WEST YORKSHIRE BIRDING

BRIAN SUMNER.
WELCOME TO ( WEST YORKSHIRE BIRDING )
KEEPING BIRDING LOCAL.

BLOG UPDATED DAILY AROUND 2000 hrs.

FEEL FREE TO SEND ANY COMMENTS, QUERIES OR QUESTIONS DIRECT TO MY E.MAIL AT THE ADDRESS BELOW, OTHERWISE TEXT OR WHATSAPP. 07771 705024.


CLICK ON PHOTOS TO ENLARGE THEM.

ALL IMAGES ARE STRAIGHT FROM THE CAMERA WITH
NO PHOTOSHOP TUNING. TAKEN ON J PEG.

E MAIL ADDRESS :-
Briansumner51@hotmail.com

NOTE !!
No sightings of Roe Deer, Fox, Hare or Badger will be mentioned on this blog throughout the year and links will be removed from other blogs giving the whereabouts of these mammals due to the rising influx of poaching, long dogging and lamping by sick individuals.
BS




Monday, July 23, 2018

Fly Flatts. The place where dreams come true.

                                   3 of 6 Curlew moving through >NE
                    Wake me up I,m dreaming, Marsh Harrier.
                     Looked the size of a  barn door flying over the moor








              Juv female with Gold on dark underwing coverts

               Not the best images with the heat shimmer back.



                 Dropped onto moor twice

  Then headed off > WSW towards Walshaw, Gorple area
         Single drake Scoter, possibly Saturdays bird


                                           2 Teal present

                                   Then there was 4. Tufted family

1515 hrs in poor conditions at 26 degrees , a very light W>3 and 80 % cloud cover but not enough to stop the sun poking through. Tons of heat shimmer made photographs a nightmare and unable to take Curlews on the east bank.
                                         The watch started off well all the same with a move of Curlews all >NE, some low over the water and some high in the clouds calling. Just 6 seen but more heard overhead and 3 landed on the east shoreline.
                                                     A walk on to the NW corner produce 2 Teal over the water, the female Tufted with her 4 remaining chicks and 1 drake Common Scoter which could well be the Saturdays bird. Strangely still no Wheatears.
                                                    Whilst scanning the moors with the bins and watching a distant SEO on a post a raptor briefly appeared from the direction of Nab Water Lane low over the moor before disappearing into a hollow and out of site. Buzzard was the first instinct but the sheer size of it and uniform dark my thoughts changed to Red Kite. I patiently waited with baited breath gazing through the bins for it to re appear but began to think it must have doubled back and kept low heading north.
Just then one of the 2 local Kestrels dive bombed down over the moor and, Bingo, up came my bird.
                                                As soon as I got on it I could see it was a stonking cream crown Marsh Harrier lifting above the skyline before flying low over the moor. It dropped onto the moor a couple of times before heading off low firstly west then more >SW towards Gorple.
                                            Luckily Big Bertha was up on her sticks ready after I,d been taking the Scoter so as soon as she got on the harrier she was off like a machine gun with a smoking barrel working against the odds of distance and heat shimmer. I,ve had to put her in the fridge tonight to cool down.
Needless to say, a pleasing 2 hours birding.
BS