A reminder that there's an In Focus field event at the Obs between 10am and 4pm this Saturday, 24th June.
In much fresher and breezier conditions than of late the Common Rosefinch remained at Southwell but was seemingly always hidden from general view in private gardens. The change in the weather didn't really perk things up on the land at the Bill, with another 90 Swifts and a Grey Heron through overhead and another new Chiffchaff at the Obs the only reports of note. Offshore, at least 30 Common Terns off the Bill were presumed to be Lodmoor breeders on feeding forays; 7 Manx Shearwaters, 7 Mediterranean Gulls, 2 Common Scoter and a Whimbrel also passed through/lingered there. The only reports from elsewhere were of up to 10 Mediterranean Gulls and 4 Sandwich Terns at Ferrybridge.
Overnight mothing was not quite as busy as in recent nights with fog and a freshening breeze pegging back numbers, but there signs of a small arrival of new immigrants/dispersers. At the Obs, a Marbled Grass-veneer Catoptria verellus was the immigrant highlight, with 6 Diamond-back Moth, 4 Rusty-dot Pearl, 3 each of European Corn-borer and Silver Y, 2 each of Rush Veneer and Dark Sword Grass, and singles of Olive-tree Pearl, Hummingbird Hawkmoth, Small Mottled Willow and Scarce Bordered Straw making up the rest of the tally.
The Common Rosefinch lingered on but was mobile and generally elusive - it very occasionally gave some half-hearted song and was only seen when it visited various birder's back gardens © Pete Saunders:
...we made an early morning attempt to sound record it during which time it only called/sung twice in an hour:
From the evidence of the national records it would seem as though Marbled Grass-veneer might be in the process of colonising south-east England, but it remains a decent rarity in this part of the world - last night's specimen constituted only the second island record © Martin Cade: