Typically, the first clear morning for a week lands on the day when I was snagged up at home so no time to get to Fly Flatts but just time for a quick check of the water at Ogden.
A cold SW 4 was blowing at 7 degrees but clear skies and some sunshine.
Not many gulls on the water with just Black Headed and Common plus 1 large gull which looked interesting, a Lesser Black Backed intermedius with very black mantle and wings. Unfortunately it did,nt fly so was unable to check the mirrors, or lack of, on P9 and P10.
A small tight group of 3 Crossbills flew over the water in the direction of the Giants Tooth whilst a Nuthatch flew into the plantation from the lodge house trees.
Late afternoon and avoiding the canoes at Fly Flatts it was back to Mixenden where half way along the west bank the heavens opened with the heaviest rain I,ve seen for some time. At one point I thought of walking in the reservoir where it would have been drier but luckily I,d prepared for rain so was geared up ready for it.
Luckily , after 15 minutes it cleared up leaving broken cloud with bright skies and some sunshine and once I could see the water again 3 Goldeneye were present along with the drake Tufted. The Goldeneye were very mobile moving continuously from one end of the water to the other
but very busy diving once back on the water.
More gulls today with Herring and LBB plus the usual BHGs and Commons, though none of the Herrings were michahellis to my knowledge but with 4 being 1st winter birds they would be out of my depth at that distance and probably even close up.
Other things of note was a Buzzard being mobbed by gulls in the distance over Ogden plantation and a Raven being mobbed by corvids over the Mixenden plantation.
Despite the drowned rat effect it turned out to be a very pleasing hours birding.
And finally, a text from Keighley Moor reservoir birder Andrew Oakworth reporting a large skein of Pinkies over the Keighley area at 1700 hrs today moving east to west, possibly a start of a trans Pennine move.
Ogden
8 Common gulls
15 Black Headed gulls
1 LBB intermedius gull
1 Nuthatch
3 Crossbill
+ usual sp.
Mixenden
3 Goldeneye
1 m Tufted
2 ad Herring gull
4 1st winter Herring gull
8 LBB gull
c 50 small gulls, mostly BH gull
1 f Mallard
1 Sparrowhawk
1 Buzzard
1 Raven
1 Cormorant
+ usual sp.
BS