A slightly warmer day with the sun poking its head out and another school bird boat group eager to get out. With a calmer sea it made things far more pleasant in the end with the highlights being 14 Barnacle Geese on Rempstone, 1 Great Northern Diver off Brownsea, 4 Spoonbill on Brownsea, 1 Black-necked Grebe in central harbour and 3 Seals (2 Common, 1 Grey). A sea watch from Branksome Chine produced a great total of 44 Red-throated Diver past , also 28 auk sp likely to be Razorbill considering the numbers passing Portland at present), 1 Common Scoter, 2 Red-breasted Merganser and 8 Great Crested Grebe. The Yellow-browed Warbler at Cabot Lane was seen again and there were still c30 Chiffchaff in the PC World drain and c20 at Norden Sewage Works. The Smew was still in Holes Bay north and the Lesser Yellowlegs on French’s Pools, Lytchett Fields. 

Redhead Smew – Holes Bay north east – Ian Ballam