Redwings and Buzzard on the move

A dull ,grey day with slight drizzle and an odd fine snow flurry or two with a cool NE>3-4.

Another Buzzard past Queensbury at lunchtime seen from Foxhill park but this was very distant and very high over Baildon heading >N up the Worth valley. A continuation from yesterdays raptor movement.
A flock of 38 Redwings came over in migration mode >N whilst I was still up the park and 2 more smaller groups were seen in the afternoon over work heading in the same direction.
With these sightings and yesterdays Oxenhope Curlews things look to be moving early.
Amazing Curlew photos on DCBs vis mig blog from yesterday, well worth a viewing.
BS

Oxenhope

Curlews arriving

Peering through a snow storm

Small gulls touching down

Oxenhope, pm visit. Strong NE>5-6 Heavy showers. Some Snow and Hail

Atrocious weather but good birding with Curlews coming in to roost along with Lapwings, Goosanders and a low count of small gulls.
A nice fly past of a Sparrowhawk followed by a Kestrel and just the one LBB gull keeping going >N. For action shots of this afternoons birds see DCBs vis mig blog when he updates it.

33 Curlew
5 Goosander
160+ Lapwings
150+Starlings in fields
1pr Goldeneye
1 Sparrowhawk
1 Kestrel
4 Red Grouse
1 LBB gull >N
BS, DCB, CK, KM.

Out in the rain

Tufted at Cold Edge

Shoreline nearly gone

Canadas at Ogden

Another miserable wet Sunday with fog at Fly Flatts, drizzle at Cold Edge Dams and rain at Ogden. W>4
Rather quiet this morning probably due to the weather but nice to get a Curlew on the receding shoreline at Cold Edge which flew off >SE.
Ogden still had the Gt Crested Grebe but no Goldeneye or Waxwings but 2 pr Goosander flew over >N.

Fly Flatts fogged off.

Cold Edge Dams :-
2pr Tufted Duck
1 Curlew1 f Goldeneye
2 Common gull
4 BH gull
1 Canada Goose
2 Red Grouse
6 Meadow Pipits  back on moor
6 Mallard

Ogden :-
1 Gt crested Grebe
16 Canada Geese
1 Song Thrush
1 pr Goosander >N
+ usual sp.

No finch flock at the Delvers.
BS

Sunshine and Showers

A mixed day of sunshine and showers with a cool W>5.
Shelf Moor late pm held 32 Fieldfare in the hawthorn field with about 6 Redwing in the hedges whilst 4 Canada geese were at the pond along with 1 Moorhen and 2 pr Mallards.
Up to 200 Starlings were in a field along with 5 Lapwings. The Lapwing flock seems to have all but dispersed now.
Four Mistle Thrushes were on wires and a Green Woodpecker was calling from near the lion gates.
Hope those showers hold off tomorrow.
BS

Queensbury Today

Common and BH gulls back in the park.

A half decent day but a downer from yesterdays spring like weather. Mild WSW>4 with early drizzle then a day of grey skies.
Common gulls were back in the park with 11 at midday along with 7 Black Headed. Two LBBs flew over >NW in the direction of Oxenhope closely followed by a single Golden Plover very high and in the same direction.
A Skylark could be heard making half an attempt at singing but never getting into full song,this came from the direction of Old Guy Rd.
A pair of Dunnocks are chasing each other about all day by the garage car park conifers and its a contest to see which can sing the loudest, Dunnock v Robin. A Blackbird keeps threatening to sing but hasnt got into the swing of things yet.
Hope everyone has a productive birding weekend.
BS

Queensbury Station, the Dailies

The old triangle station at Queensbury is believed to be
one of two in the country.

The view from the top of the Dailies looking east.

The sky over Foxhill tonight.

At last the fog has gone leaving a bright clear sky with a slight W>2.
A quick dash to the Dailies at lunchtime found beautiful clear skies but very little bird activity in them other that small gulls moving around. Three Skylarks down on the ground was a suprise for the area and these were obviously birds fresh in and moving through.
A couple of Grey Partridge were making plenty noise and a Green Woodpecker was ' laughing ' down in the station. Up to 12 Magpies were in the thick Hawthorns and a couple of Robins were singing. No signs of Linnets.
Just a nice 10minute break before heading back to the daily grind.
BS

Queensbury Today

Another day of fog, mist and rain apart from about 1 hour late p.m. when it cleared up before the next front of rain came over. Just come back from dog walking and its the first time for days that Ive been able to see across the valley so things could be on the turn.
No time for the Dailies dash today with a couple of errands to do and apart from that it was heavy drizzle and low cloud.
Eight Common gulls were back in the park at lunch time and 11 Woodpigeons flew over >NE.
A single Mistle Thrush was on the wires near work and 6 Mallard flew towards Station Rd pond.
The local Sparrowhawk visited the garden feeders 4 times today but always as Im at work. Lynda shot out to chase it off twice.
BS

Goldeneye

Now you see it, now you dont, f. Goldeneye

Photo from Sunday, copying NKs mystery photo.
BS

Another murky Queensbury day.

Fog yet again this morning but partially cleared pm only to return just before dark.
Birds seemed to be pushed into moving just after midday when the mist lifted and a little group of 4 Pied Wagtails moved over >NW closely followed by 18 Redwing going in the same direction.
As commented on NKs blog the gulls have all but left the Foxhill park area which is about 3 weeks earlier than previous years.
Blackbirds were up in full song today with 3 birds holding territory in the car park conifers.
I hope this dreaded fog shifts before the weekend!
BS

A misty Oxenhope

Gulls piling over the valve tower

A wintery track

Oxenhope late p.m. visit. Low cloud and drizzle, SSE >5. Visibility just to far bank.

Poor conditions and once again confined to the hide to get out of the damp and biting wind.
The gull roost was back after nothing showed last weekend with gulls piling in from 1445hrs and still coming in smaller numbers as I left at 1630 hrs whilst DCB and CK stayed on till the end. Goldeneye were present and a small Goosander roost although this could have built up at last light. A covey of 38 Grey Partridge were on the road to the site on my way in.

Grey Partridge...............................38
Tufted Duck...................................1
Goosander......................................8
LBB Gull.........................................5
Common gull, BH gull..................c 2800 70 % being BH.
Goldeneye.....................................3
BS, CK, DCB.

Foggy Oggy

Goldeneyes saved the day

OGDEN. Dense fog and heavy drizzle, SE>3 increasing >5 and clearing fog leaving a grey misty morning.

A real miserable morning with poor weather and sloppy snow and mud underfoot but as I say, something usually turns up to save the day and this was in the form of a cracking pair of Goldeneye which were much more obliging to the camera than usual.
Two Canadas were on the water which are my first geese of the year and Redwings were leaving their roost in the trees and heading for the fields. Mallard numbers were up this morning and a single Pied Wagtail was on the waters edge but didnt want its photo taking.
So what started off feeling like a waste of time turned out ok but these type of mornings are usually the ones that turn up the megas.
Just hoping now that the low cloud shifts by late p.m. so I can have another dabble.

4 Redwing
1pr Goldeneye
83 Mallard
1 Pied Wagtail
11 Common Gull
16 BH Gull
usual tits etc
BS

Weekend again

Heavy overnight snow till midday

Chaos on the road

Not much action at work this morning.

Heavy snow from just after midnight lasting till midday leaving a good 6 inch covering and main roads stopped for a while, the blockage above was due to a jack knifed wagon.
The snow stopped just after 1200hrs leaving thick fog for the rest of the day becoming dense after dark.
The jobs looking bad for morning if this fog hangs on which lucks highly likely, oh well, theres always next week.
BS.

Something to look out for

Autumn 2010 Wheatears, Fly Flatts

By autumn male and female have near the same plumage

So who,s going to report the first Wheatear this year? Over the next few weeks birds will start coming through this area in,not their plain autumn plumage, but instead the males will be in their bright breeding plumage. The first reports are usually 20th March onwards but the way things are now earlier birds are possible so keep your eye on those dry stone wall tops and see if we can get an early record, mind you, DJS,s late Wheatear at Withins Gap has only just gone.

