October 2009

   

   

Wheatear - Portland Bill, 31st October 2009 © Chris Stone

  31st October

Overnight showers dropped a few more late migrants today, with the Bill area producing 30 Redwings, 25 Stonechats, 25 Chiffchaffs, 11 Black Redstarts, 10 Long-tailed Tits, 8 Swallows, 4 Snipe, 3 Lapwings, 3 Firecrests, 3 Bramblings, 3 Reed Buntings, 2 Cetti's Warblers, a Golden Plover, a Jack Snipe, a Short-eared Owl, a Woodlark, a Wheatear, a Siskin and a Redpoll; elsewhere there was a Yellow-browed Warbler and 3 Black Redstarts at Southwell and 950 Brent Geese and a Black Brant at Ferrybridge. The only worthwhile reports from the sea was of a Great Northern Diver and an Arctic Skua passing the Bill.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 46 Rusty-dot Pearl, 46 Rush Veneer, 43 Silver Y, 5 Dark Sword Grass, 2 Diamond-back Moth, a Palpita vitrealis, a Vestal, a Delicate and a Western Conifer Seed Bug.

...finally, a reminder that the next In Focus field event at the Obs takes place between 10am and 4pm next Tuesday, 3rd November. 

 

30th October

With the wind in the east there was some hope of new arrivals showing up but in the event it remained very quiet around the island. Coverage of the Bill area produced 10 Chiffchaffs, 10 Siskins, 4 Black Redstarts, 3 Merlins, 3 Firecrests, 3 Redpolls, 2 Reed Buntings, a Swallow and a Ring Ouzel, whilst elsewhere there were 2 more Black Redstarts at Tout Quarry.

In clear and quite windy conditions overnight far fewer immigrant moths were attracted to the Obs garden traps: 21 Rusty-dot Pearl, 20 Rush Veneer, 9 Silver Y, 2 White-speck, a Dark Sword Grass, a Delicate and a Scarce Bordered Straw.

29th October

In the continuing very mild weather it was much quieter everywhere today with far fewer common migrants grounded or on the move overhead. The Cetti's Warbler and 'eastern' Lesser Whitethroat were both still at the Bill (where second individuals of both species were also reported at other locations), from where at least 20 Siskins, 10 Black Redstarts, 6 Reed Buntings, 5 Grey Partridges, 5 Bramblings, 3 Firecrests, a Woodcock, a Mistle Thrush and a Ring Ouzel also made the list. Extensive coverage of other areas revealed very little beyond a couple of additional Black Redstarts at Verne Common.

The seemingly promising-looking conditions have resulted in a welcome increase in immigrant moths, with totals from the Obs garden traps this morning that included 92 Rusty-dot Pearl, 86 Rush Veneer, 11 Silver Y, 4 White-speck, 3 Gem, 3 Dark Sword Grass, 2 Diamond-back Moth, 2 Vestal, a Delicate, a Scarce Bordered Straw and 2 Western Conifer Seed Bug; out of season species caught included Eudonia lineola, Least Carpet and Dark Arches.

   

   

  

  

'eastern' Lesser Whitethroat and Red Sword-grass - Portland Bill, 28th October 2009 © Martin Cade

  28th October

With a shower of rain before dawn and cloud lingering throughout the day there were quite a few more migrants about the island today. The only real oddity to show up was another 'eastern' Lesser Whitethroat that was trapped and ringed at the Obs, whilst counts of more routine fare from the Bill area included 500 Goldfinches, 500 Linnets, 150 Fieldfares, 100 Redwings, 50 Song Thrushes, 30 Robins, 20 Chiffchaffs, 20 Siskins, 20 Reed Buntings, 10 Swallows, 7 Black Redstarts, 5 Blackcaps, 3 Firecrests, 3 Bramblings, 2 Ring Ouzel, a Merlin, a late Yellow Wagtail, a Cetti's Warbler and a late Willow Warbler. Offshore, 10 or more Mediterranean Gulls were lingering off the Bill where a lone Great Skua also passed through.

