2nd May

Informed wisdom suggested that by mid-morning today there wouldn't ever have been a 2nd May with so few sightings on the day sheet - and it didn't get any better after that. Our needy cause wasn't exactly helped by thick fog having rolled in overnight that demonstrably prevented overflying migrants even knowing of the island's existence and precluded any chances of seawatching saving the day; by the time the clearance came and the heat of the current scorching spell kicked in the day had largely been written off by most prospective participants. A Little Stint new in at Ferrybridge was the day's high point, with singles of Pied and Spotted Flycatchers at the Obs the best of the what few passerine migrants were about.

The Obs moth-traps didn't delivery us as many migrant moths as we might have hoped - just a handful of Diamond-backs, Rusty-dot Pearls and Dark Sword Grasses - but by day Red Admirals were quite numerous and several more Painted Ladys were logged; during the evening there were many hundreds of Diamond-back Moths at Ferrybridge.

We're frequently amused to learn that some readers of the blog are concerned for our mental wellbeing - such is the adject misery we have fun projecting. Nothing could be further from the truth: we can't odds how few migrants are about - that's just a result of the prevailing unhelpful weather and a century of more of the human race trashing the planet; we just tell it how it is and if folk as well informed as birders think that it's OK to drive 100 or more mile round trips for year ticks or a good photo then there really isn't any hope. We can assure our readers that there are far more tiresome things you could be doing than, for example, spending a rather idyllic evening hour within a few square metres at Ferrybridge where we could watch a Little Stint to one side, a Yellow Wagtail on the other and chivvy up literally dozens of Diamond-back Moths every time we moved our feet - very simple pleasures but ever so enjoyable nonetheless © Martin Cade:

Striped Hawk-moth (Hyles livornica), to light on Portland, Dorset on 1/5. A. Harmer. #teammoth @portlandbirdobs.bsky.social

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— Migrant Lepidoptera (GB & Ireland) (@migrantmothuk.bsky.social) May 2, 2025 at 11:45 AM