Light westerly winds and prolonged sunny intervals were far from ideal conditions for the start of the Seawatch Festival. However, the benefits of increased coverage (both from land and the sea in the form of the Yorkshire Belle) paid off.
Highlights included a Black Guillemot that eventually flew north-east (seen from the Belle off Bempton), a juvenile Long-tailed Skua north, two Pomarine Skuas south and a Balearic Shearwater lingering off the headland. In addition, gulls were well represented with juvenile Yellow-legged and three juvenile Caspian Gulls off the Seawatch Observatory, together with four juvenile Little Gulls and two Mediterranean Gulls. A single Black Tern joined a Common Tern feeding flock, an adult Roseate Tern flew north mid-afternoon, while three Sooty Shearwaters were also logged. Skua passage picked up post-lunch, ending with a total of 46 Arctic Skuas and three Bonxies moving south. Small numbers of waders also headed south, including a Greenshank and five Ruff. Cetacean interest included 6+ Minke Whales offshore between RSPB Bempton Cliffs and the Seawatch Observatory, 55+ Harbour Porpoises and a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins. Surprisingly, four species of raptors were recorded during the seawatch including single Merlin and Marsh Harrier.
The Greenish Warbler continued to show sporadically around the Golf Course Willows, with four Pied Flycatchers ‘drifting ashore’ from early afternoon and two Whinchat in the Gorse Field.
A Short-eared Owl again hunted cliff top fields at RSPB Bempton Cliffs.