Immigrants/wanderers in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 35 Rusty-dot Pearl, 13 Silver Y, 14 Rush Veneer, 3 White-speck and singles of Pearly Underwing, Red Sword-grass (only the second 'modern' record for Portland), a Scarce Bordered Straw and a Western Conifer Seed Bug; out of season moths caught included singles of Heart and Dart and Dark Arches.

   

  

Ring Ouzel - Portland Bill, 27th October 2009 © Paul Hodges

  27th October

The most interesting report of the day concerned a likely Red-throated Pipit that was heard calling briefly over Southwell early in the morning. After a rather murky night when thrushes were passing overhead in some quantity there were hopes for a bit of an arrival of new migrants but in the event it remained fairly quiet everywhere with visible passage in particular dropping right off. The pick of the day's sightings at the Bill included 7 Black Redstarts, 5 Siskins, 3 Ring Ouzels, 2 Firecrests, 2 Reed Buntings, a Merlin, a Wheatear, a Goldcrest and a Brambling; elsewhere the Yellow-browed Warbler was still at Avalanche Road.

Immigrants/wanderers in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 28 Rusty-dot Pearl, 12 Silver Y, 10 Rush Veneer, 3 White-speck, an Autumnal Rustic, a Dark Sword Grass and a Delicate.

   

  

Wood Pigeons - Portland Bill, 26th October 2009 © Martin Cade

  26th October

Passage overhead dominated again today but as on many recent days an awful lot of movement at the Bill took place well out over the sea and certainly well beyond anything other than speculative identification; what counts were made there included 220 Goldfinches, 180 Chaffinches, 159 Wood Pigeons, 130 Linnets, 70 alba wagtails, 65 Greenfinches, 45 Meadow Pipits, 3 Reed Buntings, 2 Bramblings, a Lapwing and a Grey Wagtail heading south. New arrivals on the ground were not at all conspicuous, with the best of the bunch at the Bill being 5 Black Redstarts, 4 Firecrests, a Merlin, a Turtle Dove, a Wheatear and a Whinchat; elsewhere 2 Firecrests and the Yellow-browed Warbler remained at Avalanche Road, 2 more Firecrests were at Easton and a Black Redstart was at Reap Lane.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 6 Silver Y and singles of Rusty-dot Pearl, Rush Veneer and Pearly Underwing.

   

  

  

Grey Phalarope - Portland Bill, 25th October 2009 © Martin Cade

  25th October

After several days of proving to be remarkably elusive the Grey Phalarope at the Bill finally given itself up and showed quite well for a while during the afternoon off the East Cliffs; the Cetti's Warbler was also still at the Bill and the Yellow-browed Warbler remained at Avalanche Road. Among the commoner migrants there were still quite a few Firecrests around (including at least 5 at the Bill and 2 at Avalanche Road) and Goldfinches were particularly conspicuous amongst the birds on the move overhead; other sundries filling out the day's list included singles of Golden Plover, Grey Partridge, Turtle Dove, Wheatear and Redpoll on the land at the Bill and 2 Great Skuas passing through on the sea there.

Singles of Rusty-dot Pearl, Rush Veneer and Silver Y were the only immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning. 

24th October

With the morning a complete wash-out and the afternoon very windy there was a distinct shortage of news today. The Bill area came up with 5 Firecrests, a Turtle Dove, a Black Redstart and a Cetti's Warbler on the land and 2 Mediterranean Gulls and a Great Skua through on the sea, another Firecrest was at Pennsylvania Castle and 2 Pale-bellied Brent Geese were at Ferrybridge. 

Immigrants numbers picked up a little in the Obs garden moth-traps: 9 Rusty-dot Pearl, 7 Silver Y, 5 Rush Veneer, 2 Delicate and 1 White-speck.

   

   

  

  

  Yellow-browed Warbler, Cetti's Warbler and Reed Bunting - Avalanche Road and Portland Bill, 23rd October 2009 © Nick Hopper (Yellow-browed Warbler) and Martin Cade (Cetti's Warbler and Reed Bunting)

  23rd October

A surprisingly varied bird list today in much quieter weather conditions. The pick of the oddities were 8 Firecrests, 6 Grey Partridges, 4 Woodlarks, 3 Ring Ouzels, 2 Black Redstarts, a Grey Phalarope, a Kingfisher, a Turtle Dove and a Cetti's Warbler at the Bill, 2 Firecrests and the Yellow-browed Warbler at Avalanche Road (and a Goosander reported flying overhead there), a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Firecrest at Pennsylvania Castle, a Black Redstart at the Grove and 5 Pale-bellied Brent Geese at Ferrybridge, whilst late commoner migrants included singles of Whinchat and Wheatear at the Bill and Common Redstart at the Grove. Routine passage was dominated by birds on the move overhead: all the usual suspects were represented but with a lot of movement taking place quite distantly over the sea lots of birds went unidentified; it was quieter on the ground, with only small numbers of the likes of Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs dotted about.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 5 Rush Veneer and singles of Rusty-dot Pearl, Dark Sword Grass, Delicate and Silver Y.

   

  

Yellow-browed Warbler - Avalanche Road, 22nd October 2009 © Martin Cade

  22nd October

No great change in the weather or the birding today. The Yellow-browed Warbler remained at Avalanche Road, where there were also 6 Chiffchaffs, 3 Blackcaps, 2 Firecrests and a Redwing; another 5 Firecrests, along with 36 Redwings, 5 Chiffchaffs, 2 Blackcaps, 2 Bramblings, a Turtle Dove, a Grey Wagtail and a Black Redstart, were at the Bill, a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Firecrest were at Pennsylvania Castle and another Firecrest was at Old Hill. The pick of the reports from the sea related to a presumed Grey Phalarope seen briefly off East Cliffs at the Bill; 2 Mediterranean Gulls and a Balearic Shearwater also passed through off the Bill.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 3 Silver Y, 2 Rusty-dot Pearl, 2 Rush Veneer and a White-speck.

21st October

The stiff southerly wind remained firmly in place but in sunnier conditions than yesterday there was better coverage of the land. The best of a limited array at the Bill were 12 Siskins, 5 Redwings, 2 Firecrests, a Merlin, one of the long-staying Turtle Doves and a late Whinchat; elsewhere a (?the) Yellow-browed Warbler and a Black Redstart were at Avalanche Road and singles of Great Spotted Woodpecker and Firecrest were at Pennsylvania Castle. The sea was as dismal as yesterday, with just 2 Mediterranean Gulls and a lone Common Scoter passing through off the Bill.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 11 Silver Y, 7 Rusty-dot Pearl, 2 Rush Veneer and a White-speck.

20th October

Dismal today, with the much-vaunted 'big seawatch' at the Bill (how many times have the seawatchers told us that?!) returning just singles of Mediterranean Gull and Sandwich Tern; in truth the conditions did look really quite good with a strong south/south-east wind and what rain there was holding off until late in the morning but just at the moment there can't be much about in our part of the Channel. The land seemed hardly worth bothering with in the strong wind and those that did make the effort found virtually nothing in the way of new arrivals.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 3 Silver Y, 2 Rush Veneer, a Rusty-dot Pearl and a Pearly Underwing.

   

  

Hummingbird Hawk-moth, Flame Brocade and Silver-striped Hawk-moth - Portland Bill, 19th October 2009 © Martin Cade

  19th October

In the absence of any startling developments on the bird front the Obs garden moth-traps saved the day with an overnight catch that included by way of immigrants 8 Rusty-dot Pearl, 6 Silver Y, 5 Rush Veneer, 3 Pearly Underwing, 3 Dark Sword Grass and singles of Silver-striped Hawk-moth, Hummingbird Hawk-moth and Flame Brocade. In an increasingly strong southerly wind bird interest was restricted to 4 Black Redstarts, 2 Grey Wagtails, 2 Siskins, a Merlin, a Snipe, a Dunlin, a Turtle Dove and a Woodlark grounded/overhead at the Bill, 2 Reed Buntings and a Golden Plover at Reap Lane, 536 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, a Black Brant, a Pale-bellied Brent Goose and 130 Mediterranean Gulls at Ferrybridge and 20 Mediterranean Gulls, 13 Common Scoter, a Sooty Shearwater and a Little Gull through on the sea at the Bill.

