22nd January

With the rain of the last couple of days replaced by pleasant sunshine there was a lot more incentive to venture out, with the chief reward coming in the form of a Coot at the Bill - only the sixth record there and the first for 34 years. The day's other sightings were considerably more mundane: 4 Purple Sandpipers, at least 2 Water Rails, 2 Blackcaps and a Chiffchaff remained at the Bill where 14 Red-throated Divers, 4 Common Scoter and a Great Northern Diver passed by on the sea, another Chiffchaff was at Easton and the Black Guillemot was still off Portland Castle.

Overnight a Red Sword Grass attracted to the lit Obs porch was an unexpected find and constitutes only the tenth recent record for the island.






Coot and Red Sword Grass - Portland Bill, 22nd January 2015 © Martin Cade