3rd March

Despite largely unchanged conditions migrants obviously spotted a window of opportunity - maybe it was clearer on the other side of the Channel? - and there was a steady arrival of Meadow Pipits in particular for a good part of the day; with sample counts of 30-40/hour at both the Bill and Chesil a fair few hundred birds in total must have passed over the island today. Although it was nice to at last see some numbers, the day's highlights were actually two more firsts for the year: a White Wagtail dropped in briefly at Reap Lane and a returning Puffin was prospecting the auk colony at the Bill. The rest of the action was relatively mundane, with 4 Purple Sandpipers, the Black Redstart and the Blackcap still at the Bill, a Great Spotted Woodpecker again at Pennsylvania Castle, the odd few Rooks scattered about and Red-throated Divers through off Chesil (2) and the Bill.