Another unseasonably quiet day, thick cloud and strong winds overnight meant little was seen in the way of passage in the morning. The highlight at the obs came after the cloud cover had melted away when the first
Firecrest of the autumn was trapped. The sea continued to be marginally productive with 15
Balearic Shearwaters, 2
Arctic Skuas, a
Bonxie and 23
Common Scoters. Singles of
Hobby,
Merlin,
Whinchat,
Spotted Flycatcher and
Golden Plover added a little variety. There was a hint of things to come with the passage of 5
Skylarks and 3
Chaffinches.
Elsewhere on the island, the real highlight of the day came in the form of a
Turtle Dove at Wakeham, only the fourth for the year.
Whilst the migrants are a tad on the quiet front we can take some time to enjoy the subtleties of the breeding populations, this moulting juvenile Stonechat provided a nice display of changing plumage characteristics ©Erin Taylor
