28th October

Quiet, heavily overcast anticyclonic conditions look to be becoming the order of the day and there was another small arrival of mainly expected late migrants. A Serin that showed up at the Obs was the best of the newcomers, with further interest provided 2 Yellow-browed Warblers at both Church Ope Cove and the Grove Cliffs, the Black Brant again at Ferrybridge, a Lapland Bunting north over Blacknor, the Turtle Dove still at Reap Lane, a Hen Harrier west offshore at the Bill (perhaps the recent lingerer departing?), 2 Merlins, a Woodcock and a Firecrest at the Bill and a spread of well into double figures of Black Redstarts. Routine passage was rather subdued both on the ground and overhead: many of the expected migrants were represented but there were no really significant counts worth a mention. Among the settled winterers there was a decent total of more than 1800 Dark-bellied Brent Geese at Ferrybridge, where the presumably also now wintering Bar-tailed Godwit total again topped 20.

The fresh breeze that sprung up yesterday afternoon and continued well into the night spoilt overnight mothing, with a noticeable drop in immigrant numbers; totals from the Obs traps included 47 Rusty-dot Pearl, 25 Rush Veneer, 6 Diamond-back Moth, 2 White-speck, a Pearly Underwing and a Silver Y.

Today's male Serin was an altogether finer specimen than last week's dowdy female...


...and we seem to be seeing all the expected features in, for example, the great coverts and the tail to be very confident that it's a bird of the year.