18th October

Fairly uneventful again today with little more than a thin scatter of standard fare for the season. Plenty of weekend coverage of the Bill area produced 9 Redpolls, 9 Reed Buntings, 6 Grey Wagtails, 4 Siskins, 2 Merlins, 2 Turnstones, 2 Black Redstarts, 2 Ring Ouzels, a Ringed Plover, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, a Yellow Wagtail and a Fieldfare amongst relatively small numbers of Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs and commoner thrushes and finches; elsewhere there were 3 Ring Ouzels at Penn's Weare and 86 Brent Geese and 27 Mediterranean Gulls at Ferrybridge. Odds and ends passing by on the sea at the Bill included 23 Mediterranean Gulls, 2 Goldeneye, a Manx Shearwater and a Red-breasted Merganser

Finally, there was a slightly peculiar event at dawn at the Obs when one of the settled Redwings gave quite a few bursts of half-hearted song; click here to have a listen to a few song phrases in the background of a typical Portland autumn chorus of Robin, Carrion Crow and Wren. We can't remember having heard an autumn Redwing singing before - in fact it's even unusual to hear spring migrants in song at Portland - and at times it compared quite favourably with 'proper' Redwing song (click here to listen to a presumed territorial male we recorded back in June in Finland).

17th October

In clear, chilly conditions most news was of birds on the move overhead, with 200 Starlings, 100 Chaffinches, 50 Redwings, 6 Siskins, 5 Redpolls, 4 Bramblings, 3 Golden Plovers, 3 Fieldfares, 2 Reed Buntings, a Lapwing, a Short-eared Owl, a Crossbill and a Lapland Bunting among the migrants overhead at the Bill. It was much quieter on the ground, with a Ring Ouzel at Reap Lane, the Yellow-browed Warbler still at Avalanche Road and 2 Ring Ouzels, 2 Wheatears, a Merlin, a Snipe, a Turtle Dove and a Firecrest at the Bill being the only sightings of any real note. Five Mediterranean Gulls, 3 Brent Geese and a Great Northern Diver were the only birds of note passing through on the sea at the Bill.

   

         

Dark Arches and Garden Tiger: an unexpected duo in mid-October - Portland Bill, 16th October 2009 © Martin Cade

  16th October

There was a promising start to the day, with thrushes swirling around in some numbers under the heavily overcast sky, but interest quickly fizzled out and there was little reported that was at all unexpected. By way of oddities, the Yellow-browed Warbler remained at Avalanche Road, at least 5 Black Redstarts, 2 Ring Ouzels and a Firecrest were around the Bill/Southwell area, the 2 long-staying Turtle Doves were still at the Bill, an Eider was settled off East Cliffs and a small grebe (thought to be a Slavonian Grebe) passed though on the sea at the Bill. 

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 20 Rusty-dot Pearl, 14 Rush Veneer, 8 Silver Y and a Dark Sword Grass; also singles of Garden Tiger and Dark Arches were unexpected for the time of year.

   

         

  

  

Yellow-browed Warbler, Grey Wagtail and Convolvulus Hawk-moth caterpillar - Avalanche Road and Portland Bill, 15th October 2009 © Martin Cade

  15th October

Thoroughly overcast and dreary today with perhaps not as many migrants about as might have been hoped given the light easterly breeze. The best of the oddities were a Ring Ouzel and a Yellow-browed Warbler at Avalanche Road, a Black Redstart at Reap Lane, a Great Spotted Woodpecker at Pennsylvania Castle, 2 Ring Ouzels at Coombefield Quarry and 4 Black Redstarts, 2 Turtle Doves, 2 Ring Ouzels, 2 Firecrests and a Bearded Tit at the Bill. Redwings, of which there were more than 100 scattered around the south of the island, were the only one of the commoner migrants that were at all conspicuous; other more routine fare at the Bill included 25 Blackbirds, 10 Stonechats, 10 Chiffchaffs, 5 Reed Buntings, 3 Turnstones, 2 Grey Wagtails, 2 Blackcaps, 2 Goldcrests, a Golden Plover, a Purple Sandpiper, a Yellow Wagtail and a Whitethroat. Seawatching at the Bill produced 81 Common Scoter, 13 Brent Geese, 10 Mediterranean Gulls, 2 Little Gulls and singles of Wigeon and Red-breasted Merganser.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 15 Rusty-dot Pearl, 4 Rush Veneer, 2 Diamond-back Moth and 2 Silver Y; also a Convolvulus Hawk-moth caterpillar - seemingly full-grown and wandering around looking for somewhere to pupate - was found in one of the Coastguard Cottage gardens at the Bill.

   

  

Barred Sallow - Portland Bill, 14th October 2009 © Martin Cade

  14th October

Promising-looking overcast, still conditions delivered a better scatter of migrants today, with thrushes in particular being much more conspicuous than of late (although Goldcrests - which numbered just 2 at the Bill - remain virtually absent). The Yellow-browed Warbler remained at Culverwell and the pick of the rest of the oddities included 2 Ring Ouzels at Verne Common, at least 1 Bearded Tit heard calling over Bumpers Lane, a Firecrest at Wakeham and 2 Turtle Doves, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, a Firecrest and the first Brambling of the autumn at the Bill. Commoner migrants included fair numbers of Redwings everywhere (including 200 at Verne Common and 50 at the Bill), and 50 Siskins, 30 Chiffchaffs, 20 Song Thrushes, 10 Blackcaps, 10 Reed Buntings, 5 Redpolls, 3 Grey Wagtails, 2 Lapwings, a Golden Plover and a late Whitethroat at the Bill (where there were also some signs of the first proper passage of Wood Pigeons, Stock Doves and Jackdaws). Odds and ends passing on the sea at the Bill included 14 Wigeon, 2 Red-throated Divers, a Great Northern Diver and a Teal.

Immigrants/wanderers in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 12 Rusty-dot Pearl, 5 Rush Veneer, a Diamond-back Moth and a Barred Sallow (the latter only the second record for Portland).

   

  

Yellow-browed Warbler - Portland Bill, 13th October 2009 © Martin Cade

...it was a very poor performer - or maybe we were just being inept with the camera - but examination of the photographs did reveal that it was ringed:

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With a fairly vivid imagination you can just about imagine that an enlargement of another slightly sharper photograph of the ring shows one of the characters in the ring sequence being the letter D. If that is the case (and we're not at all sure it is!) then there must be a more than evens chance that this is the individual ringed in the Crown Estate crop field last Saturday (the ring sequence we're using at the moment begins DBD). Also, click here to listen to a short recording of the bird calling.

  13th October

With the weather still being much too fair to have expected any sort of arrival of grounded migrants it was left to a few less common migrants to provide what interest there was today. The Bill area came up with a Yellow-browed Warbler (at Culverwell), 30 Siskins, 9 Reed Buntings, 4 Grey Wagtails, 2 Merlins, 2 Turtle Doves (still the same 2 long-staying individuals), 2 Redwings, 2 Firecrests and a Snipe; another Snipe and a Golden Plover were at Reap Lane. Seawatching at the Bill produced 16 Common Scoter, 2 Wigeon and a Red-breasted Merganser.

   

  

  

  

Bearded Tits - Portland Bill, 12th October 2009 © Martin Cade

...and click here to listen to a short recording of these birds calling.

