30th October

A strong south-easterly wind left us all chomping at the bit to get out but heavy rain from mid-morning made for pretty torrid conditions. Only the west coat of the island was checked during the afternoon, but it was pretty evident that the majority of birds were dropping into the island during the very final hour of daylight so tomorrow looks like being an even better day. Several scarcities were found such as a soggy Short-toed Lark at Nether Linnay, where there was also a Hawfinch and a very late (and also soggy) Spotted Flycatcher caused some alarm briefly! A Red-breasted Flycatcher at Doo-geo in the near darkness will be double checked for the rarer option tomorrow, while counts from less than 20% coverage were 6 Woodcocks, 19 Robins, a Ring Ouzel, 19 Blackbirds, 28 Fieldfares, 15 Song Thrushes, 478 Redwings, 6 Blackcaps, 3 Chiffchaffs, 14 Goldcrests, 4 Bramblings, a Common Redpoll and 13 Snow Buntings.