As the wind picked up overnight, our attentions switched from hopes for land-based migrants to the sea. The onshore wind produced a constant stream of Kittiwakes totalling more than 600 (a welcome sight given their recent scarcity on our breeding cliffs). As the morning wore on, the first glimmers of Manx Shearwater migration emerged with 12 birds shearing the increasingly towering waves. A lone Bonxie, four Eiders, 12 Common Scoter and 12 Red-throated Divers managed to sneak through before the large rain-fueled weather front came through in the mid-morning. Once the rain had passed, feeding flocks of gulls and terns appeared off both the Bill and Chesil featuring a selection of Mediterranean, Common and a single Little Gull with three Sandwich Terns off the Bill and 15 Little Gulls off Chesil. The land was under watched so two Wheatears and a single Black Redstart were all that we could muster.
The sea was definitely the focus today, especially for those brave enough to weather the conditions at the Bill tip... © Debby Saunders (Eiders, Kittiwakes, Common Scoter and Wheatear) © Pete Saunders (Bonxie):
