Rare beauty

I had gone to Hartley to look for goldcrests but when I arrived I found a crowd of birders so I knew something was up. The recent persistent easterly wind brought the promise of migrants and this bird was among them.  It is a Pallas's leaf warbler.  It breeds in Eastern Russia and normally winters in Southern China, although a few have been seen on the east coast of England each autumn in recent years.  It is a beautiful bird and tiny, similar in size to a goldcrest - it's amazing to think it flew 3000 miles to get here.