A cloudy start getting hot and sunny with a fresh W>3. Hazy visibility.
Pit Lane just held the usual Lapwings and Mipits whilst the Raggalds Flood was void of any signs of bird life.
No sign of the Ring Ouzel on Roper Lane with a couple of Willow Warblers and a Coal Tit in the plantation. The Willow Warbs were very flighty and whilst I was trying and failing to get a photo a Cream Crown Marsh Harrier got past me being picked up over Soil Hill by Dan B.
Back again to my roots trying out one of my old regular patches, Oats Royd, which I used to work daily back in the late nineties with regular sightings of Spotted Flycatcher, Redstart and all the usual Warblers.
The place is ideal habitat though several of the areas I used to work have now been closed off including the ponds which have now been taken over by a fishing group. All the bottom paths have been taped off which may just be a temporary measure due to the outbreak.
It was very quiet down there with a few flitting Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff but nothing up in song or showing itself probably due to the heat of the afternoon but the visit was saved by 2 Sparrowhawks overhead being bombarded by around 100 Jackdaws and c 50 Rooks and Crows. Not an easy task keeping the camera on the target birds amidst all the corvid activity. An venue thats needs revisiting on a morning visit.
Eat your hearts out garden watchers. Mick Cunningham yesterday filmed one of 2 Red Kite eating something in a tree in his garden, beat that!! The film is on Twitter alongside his Marsh Tit on the feeders and 2 Egyptian geese over.
Roper Lane
1 Chaffinch
1 Coal Tit
2 Willow Warblers
+ usual sp
Oats Royd
2 Sparrowhawks
Corvids
Woodpigs
Few Chiffchaff and Willow
Keep safe
BS