22nd July

Migration momentum was barely maintained today with nothing much more than 50 Sand Martins, 3 Yellow-legged Gulls, 2 Common Sandpiper and singles of Dunlin, Redshank, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Yellow Wagtail, Reed Warbler and Blackcap on the ground or overhead at the Bill. A Balearic Shearwater was a welcome sight offshore there in a summer that's thus far pretty well drawn a blank for them; 10 Black-headed Gulls, 8 Common Scoter, 6 Manx Shearwaters and 6 Mediterranean Gulls also passed through on the sea, whilst another 76 Mediterranean Gulls were at Ferrybridge.

On the moth front there was a nice highlight in the form of Portland's first Marbled Grass-veneer Catoptria verellus caught overnight at the Grove. Variety by way of immigrants/strays elsewhere included 44 Diamond-back Moth, 7 Silver Y, 2 Cream-bordered Green Pea and singles of Rusty-dot Pearl, Buff Footman, Fen Wainscot, Dark Spectacle and Gold Spot at the Obs.


Marbled Grass-veneer - The Grove, 22nd July 2016 © Martin Cade