  12th October

Nothing much in quantity today but the list of less common migrants included 10 Long-tailed Tits, 8 Siskins, 5 Redpolls, 5 Reed Buntings, 3 Bearded Tits, 2 Turtle Doves, 2 Firecrests, a Merlin, a Woodlark, a Mistle Thrush and a Redwing at the Bill and another 5 Bearded Tits over Reap Lane. Four Brent Geese, 2 Red-throated Divers and a Little Egret passed through on the sea at the Bill.

   

  

   Little Gull - Portland Harbour, 11th October 2009 © Dave and Lynn Kinsey

  11th October

In a surprisingly stiff westerly and generally overcast skies common migrant numbers took another dip although there were still a few minor oddities dotted about the island: the Yellow-browed Warbler remained at Southwell School, the 2 long-staying Turtle Doves were still at the Bill, single Ring Ouzels were at Wakeham and Verne Common, singles of Merlin and Woodlark were at Barleycrates Lane, several Firecrests lingered on in some of the sheltered spots, a Little Gull was in Portland Harbour and 26 Balearic Shearwaters, 8 Wigeon and a Great Skua passed through off the Bill.

There was a welcome increase in numbers of the commoner immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 136 Rush Veneer, 13 Rusty-dot Pearl, 10 Diamond-back Moth, 4 Pearly Underwing, 3 Silver Y and 2 Dark Sword Grass.

   

  

  

  

more Yellow-browed Warblers and Brimstone - Portland Bill and Southwell School, 10th October 2009 © Martin Cade (Yellow-browed Warblers) and Paul Baker (Brimstone)

  10th October

Two more Yellow-browed Warblers - one at Southwell School and the other trapped and ringed at the Obs - were the pick of day's sightings. In nice mild and sunny conditions there was plenty of fieldwork put in but overall there were fewer commoner migrants in evidence than might have been hoped. The Bill area got most of the coverage and came up with 5 Firecrests, 5 Siskins, 2 Turtle Doves, 2 Tree Pipits, 2 Reed Buntings, a Merlin, a Barn Owl, a Black Redstart and a Grasshopper Warbler amongst the more routine species; further singles of Black Redstart and Firecrest were at Southwell. The only faintly interesting report from the sea was of a single Great Crested Grebe passing through off the Bill.

Clouded Yellows have been recorded frequently in recent days, with at least 10 at the Bill today. A Brimstone (we can't remember any others having been seen this year) was also a noteworthy sighting in Top Fields today.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning:15 Rush Veneer, 5 Rusty-dot Pearl, 3 Silver Y, 1 Diamond-back Moth and 1 Delicate.

Finally, we're instigating a small change in the way we report on rarities and other records of local interest/importance. In future the PBO website and annual report will no longer include records of this nature that lack the support of video, photo or sound recording evidence that is published either here or elsewhere on the web. Although the vast majority of important records are now supported by this level of documentation we are still occasionally put in the invidious position of having to decide whether to include records that lack any tangible support. We'll continue to mention such records as 'reported' but avoid the grief that goes with making a final decision by leaving that up to someone else!

   

  

  

Yellow-browed Warbler - Portland Bill, 9th October 2009 © Martin Cade

  9th October

Considering the unpromising start - with little in evidence on land or sea - the day's final tally wasn't too bad with the pick of the new arrivals being single Yellow-browed Warblers discovered during the afternoon at the Old Higher Light and at Lancridge. Among the more routine fare the first 3 Black Redstarts (2 at north Portland and 1 at the Bill) of that species main autumn passage were noteworthy, along with 2 Turtle Doves, 2 Firecrests and a Merlin at the Bill. Grounded common migrants at the Bill included 40 Chiffchaffs, a Snipe and a late Whitethroat; passage overhead there during a sample 75 minute count included 420 Linnets, 185 alba wagtails and 155 Meadow Pipits, whilst seawatching there came up with 8 Mediterranean Gulls, 7 Redshank, 3 Balearic Shearwaters, a Brent Goose and an Arctic Skua.

