Portland Bird Observatory

3rd February	Evening update. Once again there was limited enthusiasm for flogging round in an icey wind, with the morning's sightings at the Bill consisting of just 5 Red-throated Divers and 4 Shelduck through on the sea and 4 Lapwings heading north. With the wind having abated by the afternoon a check of the land there revealed some evidence of routine fare having arrived in response to the weather: totals of 80 Meadow Pipits, 55 Skylarks and 6 Song Thrushes were all higher than any other counts of those species so far this winter.
2nd February	Only limited coverage on another bright but still very cold day. The only worthwhile reports were of 2 Red-throated Divers and a Great Northern Diver through off the Bill. Also a notice from the bookshop: The shop has one spare copy of each of the recently-published Handbook of the Birds of the World Vol 16 (RRP £185) and Handbook of the Mammals of the World Vol 2 (RRP £130). These are on sale to members at the unbeatable prices of £130 for HBW (£145 to non-members) & £105 for HMW (£115 to non-members). Only one copy of each is available. Contact Nick Wright on 01305 459268 or wright39@talktalk.net
1st February	After the first light frost of the winter at the Obs a day of unbroken sunshine saw to it that despite the continuing stiff easterly it wasn't too bad a day. A little more cold weather movement at the Bill included 11 Lapwings heading north and 5 Teal, 2 Wigeon and 2 Little Egrets through on the sea; 4 Purple Sandpipers and 2 Black Redstarts were also there and 6 Red-throated Divers passed through on the sea.
31st January	Despite it being a frost-free night (there still hasn't been a frost at the Obs this winter) the day itself felt bitterly cold in a stiff easterly and mainly dreary skies. The plover total at the Bill increased slightly to 30 Lapwings and 2 Golden Plovers, but the only other noteworthy reports from there were of 2 Red-throated Divers through on the sea and 2 Purple Sandpipers and a Chiffchaff on the land.
30th January	A thoroughly miserable day of constant light rain and a raw easterly. The only obvious cold weather refugees to make it to the island were 22 Lapwings at the Bill; also there, 2 Common Scoter and a Red-throated Diver passed through on the sea and the usual 4 Turnstones and 3 Purple Sandpipers were on the land. Six Bottle-nosed Dolphins passed through off the Bill during the morning.
Black-tailed Godwit - Ferrybridge, 29th January 2012 © Pete Saunders
29th January	The Black Guillemot appeared off the Bill - settled for a while off East Cliffs - for the first time in three weeks and a Black-tailed Godwit was at Ferrybridge but otherwise the day's sightings were pretty routine: 11 Black-necked Grebes and a Great Northern Diver in Portland Harbour, single Black Redstarts at Portland Castle and the Bill, a Teal through off the Bill and singles of Ringed Plover and Purple Sandpiper at the Bill.
Razorbill - Portland Harbour, 28th January 2012 © Pete Saunders
28th January	Sufficiently sunny and pleasant that even the cool northerly breeze hardly spoilt what was a really fine day. Just for once the land returned most of the interest at the Bill, where the usual 4 Turnstones, 3 Purple Sandpipers and lone Black Redstart remained in situ and singles of Snipe and Reed Bunting were newcomers. The only other reports were of 15 Black-necked, a Slavonian Grebe and a Razorbill in Portland Harbour. The first butterfly of the year - a Red Admiral - was on the wing in the Obs garden.
27th January	Just routine fare again today: 2 Purple Sandpipers and a Black Redstart at the Bill and 11 Black-necked Grebes and singles of Black-throated Diver and Great Northern Diver in Portland Harbour.
26th January	Sunshine and some pretty beefy showers blown through on a fresh westerly today. A pre-dawn Barn Owl beside the road outside the Obs was a nice start to the day, but otherwise a fairly routine return from the Bill included 7 Common Scoter and 2 Great Skuas through on the sea and the 3 wintering Purple Sandpipers still present there.
Great Northern Diver and Red-throated Diver - Portland Bill, 25th January 2012 © Martin Cade ...and a photo to give at least some idea of the wealth of seabirds feeding off the Bill at the moment:
25th January	Dreary and often damp but certainly mild for late January. The sea continued to get most of the attention, with 7 Red-throated Divers, 7 Common Scoter and a lone Great Northern Diver through off the Bill. Standard fare on the land there included 3 Turnstones, 2 Purple Sandpipers, 2 Chiffchaffs and a Goldcrest. Elsewhere there was a Yellow-legged Gull at Ferrybridge.
24th January	Rain throughout the morning kept nearly everyone indoors and the day's only sightings were of a Red-throated Diver through on the sea at the Bill and the wintering Chiffchaff still in the Obs garden.
23rd January	An altogether more pleasant day was ultimately spoilt by a succession of passing showers during the afternoon. A Lapwing arriving in off the sea at the Bill was a bit unexpected, but the real spectacle there was the enormous number of auks still present offshore: a sample 15 minute count that returned a total of 8000 was entirely representative of the situation throughout most the morning, although with huge flocks whirring about in all directions it was really difficult to get a handle on quite how many birds were offshore. Five Red-throated Divers and 2 Common Scoter also passed through there. A Western Conifer Seed Bug was found on an outside wall at the Obs.
22nd January	Even windier than yesterday, with a good deal fewer birds of note: singles of Red-throated Diver and Common Scoter passed through off the Bill, the wintering trio of Purple Sandpiper, Black Redstart and Chiffchaff were all represented singly there on the land, whilst elsewhere 14 Black-necked Grebes and a Great Northern Diver were in Portland Harbour.
21st January	Another windy day when seawatching seemed like the best bet. Singles of Balearic Shearwater and Great Skua appeared - only quite briefly in each case - amongst the seabirds off the Bill, where 60 Brent Geese, 4 Red-throated Divers, 3 Common Scoter and a Golden Plover also passed through. Elsewhere there were 13 Black-necked and 2 Slavonian Grebes in Portland Harbour. Four Bottle-nosed Dolphins headed west off the Bill during the morning.
20th January	On a day of pretty brisk north-westerlies the only reports were from the sea at the Bill, where a Balearic Shearwater was a notable newcomer amongst the feeding flocks offshore; 3 Red-throated Divers, 3 Common Scoter and a Great Northern Diver also passed by there.
Firecrest - Church Ope Cove, 19th January 2012 © Martin Cade
19th January	Not too bad a day: the westerly breeze was a bit fresh at times but the forecast rain didn't amount to much. Off the Bill a Great Skua was still in residence amongst the feeding frenzy of routine seabirds around the tide race; 27 Brent Geese and singles of Red-throated Diver and Common Scoter also passed through on the sea and 4 Turnstones, 3 Purple Sandpipers and a Chiffchaff were still about on the land. Elsewhere there were 7 Black-necked Grebes and a Great Northern Diver in Portland Harbour and singles of Goldcrest and Firecrest at Church Ope Cove.