Immigrant moth numbers dropped right away, with 2 each of Rusty-dot Pearl, Dark Sword Grass and Pearly Underwing, and a single Silver Y the only overnight captures in the Obs traps.
Coal Tit - Portland Bill, 9th November 2015 © Martin Cade
...Continental Coal Tit seems to be a vogue form just at the moment with all manner of online guff written about the easy ones. As a cautionary tale, our recently deceased Coal Tit from this morning was far from straightforward and showed features associated with both Contintental ater and British britannicus. It was a bird of the year and, on the basis of a wing length of only 57mm, pretty certain to be a female; the wide bib, long and wide nape patch and other features (...it even looked to have a little crest) were rather in favour of ater - the form that's overwhelmingly the most likely at Portland - but the flanks look to be too rufousy and however you looked at it the mantle could never be construed as even faintly steely-grey.