Wow, what a day. After a spell of unsettled weather there was high anticipation for today's calmness which coupled with an overcast sky delivered in bucketloads. The star turn came in the form of Portland and Dorset's first
Black-faced Bunting that was trapped soon after dawn in the Crown Estate Field; running that a close second came a
Pallid Swift that was first spotted heading south at Nicodemus Knob before later settling down over the Bill where it showed outstandingly well for a good part of the afternoon. These goodies arrived in tandem with a really good arrival of commoner migrants that included a big drop of Goldcrests on the ground, together with a strong overhead passage of pigeons, finches and others.
Goldcrests numbered more than 100 at the Bill alone, with further interest there coming from the likes of 10
Reed Buntings, 5
Black Redstarts, a
Whinchat and a
Firecrest; elsewhere, a/the
Snow Bunting was on East Cliffs near Southwell and a
Yellow-browed Warbler was at Wakeham. Visible passage over the Bill included 3600
Wood Pigeons, 1590
Starlings, 480
Goldfinches, 440
Chaffinches, 385
Linnets, 185
Stock Doves, 140
Skylarks, 125
Meadow Pipits, 29
Siskins, 14
Redwings, 14
Bramblings, 8
Redpolls, 6
Swallows and singles of
Greylag Goose and
Tree Pipit, with 8
Crossbills an addition to the tally over the Heights. Two
Shelducks and singles of
Red-throated and
Great Northern Divers through off the Bill were the best of what little little passage there was on the sea.
With a radical change in their status afoot, there was almost an inevitability about a Black-faced Bunting eventually turning up in a net in the Crown Estate Field and so one duly did. Today's bird was presumably a young female and so was right at the subtle end of what's possible with this species - its rather olive drabness made it oddly distinctive in the hand but we'd imagine it'd be quite an easy bird to pass off if seen briefly/poorly/distantly in the field © Duncan Walbridge (top) and Martin Cade (other details):
The Pallid Swift was showing fantastically well at times © Martin Cade:
A ripping ringing day at the Bill: the Black-faced Bunting a top notch rare but 45 Goldcrests also an exceptional total for November out of the day total of 108 new birds; Skylark a rarely-ringed highlight amongst the lower totals.
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— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) November 6, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Black-faced Bunting @portlandbirdobs.bsky.social
early morning - the second two images probably give a better indication of true colour - another first for Dorset in a remarkable year for this species in Western Europe:
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— alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social (@alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social) November 6, 2025 at 6:42 PM
The Pallid Swift @portlandbirdobs.bsky.social
showed incredible well on over the Top Fields with 3 Swallows at lunchtime.
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— alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social (@alanlewiswildlife.bsky.social) November 6, 2025 at 6:20 PM
Pallid swift on Portland today @dorsetbirdclub.bsky.social @portlandbirdobs.bsky.social #ukbirding #dorsetbirds @rarebirder.bsky.social 🦉
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— Simon 📹 🎸📷 (@therockinbirder.bsky.social) November 6, 2025 at 5:49 PM
Late afternoon/early evening along Wakeham Railway Cuttings my first Yellow-browed Warbler for this Autumn.
portandwey.blogspot.com/2025/11/6-no...
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— Port and Wey (@portandwey.bsky.social) November 6, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Dark-bellied Brent Geese flying up the Fleet to Ferrybridge, Dorset. Click to see the whole photo.
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— Alick Simmons (@parliamentarygoose.bsky.social) November 6, 2025 at 5:31 PM
