A miserable grey day still with the cold E>4 with poor visibility due to haze.
A quick check over the Mountain around the Wheatear hotspots but very quickly ran out of light so had to return to base before I got as far as Roper Lane
DP reported disturbance on the Old Guy Rd cricket pitch where they were painting the walls white ready for the new season, no consideration for Wheatear these cricketers.
Skimming through some old reports last night and found one for Shibden Valley in 1962 compiled by Clifford Lees for the Halifax Scientific Society which was the year I started birding.
A dawn chorus survey reports several singing Redstarts, Tree Pipits, Yellowhammers and Cuckoos , all of which I remember being common in the area.
The old Queensbury Station always had Redstarts and Yellowhammers present, how things change.
We were nobbut young uns then but had some good field trips out with HSS and learnt a lot of our birding from Clifford Lees, Frank Murgatroyd, Vernon Crapnell and Irvine Morley.
Clifford Lees used to write a birding article in the Halifax Courier each week, happy days.
BS