Visible migration really ramped up this morning with the UK’s third highest count of Siskin logged up on Ballard with 2632 counted heading NE into the wind along with 13 Crossbill, 5 Lesser Redpoll (first of the autumn), 1 Tree Pipit, 4 Yellow Wagtail, 93 Meadow Pipit, 30 Goldfinch and a good number of Swallow and House Martin. Birds were moving east along the river valley’s too with c500 Swallow & House Martin, 4 Woodlark, 6 Crossbill, 1 Common Snipe and c70 Siskin all heading down the Piddle and Frome Valley with 2 Great White Egret logged heading west up the Piddle Valley at dawn. There was also a Great White Egret at Lytchett Fields first thing and a Red Kite drifted north over Holes Bay NE. Avocet numbers on the Brownsea Lagoon are building with 292 now present along with 362 Teal. The only Osprey of the day was reported late in the day sat in the dead trees at Middlebere. At Swineham the 2 Pectoral Sandpiper were again on the Stilt Pools and 2 Cattle Egret were in the same field and another was next to the road on the Wareham Causeway. There were 2 Curlew Sandpiper on Lytchett Fields with 151 Dunlin and 4 Curlew Sandpiper were on Brownsea.

Yellow Wagtail – Lytchett Fields – Ian Ballam