The Portland PortalThe visitor guide to the beautiful Isle of Portland, Dorset

19th – Distinctly milder and more pleasant conditions saw quite a resurgence in hirundine passage, with Swallows – and to a lesser but still surprising extent Sand Martins – arriving in off the sea throughout the day; a sample 10 minute count of 87 Swallows and 3 Sand Martins heading north along the West Cliffs [...]

12th – After all the recent rain a day of almost unbroken sunshine was particularly welcome. The brisk northerly wind that accompanied the change in the weather saw to it that passing migrants were made to struggle, with a nice array of mainly routine fare at least temporarily downed at the Bill. With many birds [...]

5th – Another constantly damp, dreary day was not quite so good for routine fare but did provide an unexpected highlight when the 5 White Storks that have been touring the country for the last fortnight appeared over the island during the morning: they were initially spotted arriving from the west over Southwell, before heading [...]

28th – As so often happens at migration times some of the grimmest conditions produce plenty of birds, and today proved to be no exception, with a morning of constant rain gaving way to a slightly drier afternoon that saw the north-easterly wind freshen to getting on for gale force by evening. The rain dropped [...]