8th October

The return of clear skies and sunshine saw a much better return on the migrant front but the only oddities reported - a Little Bunting at the Bill and a Yellow-browed Warbler at Wakeham - were both seen just briefly. On the ground the Wakeham/Easton area came up with good numbers which included 'many' Chiffchaffs, 40 Blackcaps, 5 Firecrests and a Great Spotted Woodpecker; the Bill returned a list that included 400 Meadow Pipits, 290 alba wagtails, 40 Chiffchaffs, 25 Wheatears, 10 Blackcaps, 5 Reed Buntings, 4 Firecrests, 2 Turtle Doves, a Knot, a Redstart and a Grasshopper Warbler. There was plenty of movement overhead, with 6 Crossbills, 5 Siskins, 3 Grey Wagtails and a Tree Pipit passing over amongst the quantities of mainly Swallows and Linnets that headed north at the Bill. The only reports from the sea were of 40 Common Scoter, 14 Brent Geese, 9 Mediterranean Gulls and a Pintail passing through off the Bill.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 2 Pearly Underwing, a Rush Veneer and a Silver Y.  

7th October

A dreary day with persistent rain and a freshening north-easterly wind setting in by mid-morning. A steady trickle of Swallows, Meadow Pipits, Linnets and a late Sand Martin passed overhead at the Bill before the rain set in but grounded migrants there consisted of little more than a handful of Wheatears, Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs, 3 Firecrests, a Turtle Dove and a Great Spotted Woodpecker; elsewhere the first Redwing of the autumn was at Reap Lane. With the wind well round in an offshore direction interest on the sea dwindled away, with 7 Great Skuas, 2 Balearic Shearwaters, a Manx Shearwater and a Brent Goose the best of the sightings from the Bill.

The Obs garden moth-traps were again fairly quiet, with 5 Rusty-dot Pearl, 3 Silver Y and 2 Rush Veneer the only immigrants caught.  

   

  

  

  

BBC Autumnwatch filming at the Obs today (to be broadcast this Friday) - Portland Bill, 6th October 2009 © Peter Morgan

  6th October

In a freshening south-westerly and occasional showers the sea provided most of the interest today, with watches at the Bill producing 555 Gannets, 56 Great Skuas, 43 Mediterranean Gulls, 23 Common Scoter, 10 Sooty Shearwaters, 6 Arctic Skuas, 3 Manx Shearwaters, 2 Balearic Shearwaters, a Pomarine Skua, a Little Gull, a Common Gull and an Arctic Tern. In comparison the land was the poor relation with few new arrivals in evidence: 5 Firecrests and 2 Turtle Doves were the best of the bunch on the ground at the Bill, where 130 Meadow Pipits and 90 alba wagtails headed south out to sea. 

Despite the promising-looking conditions hardly any new immigrant moths were caught in the Obs garden traps: 10 Rusty-dot Pearl, 6 Rush Veneer, a Diamond-back Moth, a Vapourer and a Silver Y

5th October

The first wet start to the day for several weeks saw a few new arrivals drop in  but there was precious little that wouldn't have been expected in the circumstances. Four Firecrests were the pick of the newcomers at the Bill, where there also 40 Chiffchaffs, 15 Blackcaps, 3 Turtle Doves, a Great Spotted Woodpecker and ones and twos of a selection of other expected migrants. Seawatching there produced 17 Mediterranean Gulls, 4 Sandwich Terns, 2 Little Gulls and an Arctic Tern.

Immigrants/wanderers in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 5 Rusty-dot Pearl, 3 Rush Veneer, a Pandemis cinnamomeana and a Silver Y

4th October

Something of nothing today with many of the expected early October migrants getting on to the list but none achieving anything like noteworthy counts. The Bill area came up with 6 Grey Partridges, 3 Turtle Doves, 3 Siskins, 2 Grey Wagtails, 2 Reed Buntings, a Yellow Wagtail, a Fieldfare, a Grasshopper Warbler, a Garden Warbler and a Redpoll amongst the light scatter of the likes of Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs; whilst elsewhere there was a Lapwing at Weston and 21 Mediterranean Gulls, 7 Brent Geese, 4 Bar-tailed Godwits and 2 Knot at Ferrybridge. Odds and ends through on the sea at the Bill included 26 Black-headed Gulls, 9 Common Scoter, 5 Balearic Shearwaters, 4 Mediterranean Gulls, 3 Pale-bellied Brent Geese, 2 Little Gulls, a Dark-bellied Brent Goose and a Great Skua.

