15th April

Very slim picking on a gloriously sunny and warm day when it was at least a pleasure to be out looking for what obviously wasn't there to be found. A Continental Coal Tit was the briefest of visitors to the tiny bushes beside the car park at Ferrybridge and there was a report of what would be a very early Quail seen equally briefly at the Bill. It was no surprise at all given the huge moon and crystal-clear overnight skies that the common migrant situation was hardly worth a comment: the lowest of numbers and the poorest of variety were the order of the day; perhaps slightly more surprisingly was the dearth of visible migrants although they were maybe reluctant to move what with the quantities of fog in the Channel that did eventually roll back in at the Bill towards dusk. The fog might also have been a factor in accounting for the lack of sea passage, with just 85 Common Scoter, a Red-throated Diver and an Arctic Skua through off the Bill on a day when the waft of an easterly breeze perhaps promised more.

Whitethroat territories are filling up fast and provide a good indication that, despite the lack of fall-outs this month, summer visitors are piling through on the frequent good migration nights © Mark Eggleton:


Singles of both Painted Lady and Clouded Yellow were new at the Bill today; beyond the first Turnip Moth of the year, overnight moth-trapping hadn't provided evidence of other lepidopteran arrivals so it'll be interesting to see if any more signs of immigration materialise in the next few days © Mark Eggleton: