Another very unsettled day turned up a decent selection of new arrivals on the ground together with some of the heaviest sea passage we've seen all spring. The latter was particularly unanticipated: at the Bill the Manx Shearwater total got beyond 1000, whilst Gannets and Fulmars were passing at rates of up to 800 and 40 per hour respectively at times during the morning (these figures constitute peaks for each species so far this season); 15 Common Scoter, 3 Balearic Shearwaters, 3 Great Skuas, 2 Sanderling, 2 Arctic Skuas, a Great Northern Diver and a Storm Petrel also passed through off the Bill, whilst 3 Black Terns, 2 Arctic Skuas and a Pomarine Skua passed through off Chesil and an Arctic Skua flew over Ferrybridge. Coverage of the land was hard work in the stiff breeze but there were certainly new arrivals about, with 10 Reed Warblers, 4 Willow Warblers, 2 each of Sedge Warbler, Chiffchaff and Spotted Flycatcher, and singles of Whimbrel, Wheatear, Redstart and Blackcap at the Bill and 15 Sanderling, a Grey Plover and a Bar-tailed Godwit at Ferrybridge.
Migrant Lepidoptera continued to feature, including single Hummingbird Hawk-moths at the Obs and Sweethill, 15 Silver Ys and 14 Diamond-back Moths caught overnight in the Obs garden moth-traps and small numbers of Painted Ladys at the Bill and Southwell.
Grey Seal - Portland Bill, 22nd May 2014 © Beatrice Dopita
...and some of the migrant lepidoptera of the last few days:
