A day that panned out rather better than expected with the forecast morning of rain amounting to no more than a shower either side of dawn and doing the trick and dropping the most varied flurry of migrants so far this spring. There were few surprises but 3
Hawfinches over the Bill will likely prove to be the first of a few departing winterers, whilst seasonal firsts in the summer migrant line there included
Tree Pipit,
Redstart and
Pied Flycatcher - all of which really ought to have been on the year list before now; the sixth
Osprey of the spring also passed over (this one at Weston) and the
'Eastern' Lesser Whitethroat remained at Southwell. Migrant totals from the south of the island included 100
Chiffchaffs, 40
Willow Warblers, 40
Blackcaps, 5
Goldcrests, 4
Redstarts, 4
Siskins, 3
Bramblings, 3
Redpolls, 2
Black Redstarts, 2
Pied Flycatchers, 2
Long-tailed Tits, 2
Bullfinches, a
Great Spotted Woodpecker, a
Tree Pipit, a
Redwing, a
Ring Ouzel and a
Firecrest on the ground and, at least for a while during the morning, a steady throughput of
Meadow Pipits and
hirnundines overhead; also at the Bill, 3
Short-eared Owls were still about and 2
Red-legged Partridges were local oddities. The sea was relatively uneventful, with 100
Common Scoter, 6
Red-throated Divers, 2
Eider, 2
Arctic Skuas and a
Great Skua the pick of the early passage off the Bill.; elsewhere, an
Arctic Tern was in Portland Harbour.
Barleycrates Lane was again the favoured Ring Ouzel spot today © Roger Hewitt:
Pied Flycatcher was an overdue first for the year soon after dawn at the Obs...
...and on a black-and-white themed day this Great Spotted Woodpecker was more unexpected in spring (although they've increased in frequency at Portland in recent years the majority of new arrivals have been in late summer and autumn) - interestingly, this bird was seen over West Cliffs not long after it was released from where it was lost to sight heading in the direction of Abbotsbury...
...whilst finally on the ringing front a small arrival of new Wrens included this leucistic bird with an uneven white collar in-hand photos © Martin Cade:
