Way, way more gripping that the turgid, unimaginative frame-fillers inflicted on us by modern-day toggers, Brett's little bit of shaky, phone-scoped video conveys everything about a scene we'd have loved to have witnessed as a storm-blown and clearly knackered Long-tailed Skua dropped in for a few minutes rest on Chesil © Brett Spencer:
31st August
Increasing winds from the southwest called for a day spent largely looking out to sea, with a fair return for the local area that unfortunately still lacked most of the hoped-for possibilities that have been turning up in quantity further west. The cumulative total of 78 Balearic Shearwaters logged from the Bill included 32 seen heading west from the Obs and a further 46 reorientating south out of Lyme Bay; 18 Manx Shearwaters, 10 Arctic Skua, 9 Sandwich Terns and a Sooty Shearwater were all that could be mustered by way of further variety there, with an Arctic Tern an addition from Chesil Cove. The bird of the day was a Long-tailed Skua which pitched in briefly at Ferrybridge before heading away up the Fleet. Away from the seabirds, a Pied Flycatcher at Culverwell, the lingering Firecrest at the Obs and a Common Sandpiper on the shore were the only worthwhile migrant sightings from the Bill. The wader selection at Ferrybridge was largely unchanged, with 14 Turnstone, 3 Curlew, 3 Sanderling, 3 Sandwich Terns and 2 Knot still present; 2 Yellow-legged Gulls were also there.
30th August
August's going out very differently to how most of it had ticked along - gone is the warmth, sunshine and settled conditions of the bulk of the month, to be replaced by increasing wind, quantities of rain and, by this afternoon at least, the dank greyness of winter. The strength of the wind didn't deter a few passerine migrants from showing up, with 6 Tree Pipits, 4 Grey Wagtails, 3 Sedge Warblers, a Grasshopper Warbler and a lingering Firecrest amongst the loggings at the Bill. Some early sea movement included 29 Balearic Shearwaters and 6 Arctic Skuas through off the Bill but thereafter the deterioration in the weather brought forth a variety of reports from different watchpoints that included c90 Manx Shearwaters, 57 more Balearic Shearwaters and a Sabine's Gull amongst others - more on those when we find out more about them.
Amongst various things we struggle with - juvenile large gulls spring straight to mind - lone, settled juvenile terns often give us problems so it was nice to encounter both Common and Arctic together at Ferrybridge in the increasing gloom of this evening. It was a shame we couldn't capture all three individuals fully in the open because the really short legs of two of them led us to immediate suspect they were Arctics even if we were struggling to see any really compelling plumage differences in the shoddy conditions - the presumed Common had a stronger dark bar on the closed wing and what looked to be a slightly different head pattern but beyond that we weren't making much progress. Fortunately all three soon took to the air where their characteristic upper and underwing patterns confirmed that they really were two Arctics and a Common © Martin Cade:
Seems to have been an overnight fall of Convolvulus Hawks - 10 from the moth-traps in the Obs garden + 3 Striped Hawks. Fantastic!
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 30, 2025 at 9:55 AM
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Considering it was such a blustery night the Obs moth-traps were pretty busy with an obvious arrival of other more routine migrants. Elsewhere on the island another Convolvulus Hawk for John Lucas at Southwell
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 30, 2025 at 10:14 AM
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29th August
Whilst an overnight downpour had mostly ceased before dawn broke, the persistent buffeting wind continued to make birding hard work, with lingering singles of Firecrest and Pied Flycatcher the only grounded migrants of note at the Bill. The sea was certainly not as busy as hoped, with 190 Kittiwakes providing the bulk of the numbers off the Bill; 16 Sandwich Terns, 3 Balearic Shearwaters and 2 Arctic Skuas the only other sightings of note. Four Knot, 2 Sanderling and a single Bar-tailed Godwit provided some variety amongst the routine waders at Ferrybridge.
A welcome sight in the last few weeks has been the return of the gull flock that congregates in the fields below Culverwell; not only is this great for attracting scarcities like yesterday's Caspian Gull, but it also permits opportunities for scrutinizing for colour-ringed individuals. The fields have proved a major draw for locally-bred birds from the Harbour breakwaters but also attract birds from further afield, with French Great Black-backed Gulls in particular making repeat visits from one year to the next; just recently, these have including one individual first logged here over 15 years ago. One of the most interesting records so far this autumn concerns a Norwegian-ringed Lesser Black-backed Gull seen here twice this week; this had previously also been resighted on its wintering grounds in Mauritania - some 4600km away from where it was originally ringed and easily the furthest south that any colour-ringed gull sighted here has been recorded © Martin Cade:
And talking of ringing recoveries, we've got a bit of a thing going with Skokholm Bird Observatory at the moment. Last month there was the spectacular one day movement of a Storm Petrel from Portland to Skokholm: it had been ringed here at 02.15 one night and at 03:00 the next night it was recaptured on Skokholm. If that wasn't enough, today we received notification of a Willow Warbler from a few days ago doing more or less the same thing but in the opposite direction: it had been ringed at Skokholm at 18:10 in the evening and was recaptured in the Crown Estate Field at 13.55 the next afternoon. We'd been gripped by the news of Skokholm having a really good fall of Willow Warblers on the day the bird was ringed and when handling it here had actually joked that the ring looked so shiny and new that it must have been put on the day before at Skokholm - amazingly, it actually had! © Martin Cade:
28th August
Always too blowy and, at least through the morning, always too showery but, with a bit of perseverance, there were a few migrants on offer today. A Caspian Gull amongst the Culverwell gull flock had looked to be on the cards for a while so when one did eventually appear this afternoon it wasn't altogether unexpected but welcome nonetheless. Commoner migrants were certainly about although proved troublesome to get amongst in the wind, with 2 Yellow-legged Gulls and singles of White Wagtail, Firecrest and Pied Flycatcher the best at the Bill. Ferrybridge remained busy, with 242 Ringed Plovers and 170 Dunlin making up the numbers and 10 Knot, 2 Sanderlings and singles of Bar-tailed Godwit, Whimbrel, Common Sandpiper, Common Gull and Yellow-legged Gull providing a bit of variety. For the most part, sea totals were disappointing with little more than 14 Balearic Shearwaters and 3 Arctic Skuas through off the Bill; however, in the evening a feeding flock that developed off Chesil Cove attracted c50 Balearic Shearwaters.
The Caspian Gull - with a Yellow-legged Gull a few metres away - amongst the Culverwell gull flock © Steve Waite:
Heavy rain both overnight and at times through the morning dumped some extra waders at Ferrybridge including several extra Knot © Pete Saunders:
27th August
With passerine migration grinding to a halt in the face of increasingly turbulent conditions it was hoped that the sea might save the day, but 41 Balearic Shearwaters, 3 Arctic Skuas and a handful of routines off the Bill weren't really the sort of rewards to get pulses racing. The few passerines that were uncovered included singles of Reed Warbler, Firecrest and Siskin at the Bill, whilst waders didn't fare much better with 4 Knot and a Sanderling as good as it got at Ferrybridge.
After a couple of summers of unrelenting and often wholly unexpected rewards from the sea this year has thus far proved to be hugely disappointing, with even the old staples such as Balearic Shearwaters no better than sparse and erratic off the Bill; however, there's still plenty of time for our fortunes to change...© Martin Cade:
Receiving this trailcam photo of a Badger visiting a garden at Southwell a couple of nights ago (© Alan Mayell) reminded us that we hadn't made any recent efforts to ascertain whether there were still Badgers in the Obs garden after they'd successfully bred there earlier in the year...
...so it was a bit of a surprise having not had the slightest indication they were still about to find the trailcam here revealed the presence of several visiting some seed put out for them last night © Jodie Henderson:
26th August
A rather promising forecast sadly came to naught with the dawn rain barely more than a few specks and the incoming south-westerly far stronger than originally hoped. The numbers of grounded migrants remained fairly woeful, with 2 Reed Warblers, 2 Whitethroats and singles of Sedge Warbler and Pied Flycatcher from the Bill trapping areas and 2 Turnstones and a Common Sandpiper the only other sightings of note from the shore. A bit of early promise on the sea quickly fizzled out with 17 Balearic Shearwaters and 7 Arctic Skuas through in the first couple of hours after dawn but precious little thereafter. Ferrybridge remained rather static, with 3 Knot, 2 Curlew and a Sanderling among the more expected fare.
The three Knot at Ferrybridge this morning © Pete Saunders:
Passenger for @alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social at Freshwater Bay the night's show-stopper migrant moth. Only modest increases in numbers at the Obs with no stand-out rares; small arrival/emergence of Western Conifer Seedbugs of interest
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 26, 2025 at 9:50 AM
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Passenger from Freshwater Bay, Portland last night; actually the fourth of the recent run here and perhaps this suggests local breeding? @portlandbirdobs.bsky.social
— alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social (@alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social) August 26, 2025 at 7:05 PM
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It's not been a great year so far for Convolvulus Hawk-moth, so very pleasing when this appeared next to the trap at Freshwater Bay, Portland, but no Striped Hawk-moth for me!
— alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social (@alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social) August 26, 2025 at 7:08 PM
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A few immigrant moths in last night’s traps including 3 Olive Tree Pearl, a Delicate and a Bordered Straw @migrantmothuk.bsky.social #mothsmatter
— Debra Saunders (@debbyseamist.bsky.social) August 26, 2025 at 3:03 PM
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25th August
It was another day of quality rather than quantity, with a Nightingale trapped at Culverwell and the second Wryneck of the autumn trapped in the Obs garden making up a not insubstantial proportion of the grounded migrants at the Bill. Odds and ends of more routine fare there included just 3 Reed Warblers, 2 Blackcaps and singles of Grasshopper Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Whinchat, Spotted Flycatcher and Curlew; up-island snippets reflected this paucity, with a single Redstart at Reap Lane, a Kingfisher at Portland Castle and a Reed Warbler and 2 Whinchats at the Verne the only other sightings of note. Ferrybridge was a different story, with wader totals that included 250+ Dunlin, 200 + Ringed Plover, 16 Sanderling and 7 Turnstone.
Nightingale trapped at Culverwell
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 25, 2025 at 8:18 AM
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Wryneck trapped at the Obs
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 25, 2025 at 8:19 AM
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The Obs moth-traps were spectacularly lame for migrants overnight so a bit unexpected to get home and find a Passenger - the third for the island this autumn - in one of the Grove traps; also another Striped Hawk there. Weirdest catch at the Obs in recent nights a late Obscure Wainscot on 23rd.
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 25, 2025 at 6:31 PM
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24th August
As is so often the case, today's scarcity interest arrived under conditions that for whatever reason saw passage of common migrants grind to a near halt, indeed a sum total of 4 Blackcaps, 2 Willow Warblers and a Garden Warbler had been the only new birds ringed before a Barred Warbler duly appeared at Culverwell. The rest of the day was a bit of a write-off, with the autumn's first flyover Siskin, a Spotted Flycatcher and a Whimbrel the only other sightings of note from around the Bill. Sea passage was poor, with just 35 Kittiwakes, 3 Shelduck, 2 Manx Shearwaters and a Great Skua logged at the Bill.
Although not a huge surprise since the first few of the autumn have been turning up elsewhere, today's Barred Warbler was actually considerably earlier than average for Portland although still a fortnight later than the earliest ever that was trapped and ringed on 10th August 1978 © Nick Hopper:
The Cowes Torquay powerboat race passing the Bill is always a bit of a spectacle on August Bank Holiday Sunday and sometimes causes consternation amongst the likes of rafts of over-summering Balearic Shearwaters; sadly, this year's edition saw the sea bereft of interest and our intrepid photographer wasn't able to capture anything other than a Great Black-backed Gull in the same frame as one of the boats! © Nick Hopper:
23rd August
Our current productive spell of migration continued nicely today, with plenty of common migrants on the move including 60 Willow Warblers, 15 Wheatears, 2 Whinchats, 2 Spotted Flycatchers, 2 Grasshopper Warblers, 2 Blackcaps, 2 Lesser Whitethroats and singles of Pied Flycatcher, Redstart and Firecrest at the Bill. Overhead migration was noticeably more sedate with just 40 Yellow Wagtails, 6 Tree Pipits and 3 Grey Wagtails through there. Elsewhere there was more of the same, with Redstarts at both the Admiralty Quarry and Avalanche Road as well as a Spotted Flycatcher and Lesser Whitethroat at the RN Cemetery. On the sea, a total of 25 Balearic Shearwaters and a single Great Skua passed by off the Bill.
We're sure that there'll be plenty more Firecrest photo opportunities in the coming weeks which is fortunate since today's first one of the autumn was a proper lurker that liked to stay tucked right away in the shadows © Martin Cade:
Bluefin Tuna are still a daily sight off the Bill and this evening we were fortunate to be at the Bill tip when one or more appeared hunting Garfish within 100m of the Obelisk. The first signs of the tuna appearing were when shoals of their prey broke the surface...
...and this was quite often followed by the tuna leaping right out of the water in pursuit
The action was a little too far away to get the full effect with a phone camera but you get the idea © Martin Cade:
Portland 23 Aug: Lesser Whitethroat and Hummingbird Hawkmoth at the Naval Cemetry. Redstart in Admiralty Quarry Single Knot at Ferrybridge among the usual suspects. @portlandbirdobs.bsky.social
— Steve M (@steveweynature.bsky.social) August 23, 2025 at 5:56 PM
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Amongst all the local-breds some small signs of new moth migration last night incl singles of Passenger (seventh for Portland) and Olive Spinner oleastrella (second for Portland, first for the Obs) at the Obs; 2 Striped Hawks and a Convolvulus Hawk amongst the routines.
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 23, 2025 at 9:33 AM
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22nd August
Another day with migration ticking over nicely. In the absence of any real surprises it was the selection of common migrants that entertained: 100 Willow Warblers, 80 Yellow Wagtails and 60 Wheatears were decent enough totals for an almost cloudless day at the Bill, with 4 Grey Wagtails, 3 Reed Warblers, 2 Spotted Flycatchers, 2 Blackcaps and singles of Purple Sandpiper, Yellow-legged Gull, Garden Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat amongst the lower totals. More of the same at Barleycrates Lane suggested that some respectable all-island totals might have been accrued with better coverage. Balearic Shearwaters were again on fair form, with 43 through off the Bill, where another Arctic Skua also passed by.
21st August
Another exceedingly pleasant day, with a cool and overcast morning resulting in a steady procession of new arrivals that gradually tailed off as the heat of the afternoon set in. Whilst Willow Warblers were once again on top with c150 present at the Bill, there was a great deal more variety on offer there compared to yesterday, including 6 Spotted Flycatchers, 4 Redstarts, 2 Pied Flycatchers, 2 Blackcaps and singles of Purple Sandpiper, Reed Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat. Overhead passage was also more of a feature, with 65 Yellow Wagtails (in addition to the 18 settled along the East Cliffs), 50 Swift, 20 Tree Pipits, 6 Grey Wagtails, 2 Curlew and a Golden Plover over the Bill. For the first time this week sea passage deserved at least a passing mention, with 34 Balearic Shearwaters, 6 Arctic Skuas, 2 Manx Shearwaters, 2 Dunlin and a Whimbrel easily the best return of late from the Bill. New waders continued to show up at Ferrybridge, where 3 Greenshanks and a Black-tailed Godwit dropped in to join the likes of the lingering Grey Plover.
At the Bill, Willow Warbler is certainly the migrant of the moment with the steady throughput yesterday and today further boosting the totals for what was already the best autumn showing of them for many years © Martin Cade:
A Curlew silhouetted against the dawn sky at the Bill - a sight we see extremely rarely at the Bill these days © Martin Cade:
At Ferrybridge, yesterday's Grey Plover lingered for a second day and three Greenshanks were new arrivals © Pete Saunders (Grey Plover settled and Greenshanks) and Debby Saunders (Grey Plover flying):
Reduced numbers in the moth-traps in much chillier conditions overnight but still some quality, notably a Striped Hawk and a Clifden Nonpareil at the Obs and a Striped Hawk and a Bedstraw Hawk from John Lucas' garden at Southwell
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 21, 2025 at 11:29 AM
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20th August
Today's birding was a real tale of contrasts, with the Obs and Crown Estate Field mist-nets tapping into a nice pulse of new arrivals that somehow managed to pass by largely unnoticed anywhere else. Willow Warblers once again made up the bulk of grounded migrants, with at least 100 through, whilst a late afternoon Wryneck provided the day's moment of quality. Other new arrivals at the Bill included 30 Wheatears, 6 Tree Pipits and singles of Pied Flycatcher, Spotted Flycatcher and Hobby, whilst another Pied Flycatcher was at May Bower Gardens. With 2 Sanderling, a Greenshank and a Little Ringed Plover present at the Bill, it was clear a fair bit of wader activity was underway, and Ferrybridge once again scored well with 6 Knot, 4 Black-tailed Godwits and singles of Grey Plover, Little Stint, Curlew Sandpiper and Wood Sandpiper amongst others.
There was almost an inevitability about a Wryneck turning up today but that didn't make it any the less enjoyable for those that were present to see it in the hand and be amazed at its 'wrynecking' behaviour © Duncan Walbridge:
Curlew Sandpiper, Little Stint and Yellow-legged Gull amongst today's Ferrybridge miscellany © Pete Saunders:
little stint, grey plover, knot, redshank ferrybridge, still some sanderling in amongst the dunlin & ringed plover. half doz wheatear n single clouded yellow
— andylportland.bsky.social (@andylportland.bsky.social) August 20, 2025 at 3:03 PM
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A bit too breezy overnight but stayed very mild and two of the sheltered moth-traps in the Obs garden we're rammed with noctuids in particular. Highest totals so far this yr of DSGrass, Turnip, Bordered Straw and Scarce Bordered Straw. Marsh Oblique-barred a second for Portland and first for the Obs
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 20, 2025 at 12:56 PM
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A good selection of immigrant moths in last night’s trap. Star of the show was Striped Hawkmoth with supporting cast of 3 Bordered Straw, 2 Scarce Bordered Straw, White-speck, 11 Dark Sword-grass, 5 Olive-tree Pearl and several of the other common immigrants #mothsmatter @migrantmothuk.bsky.social
— Debra Saunders (@debbyseamist.bsky.social) August 20, 2025 at 6:24 PM
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19th August
After dying back considerably overnight, it was a tad frustrating to awake to another blustery morning with the birding much the same as in recent days; the wind did abate considerably as the day went on but this amelioration came too late to do us many favours. Around the Bill, Yellow Wagtails, Wheatears and Willow Warblers reached 25 apiece, with 2 Grasshopper Warblers and a Spotted Flycatcher also logged, whilst up-island saw a mini arrival of Pied Flycatchers with 4 scattered around the Southwell/ Weston area. A Little Stint was the highlight among the Ferrybridge selection that also included 2 Redshank, a Knot and a Little Tern.
The Ferrybridge Little Stint showed very nicely © Martin Cade...
...although, as autumn adult Little Stints at Ferrybridge always do, it instantly brought to mind perhaps our most savage ever Portland dip - Paul Baker's fabulous adult Red-necked Stint there on 27th August 2010 © Paul Baker:
As expected as August advances, Yellow Wagtails are showing up in increasing numbers - these two were at Ferrybridge this morning © Pete Saunders:
We've never been under the slightest illusion that the vast majority of the current crop of migrants in the moth-traps haven't come much further than a few hundred metres from the Obs garden but it was nice to today get indisputable proof that at least some of the Small Marbleds have bred successfully in the vicinity. On 23rd July Jodie scouted around some of patches of Fleabane in the adjacent beach hut field and quickly found a flower head that exhibited what we took to be the characteristic larval feeding signs of a damaged flower head from which the grub-like caterpillar would occasionally show itself. Because of the possibility of confusion with the apparently similar feeding signs/caterpillar of the pyralid, Lesser Clouded Knot-horn Phycitodes saxicola, we hung on to the caterpillar and kept it provisioned with new flower heads as each old one dried out. Today, a Small Marbled duly emerged via an exit hole in a flower head - we have read that on at least some occasions caterpillars have pupated in a spinning on the outside of a flower head, but that wasn't the case for us and pupation occurred inside the flower head © Jodie Henderson (early stages) and Martin Cade (adult):
18th August
There was little change today in either the strength of the wind or the state of migration, with even the most sheltered spots revealing little in the way of new arrivals. A total of 30 Wheatears was down considerably on recent days, with 2 Golden Plovers, the first Hobby of the autumn and a single Grasshopper Warbler the only other sightings of note at the Bill. The day's oddity came on the sea, where a single Brent Goose was seen briefly settled on the sea below the Obs; a lone passing Balearic Shearwater was the only seabird of note there. Wader variety at Ferrybridge included 360 Ringed Plovers, 160 Dunlin, 7 Sanderling, 2 Curlew, and singles of Knot, Redshank, Whimbrel and Bar-tailed Godwit.
Two long-range waterfowl oddities: the unseasonable Dark-bellied Brent Goose flew in and settled off East Cliffs for a while before departing to the east...
...whilst the Black Swan that was settled off the Bill on a couple of occasions last week popped up again this evening when it was settled distantly off Chesil © Martin Cade:
17th August
With everywhere rather too wind-battered today wasn't the easiest day to get amongst migrants and although nothing except waders were in quantity there were a few odds and ends of interest. Singles of Lapwing, Marsh Harrier, Yellow-legged Gull, Whinchat and Grasshopper Warbler were the best at the Bill, where 40 Wheatears was the only worthwhile count amongst the routines; a Pied Flycatcher at Blacknor was an addition from elsewhere. Waders were still numerous, with Ringed Plovers again topping 350 at Ferrybridge, where singles of Bar-tailed Godwit and Knot were the best of the variety. The sea didn't ever get going, with a single passing Balearic Shearwater the best off the Bill.
After they'd been seen egg-laying in some quantity back in late May, successful breeding of Red-veined Darters at Yeolands Quarry was only really down to the pool there continuing to hold water which it has done. This afternoon the dry slopes around the pool were busy with a big emergence of teneral darters - quite likely several dozen in total - and some had already even wandered up as far as the footpaths around Broadcroft butterfly reserve © Martin Cade:
16th August
Whilst the continually freshening easterly wind certainly hampered the day's birding efforts, it did appear from early on that there were appreciably fewer grounded passerine migrants on offer than there had been yesterday. Among the 45 Wheatears and light sprinkle of Willow Warblers at the Bill area a single Grasshopper Warbler was the only new arrival of note, with a lingering Pied Flycatcher still present in the Obs garden. Overhead passage was busier, with over 300 Swallows and 100 Sand Martins through at the Bill in the first couple of hours after dawn, alongside double figures of both Tree Pipit and Yellow Wagtail. Out to sea, a total of 37 Lesser Black-backed Gulls were seen departing south, but just 5 Balearic Shearwaters and a single Manx Shearwater also logged. In contrast to the passerine situation, wader numbers and variety continued to build at Ferrybridge where the totals included 380 Ringed Plover, 140 Dunlin, 9 Turnstone, 6 Sanderling, 4 Knot, 3 Greenshank, 2 Little Ringed Plover, a Redshank and a flyover Golden Plover.
