Today unfolded more or less exactly as had been foreseen given the brisk and constantly freshening westerly and largely clear sky: grounded arrivals were all but non-existent, visible passage was only worth dipping into during the first hour of daylight and the sea got attention as much because there was so little else unfolding by way of more compelling entertainment. Visible passage consisted of a steady movement of departing flocks of the customary early October quartet - alba wagtails, Meadow Pipits, Linnets and Goldfinches; only Linnets were in particularly worthwhile numbers, with 340 through along East Cliffs before passage dwindled. A rather spectacular feeding aggregation of 100 or more Gannets just metres off East Cliffs at the Bill were a pleasant distraction during an otherwise routine seawatch there that saw 500 auks, 100 Kittiwakes, 16 Common Scoter and 12 Balearic Shearwaters logged along with a surprise passing Cattle Egret; a similar selection at Chesil Cove included 3 Balearic Shearwaters and a Red-throated Diver.
