Another day of high expectations and although there were appropriate rewards they certainly weren't widely available, with many visitors leaving largely empty-handed. Well before dawn the first arrival at the Obs heard multiple Ortolan Bunting calls overhead but the bird(s) couldn't be found after daybreak; later, a flighty and furtive Hoopoe showed up off Weston Street, a Dartford Warbler was a September oddity on the Slopes, up to 4 Curlew Sandpipers joined the waders at Ferrybridge and there were visitor reports of, amongst others, an Osprey departing south at the Bill and a Sabine's Gull through on the sea there. With heavy thundery showers only a little to the west of the island at dawn conditions looked promising for a drop of migrants but only the likes of Yellow Wagtails, Wheatears and Whinchats figured at all conspicuously; warblers in particular were really thinly spread, whilst 3 White Wagtails and 2 Pied Flycatchers were as good as it got for the less-frequents. Overhead passage was fitful but did include some strong pulses of departing hirundines everywhere and a Hobby through at Ferrybridge. Balearic Shearwaters dominated on the sea, with 120 through east off the Bill during the morning, another 110 through east there in short time towards dusk and plenty of milling around by the same or others in between both off the Bill and off West Cliffs/Chesil; more than 100 departing Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 50 commic terns, 7 Sanderling, 2 Arctic Skuas and the first Red-throated Diver of the autumn
Still far too windy overnight to be able to get amongst the best of the overnight migrant moth arrivals; 3 Latticed Heath and singles of Convolvulus and Striped Hawks the pick of a low key catch at the Obs
