Snipe, Dartford Warbler, Chiffchaff and Reed Bunting. Good numbers of auks remained offshore, along with half-a-dozen Mediterranean Gulls, but the only birds on the move on the sea were 10 Common Scoter and 7 Red-throated Divers.

The brisk breeze and low temperatures have seen to it that we haven't bothered with the Obs garden moth-traps for a few nights but a single Rusty-dot Pearl was found this morning on the outside of the Obs front door.

  

   

       Merlin - Ferrybridge, 13th December 2007 © Paul Baker

  December 13th

Dull and beginning to feel quite chilly in a brisk south-easterly today. At the Bill odds and ends on the land included 2 Short-eared Owls, 2 Dartford Warblers, 3 Chiffchaffs (including the Siberian Chiffchaff), 2 Bramblings, 2 Reed Buntings and singles of Water Rail, Common Buzzard, Snipe, Redwing and Fieldfare, whilst seawatching there produced 19 Red-throated Divers, 9 Mediterranean Gulls, 8 Eider, 3 Velvet Scoters, 2 Pomarine Skuas and auks passing by at around 1000/hour. Elsewhere there were 5 Great Northern Divers, 4 Velvet Scoter and singles of Red-throated Diver, Black-throated Diver and Slavonian Grebe in Portland Harbour, 10 Mediterranean Gulls and a Merlin at Ferrybridge and 5 Velvet Scoter off Chesil Cove.

December 12th

Breezier, more cloud in the sky and fewer birds on the move than yesterday. All of the early coverage was of the Bill area which turned up totals of 50 Chaffinches, 11 Song Thrushes, 6 Redwings, 4 Chiffchaffs (including the long-staying Siberian Chiffchaff), 4 Brambling, 2 Purple Sandpipers, 2 Short-eared Owls, a Redpoll, a Siskin and a Lapland Bunting on the ground or overhead and 34 Common Scoter, 8 Red-throated Divers, 5 Mediterranean Gulls, 2 Brent Geese, a Great Northern Diver and a Pomarine Skua passing through or lingering offshore. The only later reports came from Portland Harbour where there were 4 Velvet Scoters and 3 Black-throated Divers.

A single Bottle-nosed Dolphin passed through off the Bill during the morning.

December 11th

Calm and feeling almost mild after an overnight frost had disappeared. There was decent coverage of a lot of the island and another pretty reasonable list of sightings to show for the effort. Late migrants were again on the move with the Bill area returning totals of 300 Starlings, 65 Chaffinches, 40 Song Thrushes, 36 Bramblings, 14 Reed Buntings, 9 Redwings, 5 Redpolls, 4 Siskins, 3 Lapwings and 3 Fieldfares passing overhead; long-stayers on the ground included 6 Purple Sandpipers, 3 Chiffchaffs, 2 Common Buzzards, 2 Short-eared Owls, a Pheasant and the Siberian Chiffchaff, whilst seawatching there came up with 24 Red-throated Divers, 23 Common Scoter, 12 Brent Geese and a Great Northern Diver. News from elsewhere included 2 Black Redstart at East Weare, three single Chiffchaffs scattered around the centre of the island, 10 Mediterranean Gulls, 4 each of Red-throated Diver and Velvet Scoter and singles of Black-throated and Great Northern Divers in Portland Harbour, 4 Velvet Scoter still settled off Chesil Cove and 8 Mallard, a Pochard and a Spotted Redshank at Ferrybridge.

  

   

 

 

 

 

 

     Short-eared Owls and Spoonbills - Portland Bill and Ferrybridge, 10th December 2007 © Martin Cade (all except Spoonbills overhead) and Pete Saunders (Spoonbills overhead)

  December 10th

The return of something approaching decent weather resulted in a veritable sightings bonanza today. A couple of Spoonbills that spent much of the morning at Ferrybridge were the highlight and a fly-over Serin at the Obs provided some quality back up. Clear skies enabled a few late thrushes and finches to get moving, with 80 Goldfinches, 70 Chaffinches, 35 Linnets and a Brambling passing overhead at the Bill during the first couple of hours of the day and a Fieldfare and a Siskin noted at Weston at the same time; winterers at the Bill included 3 Short-eared Owls, a Common Buzzard, a Purple Sandpiper and a Chiffchaff, whilst seawatching there produced 3 Red-throated Divers and a Mediterranean Gull. News from elsewhere included 4 Velvet Scoter, 3 Black-throated Divers, 2 Red-throated Divers, a Great Northern Diver and a Slavonian Grebe in Portland Harbour and 4 Mediterranean Gulls, 2 Pale-bellied Brent Geese and 2 Knot at Ferrybridge.

Finally a reminder that there is an Focus field event at the Obs tomorrow, Tuesday 11th December, between 10am and 4pm.