Queensbury birding has been a non starter today with a variation of thich fog and drizzly mist most of the day backed up by an icy cold SE>3. Good birding for the weekend, lets hope the weather is a bit kinder than the last few.
BS

Queensbury Today

Calm, foggy start clearing to mist, slightly brighter p.m.

A grey murky day with low cloud obstructing any sky viewing for most of the day.
Two Mistle Thrush were in Foxhill park at lunch time which is unusual , along with 1 Pied Wagtail and 4 Common Gulls. The Common gull flock is now dispersing although numbers have been poor this winter probably due to the time that the ground remained frozen.
Collared Dove numbers are up with up to 11 birds in the Foxhill area using several feeding stations although I have,nt had any in my garden to press.
A neighbour told me the Sparrowhawk has been seen in my garden on a regular basis after the Sparrows but usually comes when Im at work, good job Lynda doesnt see it or she,d be out with the long brush protecting her sparrows.
BS.

The Dailies dash

Always nice to see Roe deer

Wish I could sprint back up this hill like a Roe deer

A bright day with very little breeze till mid pm when it clouded with some light rain for a time.
The Dailies at lunch time were rather quiet but something always turns up and today it was 2 Roe deer which sprinted along the hillside and over walls covering about 3 miles in 3 minutes.Wish I could do the same, Id be able to bird all Queensbury in my lunch hour.
Birdwise there was very little about other than the usual Grey Partridge, Greenfinch and a decent number of Magpies. A Green Woodpecker was calling but kept out of sight. I walked down a bit further today to the top of the old tunnel looking for the resident Bullfinch flock but came away empty handed and by the time Id scaled back up the hill in time to get back to work I thought I was going to need oxygen!

3 Grey Partridge
4 Greenfinch
1 Green Wdpecker, heard
14 Magpie
2 Chaffinch
2 Roe Deer
+ usual corvids and small gulls.
BS

Back to winter in Queensbury

A typical Queensbury morning

Plenty Starlings around

A cold, frosty,foggy morning with light overnight snow which soon cleared leaving a grey damp day with a SE>4 and heavy rain after dark.
A different day to yesterday on the bird scene with no singing today from the Robins, Blackbirds and Dunnocks which seemed to be keeping their heads down in the shelter of the conifers.
Starlings were everywhere today hanging around the garden feeders then swooping down to clear the food before moving on to the next supply. Strange how Starlings always group and feed in the poor weather yet not on the bright days, perhaps they stick to the fields when the weather is good.
Hopefully the weather will improve tomorrow and if my schedule goes well I will be able to get my mid week lunch time dash to the Dailies.
I meant to get over to Woodlesford tonight to but a copy of Nick Dawtreys Halifax bird report but things didnt go as planned so thats another job for the weekend.
BS

Queensbury Today

Robins now in full song

A bright sunny start which quickly turned to cloud and a cold SW>4. Rain showers turning briefly to snow mid p.m.

Three Robins are now holding territory in the conifers at the back of the garage car park and spend most of the day squabbling or singing along with a pair of Dunnock and 2 pair of Blackbirds. The greenfinch seem to have moved on for the time being along with the 2 Woodpigeons.
A small flock of 3 Skylark flew over the garage >NE coinciding with reports from the weekend of movers, spring must be just around the corner now.
BS

Oxenhope

Confined to barracks

Male Goldeneye digiscoped from a great distance.

Oxenhope pm visit. 1500-1615hrs. Heavy rain throughout, SW>4-5 mist rolling in.

Well the weather didnt improve from this morning, in fact it got worse but needed to get out before work tomorrow so headed for the hide. Conditions inside were,nt much better with the rain coming straight through the window opening and onto the scope lens.
The water was again void of gulls although a few Commons circled over and took a quick look before moving off again. Goldeneye were the bird of the day with 3 females and 1 male whilst 2 male Goosander sheltered on the SW banking. 7 Mistle Thrush were on the wires and 2 Grey Partridge ran across sand pit area.
DCB was just arriving as I was leaving and on hearing my report and seeing the conditions he too decided to abort.
BS