Golden Plover, Little Ringed Plovers, Knots and a bonus Yellow Wagtail at Ferrybridge © Pete Saunders:
Fewer migrant moths last night but still some nice things on the wing incl 3 Striped Hawks (singles at the Obs + for John Lucas at Southwell & Nigel Jones/Mark Edgeller at Freshwater Bay); 4 Small Marbled, 2 Vestal and singles of catalaunalis, Ni and Dewick's Plusia amongst others at the Obs
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 16, 2025 at 9:42 AM
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So many Striped Hawks that we're running out of suitable large pots for them - this one from our garden at the Grove is the fourth from the island last night
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 16, 2025 at 3:53 PM
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15th August
Today's switch round to north-easterlies saw a much appreciated return to migratory proceedings, with a varied selection of new arrivals for what can be a rather fitful period for early autumn departers. Whilst Willow Warblers and Wheatears made up the bulk of the day's grounded migrants with 75 and 60 apiece, a fine supporting cast of 7 Grasshopper Warblers, 3 Spotted Flycatchers, 3 Reed Warblers, 2 Garden Warblers, 2 Pied Flycatchers and a single Redstart livened up the Bill. Visible migration was also on the up with around 70 Swallows and 65 Sand Martins passing through during the first few hours of the morning, with a further 100 Sand Martins lingering over Top Fields well into the late afternoon. On the sea, a total of 105 Balearic Shearwaters marked only the third three-figure day count this year, with an additional 55 Manx Shearwaters, 16 Common Scoters and 3 Arctic Skuas the other sightings of note. Waders remained in good supply at Ferrybridge, including modest increases to 280 Ringed Plovers and 150 Dunlin, whilst a flying ant hatch there during the evening attracted a feeding frenzy of c600 Mediterranean Gulls.
Doesn't take much to beat our hitherto woefully inadequate best ringing day of the year (106 back in April) so shouldn't shout too loudly about reaching 165 today. However, a fun day in beautiful weather; lots of variety incl 7 Grasshopper Warblers, 4 Storm Petrels...oh, and 51 House Sparrows!
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social)
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Superb pelagic from Portland @naturetrektours data to @MARINElife_UK 5 Risso's Dolphin, 12 Common Dolphin, Harbour Porpoise, 5 Grey Seals, Osprey S 17:30, 17 Balearic & 3 Manx Shearwater, 15 Storm-petrel, Arctic, Sandwich & Commic Tern, 80 Gannet, 20 Sand Martin, 3 Small White pic.twitter.com/fYAOuUlYAm
— Tom Brereton (@tom_m_brereton) August 15, 2025
Lots more migrant moths at the Obs last night incl 6 more Toadflax Pearl and a Convolvulus Hawk. Nice selection of strays/Portland rares around the island incl Beautiful Yellow Underwing and Acleris emargana at the Obs, Epinotia immundana at Sweethill for Debby and Poplar Kitten at Weston for Dunc
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 15, 2025 at 9:28 PM
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14th August
Numbers-wise, migration remained at a fairly low ebb but there was just enough variety to make it worth staying out even in the blazing sunshine and soaring temperature of the afternoon. In Portland terms, a Ruff at Ferrybridge was bird of the day, with 2 Knot there, a Marsh Harrier over Weston and singles of Greenshank and Pied Flycatcher at the Bill all providing further interest. Amongst the routines, Wheatear reached 25 on the ground at the Bill but everything else struggled to make an impression; over-flyers were slightly more conspicuous and included 150 Swallows and 75 Sand Martins through at the Bill. A Common Gull through off the Bill was the first for the autumn but the 3 Balearic Shearwaters and single Arctic Skua also passing by there were what's become a typically lame return from the sea in recent days; the lingering Black Swan was also again off East Cliffs.
