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30th April

With the exception of occasional assemblages of Wheatears and wagtails on the freshly ploughed ground at the Bill there looked to be few new grounded passerine arrivals in today continuing blasting easterly. It was also quieter overhead where singles of Hobby and Redpoll were the pick of some otherwise uninspiring vismig over the Bill. The sea was the day's honourable exception on the numbers front, with some good totals of waders in particular accumulated from Chesil and the Bill that included 212 Bar-tailed Godwits, 107 Whimbrel, 50 Sanderling, 35 Dunlin, 10 Grey Plovers and a Little Ringed Plover; 55 Common Scoter, 4 Pomarine Skuas, 2 Shoveler and 2 Arctic Skuas also passed by offshore. Waders pitching in at Ferrybridge included 4 Sanderlings and a Grey Plover.

Quite how Portland managed just four Pomarine Skuas - and these didn't pass until really late in the evening - out of what's likely to prove to be this spring's 'Pom Day' in the English Channel was one of the peculiarities of the day; however, it is an odd thing that we've noticed many times before that conditions that are particularly favourable for Poms further up Channel are often not those that bring them close to shore at Portland/Chesil © Jodie Henderson:

Waders featured throughout the day and were still passing over Chesil as dusk coincided with moonrise © Pete Saunders (top two) and Martin Cade (bottom two):




The Crown Estate Field tillage was still worth attention, with this White Wagtail amongst numerous Yellow Wagtails and Wheatears again today © Martin Cade:


Amazing numbers of Little Tern off Chesil, I counted 100+ in one sweep. Part of the swarm in the photo! Decent enough otherwise with 80+ Barwit, 45+ Whimbrel, 3 Grey Plover, 2 Shoveler, 15 Sanderling, 25 Scoter. Sadly no Skuas today. Best from a very poor trap was this nfy Seraphim.


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— Paul Harris (@paulupwey.bsky.social) April 30, 2026 at 11:01 AM

Sure sign it's poor for birds when the local school call in on us and there are so few migrants coming from the mist-nets that for some hands-on natural history we're reduced to pond-dipping for newts with them!

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— Portland Bird Observatory (@portlandbirdobs.bsky.social) April 30, 2026 at 2:44 PM