9th April

The combination of the still cold sea and the continuing warm airflow brought forth that all too familiar spring blight of fog today; only the Bill was badly affected but it was more than enough to give a wintery feel to proceedings there even if the birding was well and truly in spring mode. The day's highlight was a Stone Curlew grounded in the Crown Estate Field; other newcomers included first records for the season of Sedge Warbler at the Bill, Pied Flycatcher at the Royal Naval Cemetery and Common Tern through off Chesil and the Bill. Migrant variety and numbers remained on the up, with a wide scatter of 10 Redstarts, 4 Ring Ouzels and a Short-eared Owl, as well as totals of a good 200 phylloscs and 30 Blackcaps from the Bill alone. The conditions were just right for Chesil seawatching, with 152 Common Scoter, 51 Black-headed Gulls, 38 Common Terns, 11 Whimbrel, 7 Little Gulls and singles of Red-throated Diver, Black-throated Diver, Great Northern Diver and Red-breasted Merganser the reward from a couple of morning watches.

Another Clouded Yellow was on the wing today at Kingbarrow Quarry.




Stone Curlew and Pied Flycatcher - Portland Bill and the Royal Naval Cemetery, Verne Common - 9th April 2015 © Steve Gantlett Birding World (settled Stone Curlew), Simon Craft (flying Stone Curlew) and Roger Hewitt (Pied Flycatcher)