3rd October

Quite a change in the weather saw the arrival of a fresh westerly wind and mainly overcast skies. At the Bill land interest dwindled to the extent that although the 6 Grey Partridges were still present the only migrants worth mentioning were singles of Turtle Dove, Wheatear and Blackcap at the Bill. Plenty of attention was given to the sea but there certainly weren't any great numbers of birds on the move: 10 Mediterranean Gulls, 7 Common Scoter, 5 Great Skuas, 2 Manx Shearwaters, 2 Balearic Shearwaters and 2 Arctic Skuas passed through off the Bill, at least 100 Mediterranean Gulls were lingering off Chesil Cove and 2 Great Skuas passed by there

In the windswept conditions the only immigrants attracted to the Obs garden moth-traps were 3 Rush Veneer, 2 Rusty-dot Pearl and 2 Silver Y.

   

   

  

Lesser Whitethroats - Portland Bill, 18th September 2009 (adult) and 2nd October 2009 (first year) © Martin Cade

...as we'd dwelt a little on a Lesser Whitethroat earlier in the week we thought we may as well go the whole hog and have a look at LWT ageing. Maybe we're just visually-challenged but we struggle to see - at least with any consistency - the supposed differences in iris pattern and colour between the age classes. A much more reliable criteria seems to be the presence/absence of unmoulted juvenile outer greater coverts, and today's first year bird certainly shows one such brown-edged feather than contrasts nicely with the greyer-edged feathers in the rest of the tract:

  

  

Usually tail pattern/shape is by far the easiest way of separating the age classes:

  

  

And, for the sake of completeness, here are the wing-points of these two individuals. There was nothing untoward about the plumage of either of these birds and on both the tip of the 2nd primary fell between the 5th and 6th, as opposed to being shorter than the 6th on our presumed eastern bird from earlier in the week.   

  

  

  2nd October

Very little change in the birds, with the best on offer at the Bill being 7 Yellow Wagtails, 2 Turtle Doves and singles of Merlin, Golden Plover, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey Wagtail, Tree Pipit, Grasshopper Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat amongst a rather paltry selection of commoner species on the land and 8 Mediterranean Gulls and a Shelduck through on the sea. The only reports from elsewhere were of singles of Merlin, Grey Wagtail and Whinchat in the Reap Lane area.

Immigrants in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 6 Rush Veneer, 4 Silver Y, 2 Rusty-dot Pearl, a Dark Sword Grass and a Pearly Underwing.

Late news for yesterday: the first Brent Goose of the autumn was at Ferrybridge.

1st October

Still relatively uneventful in the continuing fair conditions. The selection of counts from the ground and overhead at the Bill included 500 Meadow Pipits, 150 alba wagtails, 40 Chiffchaffs, 14 Wheatears, 11 Stonechats, 5 Grey Partridges, 5 Yellow Wagtails, 3 Turtle Doves, 3 Grey Wagtails, 3 Siskins, 2 Lesser Whitethroats, 3 Blackcaps, 2 Rooks, a Grey Heron, a Merlin, a Golden Plover, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, a Tree Pipit, a Whinchat and a Grasshopper Warbler; at least 9 Mediterranean Gulls were also still lingering offshore there. The pick of the reports from elsewhere concerned at least 200 alba wagtails in the Avalanche Road/Barleycrates Lane area.

Immigrants/wanderers in the Obs garden moth-traps this morning: 11 Rush Veneer, 10 Rusty-dot Pearl, 7 Silver Y, a Dark Sword Grass and a Pearly Underwing; additionally, 2 Convolvulus Hawk-moths were caught by a visiting moth-trapper at Cheyne Weare.