  

   

     Great Northern Diver - Portland Harbour, 9th December 2007 © Kevin Lane

  December 9th

Yet another stormy day. Most of what little passed through on the sea was logged at the Bill where the morning's tally included 36 Fulmars, 22 Common Scoter, 2 Velvet Scoter and singles of Balearic Shearwater and Pomarine Skua; 3 Velvet Scoter were still settled off Chesil Cove but the only other report from there was of a distant skua sp. Elsewhere there were 2 Pale-bellied Brents at Ferrybridge and 3 Great Northern Divers, 2 Velvet Scoter, 2 Mediterranean Gulls and singles of Red-throated and Black-throated Divers in Portland Harbour.

December 8th

Plenty more grim weather today: heavy rain throughout the morning giving way to showers during the afternoon and constantly very windy. Seawatching at the Bill produced just 50 Fulmars, 7 Common Scoter and 2 Velvet Scoter, whilst the only reports from the land were of 2 Short-eared Owls, a Common Buzzard and the Siberian Chiffchaff still at the Bill.

Finally, of interest to book collectors the PBO Natural History Bookshop has recently acquired a number of important antiquarian titles; check out our bookshop pages for further details.

December 7th

A stiff west/north-west wind was a constant feature of a day that was otherwise a mixture of sunshine and some very heavy showers. Three Chiffchaffs, a Short-eared Owl, a Redwing, a Dartford Warbler and the Siberian Chiffchaff lingered on at the Bill, where seawatching produced 2 Velvet Scoter, a Great Northern Diver and another single Balearic Shearwater; elsewhere 30 Common Scoter and 3 Velvet Scoter were still settled off Chesil Cove.

Late news for yesterday: a Pomarine Skua was an addition to the seawatch list for the Bill; also a Black Redstart was near Portland Castle.

December 6th

Wet and windy again today. Despite quite a bit of seawatching a lone Balearic Shearwater that passed through during the afternoon was the only sighting of any note at the Bill.

December 5th

A return of rough weather saw most of the interest on the sea with 10 Common Scoter, 2 Pomarine Skuas, a Great Northern Diver and a Balearic Shearwater passing through off the Bill, a Little Gull lingering in Chesil Cove and 30 Common Scoter and 3 Velvet Scoter still settled off the Cove. The only news from the land was of a Short-eared Owl and a Chiffchaff still at the Bill.

In mild but much too windy conditions overnight the only immigrant attracted to the Obs garden moth-traps was a single Rusty-dot Pearl.

December 4th

Dreary but mild and not quite as windy as the last few days. The only reports were from the Bill where 4 Pomarine Skuas and a late Balearic Shearwater passed through on the sea during a busy half-hour in the afternoon; seawatching earlier and later in the day was uneventful with just 2 Red-throated Divers through during the morning. The land produced 42 Linnets, 7 Redwings, 3 Chiffchaffs (including the Siberian Chiffchaff), a Water Rail, a Short-eared Owl and a Fieldfare.

Overnight moth-trapping at the Obs produced 4 Rusty-dot Pearl and a single White-speck.

Late news for yesterday: 2 Black Redstarts were additions to the day's list at the Bill.

  

    

    

   

   

   

      one of yesterday's Pomarine Skuas - Ferrybridge, 2nd December 2007 © Pete Saunders

...in the field this individual seemed like a straightforward enough juvenile Pom Skua but close examination of the photographs reveals a few unexpected features including, for instance, the exceptionally long central tail feathers (although they're clearly broad and blunt-ended as would be expected on a Pom), the rather conspicuous pale nape and the lack of contrast between the underwing and body.

  December 3rd

Still breezy today but clear enough that there was a minor flurry of late migrants. Chaffinch was the only species in numbers, with more than 100 trickling north at the Bill; 2 Fieldfares and singles of Short-eared Owl, Redwing, Brambling, Redpoll and Reed Bunting were also logged there along with winterers that included 5 Purple Sandpipers, 3 Turnstones and 2 Common Buzzards. Singles of Red-throated Diver, Great Northern Diver and Mediterranean Gull passed through on the sea at the Bill and odds and ends elsewhere included 3 Goldcrests and a Redwing at Easton, a Black Redstart at Weston and 2 Mediterranean Gulls at Ferrybridge.

December 2nd

Wild weather today but, with the exception of a handful of skuas and a single unidentified petrel, no sign of the hoped-for wreck of seabirds. Watches at the Bill produced 110 Kittiwakes, a Black-throated Diver, a subliminal glimpse of a petrel sp and a Pomarine Skua, whilst elsewhere there were singles of Great Skua and Pomarine Skua at Ferrybridge and Arctic Skua and Great Skua at Chesil Cove; 20 Common and 3 Velvet Scoter were also still settled off Chesil Cove. The shelter of Portland Harbour produced 4 Velvet Scoter, 2 Black-throated Divers, a Great Northern Diver and a Slavonian Grebe, whilst the only reports from the land were of 8 Purple Sandpipers at the Bill and a Black Redstart at Chesil Cove.

December 1st

Very little to report so far today in blustery westerlies. Seawatching produced nothing of any interest actually on the move although 40 Common and 3 Velvet Scoter were settled off Chesil Cove; another 2 Common Scoter were settled in Portland Harbour. The only report from the land was a Black Redstart at the Bill.