Quite a miscellany today with calm and mild conditions affording plenty of opportunities for exploration. Chief amongst the quality was the season's second Pallas's Warbler that showed up, together with a Yellow-browed Warbler and a Firecrest, at Pennsylvania Castle; another Yellow-browed Warbler remained at Southwell, the Rosy Starling remained at Easton (although it also wandered further afield to Blacknor for a while during the morning) and a Tree Sparrow was at the Bill. Migrant numbers were a little down on the highs of the weekend, with Goldcrests falling back to about the 100 mark and visible passage reduced to little more than a trickle, although by way of tardy summer visitors it did include a Swallow at the Bill and 2 House Martins at Penn's Weare. The now customary scatter of Black Redstarts, along with a Merlin, provided further interest on the land, a Great Skua passed by off the Bill and 9 Pale-bellied Brent Geese, 2 Sanderling and a Knot were of note at Ferrybridge.
It's been a really good late autumn for Merlins, with this at times quite confiding bird a frequent sight at the Bill in recent days © Geoff Orton:
