12th September

Anyone expecting the promising-looking conditions of dawn to have come up with the goods on the land went away sorely disappointed today; however there was some interest to be salvaged from the sea, with a fresh southerly seeing 7 Balearic Shearwaters, 2 Sooty Shearwaters and 2 Arctic Skuas logged at the Bill. The contribution from the land really was pretty dreadful: Swallows were on the move in some quantity but many of the other routine overhead migrants - particularly pipits and wagtails - were almost absent, whilst Wheatear - including 50 at the Bill - was the only even faintly numerous migrant on the ground. The Bar-tailed Godwit flock at Ferrybridge held up at a dozen, with 6 Sanderling amongst the other waders there.

Moth interest continued to tick over, with 17 Rush Veneer, 9 Rusty-dot Pearl and singles of Jersey Mocha, Convolvulus Hawk-moth and Silver Y making up the immigrant tally at the Obs.

We had so many requests for viewing of yesterday's Death's-head Hawk-moth that we kept it fed up and held on to it until today; this little phone-video clip shows how it much prefers to scuttle about rather than fly and also how it squeaks when it's disturbed © Martin Cade: