go through.
Jury still out
3rd winter.
With another round of thick fog over the tops I set off in search of KMs Caspian at Redcar Tarn, Keighley where the weather was bright with even a hint of sun but clouding over late morning.
Redcar Tarn is an excellent spot for gull watching if you can survive the drive there in rush hour and school run traffic but on arrival and seeing the gulls your neck soon stops throbbing as you settle down and sift through the gulls.
Very few gulls present on arrival but by the time I,d walked the dogs round the water a couple of time birds started coming in with hundreds of Black Headeds on the water and in surrounding fields whilst around 30 big gulls were present, mainly Herring and mostly juvs.
1 gull stood out as a lighter and different profiled bird very similar to the one I saw at Fly Flatts. The jurys still out on this bird at the moment and is being looked into with hopes of Caspian or Hybrid by KM.
An ideal spot to get plenty close up shots to go through at home comparing plumages to the text books to brush up on juv gull i.d.
Otherwise there was the usual species on the water with Goosander,
several Tufted, Coot and Moorhen but nothing out of the ordinary. The surrounding fields held several large flocks of Lapwing whilst Chaffinch and Redwing were in the berry bushes around the track.
A pointless task trying for vis mig today but around 400 Woodpigs flew >S over the tarn with over 100 Starlings>NW.
With more fog and rain forecast it looks as if I may be having another dabble at this location.
End of an era at Queensbury with Ye Olde Raggalds now renamed as the Queens Head, named after the village which was named Queenshead in 1702 before being changed to Queensbury in 1863.
I,m surprised the heritage group up here let them get away with that as its been a famous landmark since Noah used to drink there before he launched the Ark on Raggalds Flood, which will now have to be renamed Queens Head Flood. Another nail in the coffin.
BS