Selsey Bill- Black Reds

4 Redwings flew over the garden as I headed out to join the Selsey Seawatch this morning for a couple of hours. It was pretty quiet, the most interesting thing was the arrival of passerines coming in low over the waves in the light head wind (a light north easterly). It was mainly a few Chiffchaffs and Meadow Pipits but there were a male and female Black Redstart in the Bill gardens and later in the day a couple of Wheatears arrived too. My morning list HERE and the full log HERE that also included 4 Garganey flying east after I left. 

We had to take Isaac to the doctors today so it wasn't my usual Monday in the field but I popped back to the Bill in the evening to check for more newly arrived passerines. The Black Reds were still present and the only new bird of note was a Fulmar flying west.

Female-type Black Redstart. There has been a female-type wintering in the same area which starting singing a little while back indicating it was a first-winter male. Not sure if this is the same bird or a newly arrived one - the panel in the wing seems stronger than the wintering bird (HERE) 

The rather stunning newly arrived male Black Redstart

There were about 8 Chiffchaffs in the bill gardens and seen coming in-off so clearly a small fall today. It was nice to see a small fall today considering there was a major fall on Portland yesterday (150 Chiffs and 10 Willow Warblers etc).  Certainly seem to be in a migration shadow here somewhat so far this Spring. There's even been 2 Black Reds, Swallows and Sand Martins, Willow Warbler and overhead movements of Mipits, Chaffinches and Redwings at the old patch of Beddington Farmlands in the last few days so no evident concentration of summer migrants on the coast here in comparison to inland there which is a bit of surprise. Willow Warblers are also in in the old patches in Oxfordshire too.  It's quite possible a lot of migrants simply overshot us here on the coast over the last few days with the keen south easterly wind, see the Birdguides maps HERE showing the spread of Wheatears and Swallows over the UK last week (and also the overshoot fall in the south west and west that we also missed out on here). Will be interesting to see how the rest of the Spring pans out compared with the old inland patches and other south coast migration hotspots. 

Kittiwake- one of two birds moving east. There has been a pretty significant movement of Kittiwakes up the Severn in the last few days with hundreds going over the bridge and overland and then a few being picked up on waterbodies across the Midlands. Only a few are following the south coast (been only a handful off the Bill, with larger numbers off Dunge) and clearly many birds preferring the short cut between the Severn and the east coast. The Med Gull passage seems to have escalated fast here with 350 reported off Itchenor today- there's only been a handful all winter and low tens moving over and offshore before today. 

These smart looking Heralds were the highlight of the moth trap last night, in a cooler night. Unfortunately the night temperatures are due to drop further this week in the resumed northerly airflow.