A very pleasant start to the morning and an even better afternoon, with a decent variety of migrants on offer at the observatory and out on the nature reserve.
A Grasshopper Warbler was a very nice surprise early morning, reeling c. 05.30am and not a bird we see regularly here, (pictured above).
Observed were 8 Yellow Wagtail, 5 Blackcap, 4 Common Whitethroat, 4 Lesser Whitethroat, 3 Chiffchaff, 2 Willow Warbler, 2 Continental Coal Tit, 10 Wheatear, 1 Meadow Pipit, 3 Goldfinch, 15 Swallow, 7 Sand Martin, 2 House Martin, 1 Common Redstart and 1 Red-legged Partridge.
The first Hobby of the year passed through early afternoon.
Sea watching produced c. 34 Black-headed Gull, 16 Cormorant, 12 Whimbrel, 6+ Curlew, 4 Bar-tailed Godwit, 3 Oystercatcher, 2 Little Egret, 1 Common Gull and 1 Red-throated Diver.
Very few moths in the traps recently but plenty of these 'Icneumon' type critters, but as our identification skills in the hymenoptera department is very poor, does anyone out there recognise it? Possibly Ophion luteus?
Ringing: 13 birds ringed today including 5 Blackcap, 2 Linnet, 1 Woodpigeon, 1 Chiffchaff, 1 Common Whitethroat, 1 Common Redstart, 1 Wheatear and 1 Grasshopper Warbler.