Always infrequent at Portland and often extremely skittish when they do appear, this evening's Ruff at Ferrybridge was unusual in being well-settled and showing nicely © Martin Cade:
Another ripping catch of migrant moths overnight at the Obs incl 17 Vestals, 4 Toadflax Pearls and an Old World Webworm + the first three figure total of Rush Veneers so far this year; elsewhere, a Striped Hawkmoth from Duncan Walbridge's garden at Weston
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 14, 2025 at 2:07 PM
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13th August
Passerine migration seems to have lost a lot of momentum as this week's gone on - more's the pity since today's lingering heavy cloud cover could easily have been the cue for a decent drop of birds; in the event it was waders that fared better with a strong arrival and onward passage of in particular Ringed Plovers a feature all day. Passerines weren't entirely absent but 3 Pied Flycatchers - 2 at the Obs and another at Blacknor - were less by way of quality than might have been hoped amongst the thinnish spread of more routine fare that included 25 Willow Warblers, 10 Wheatears, 10 Sedge Warblers, 6 Yellow Wagtails and 3 Tree Pipits at the Bill, where a Marsh Harrier also lingered for a while. The wader tally included 270 Ringed Plovers and 14 Sanderling at Ferrybridge, with more Ringed Plovers and 7 Whimbrel overflying the Bill on occasions. From time to time small pulses of hirundines pushed through overhead but, cumulatively, numbers were nothing special. The only other grounded arrival of note was a brief Teal at Ferrybridge. Rewards from the sea were again scant, with just 8 Balearic Shearwaters through off the Bill, but a notable oddity was a Storm Petrel that showed up during the evening in Portland Harbour.
Some exciting overnight migrant mothing at the Obs, notably with Portland's sixth Passenger; a Toadflax Pearl catalaunalis was the first this year + a good selection of other scarces and a few more local hatches of eg dark Small Marbleds
— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) August 13, 2025 at 11:08 AM
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The tuna off the Bill are still frustrating would-be photographers by never quite showing at their best when there's a camera pointing at them © Mike Trew:
12th August
Hard work in blazing sun and increasing heat today - especially as there didn't seem to be a lot about to make the toil worthwhile. Decent numbers of Swifts - including at least 100 over the Bill - passed through overhead, but amongst the passerines only Wheatear managed a double figure total at the Bill; a Redstart dropped in at Sweethill and a Knot was new at Ferrybridge but there was little else of note amongst the thin scatter of other migrants. Three Balearics and a single Manx Shearwater were the highlights from some very slow seawatching.
Redstart © Debby Saunders...
...and Knot © Pete Saunders were the best of today's migrants:
We've touched on this before what a great little crossroads Ferrybridge is right in the midst of all manner of migrant wader comings and goings: this Ringed Plover that was there yesterday was ringed as a large nestling on 28 May this year at Wilhelminapolder in the southwest Netherlands; we still get really excited by the fact that other ring-readings there have shown us that, for example, amongst the 100 or so Ringed Plovers on the mud at Ferrybridge during August there might be birds present that hatched in nests at Ferrybridge itself but also in other places as far apart as a glacier-carved valley in Arctic Canada and a polder in the Netherlands - isn't that fantastic? Thanks Sander Lilipaly for being so prompt with the ringing details of yesterday's bird © Pete Saunders:
11th August
A nice selection of migrants on offer again today although numbers were a little down on yesterday and activities were somewhat curtailed when heavy cloud rolled in during the afternoon that led eventually to a showery and even at times thundery evening. The likes of 5 Yellow Wagtails, 3 Yellow-legged Gulls, 3 Tree Pipits and singles of Greenshank, Grasshopper Warbler and Reed Warbler were the best of the grounded/overflying selection at the Bill, where 80 Swallows and 50 Sand Martins provided the two highest totals on offer. Despite seemingly suitable conditions for an arrival, wader numbers remained stubbornly static at Ferrybridge. At the Bill, an impromptu Storm Petrel luring session after midnight - 4 were trapped and plenty more seen - revealed their continuing presence offshore but by day the sea the quiet, with 40 Sandwich Terns and an Arctic Skua the best of the migrants; a random Black Swan also floated past close inshore off East Cliffs.
We're hoping that the dearth of wader passage is further evidence of a good breeding season but for the time being those that are about at Ferrybridge like these Sanderlings are well settled and showing nicely in the current balmy conditions © Pete Saunders:
watched this tree pipit feeding to the sides of the track down to the RN cemetery. very little in the way of birds there or the common, just a single migrant willow warbler
— andylportland.bsky.social (@andylportland.bsky.social) August 11, 2025 at 3:48 PM
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looks like autumn ladies tresses have been out for a few days already at verne common, reasonable numbers but not great specimens on the parched field
— andylportland.bsky.social (@andylportland.bsky.social) August 11, 2025 at 3:50 PM
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