A perfect morning weather wise with clear skies on a light NE>3 at 6 degrees.
A relatively quiet morning with very few species over and only low counts but enough to keep the interest flowing.
At 1000 hrs a text via the Calderdale grapevine of a small skein of Pinkies over Baitings reservoir which started the ball rolling. By 1030 hrs the flood gates burst open with a skein well to the west of me and as I was on the phone letting the Oxenhope lads know they started getting more skeins coming over. After that it was panic stations with skein after skein following the same flight path following the western ridge >S then flying in an arc over Calderdale before going out of view to me >SE possible turning more east from then.
No time for photos, although they were at distance, as it was a matter of getting a count and locating the next skein. Within 30 minutes c3850 geese had gone past in 8 skeins, the largest skein being c1000 geese which DCB and myself agreed it was the largest skein we had ever seen. The skein had a large head of geese with a tail of geese which looked to stretch back for about a mile. DCB/HC and myself kept in contact throughout the experience by phone, passing information to and fro of the position of the various skeins.
Several texts came through the Calderdale grapevine of sightings of these skeins as they passed over the Halifax area picked up by the following birders.
PG...Baitings
SB...Saville Park
DH..Cromwell Bottom
DB..Claremount
DJS.Swalesmoor
Many thanks to the 5 contributors and thanks to DCB/HC for the team effort. What a morning.
By late afternoon all was quiet over Fly Flatts.
VISIBLE MIGRATION
6 Raven............>NW
72 Mipits.........>N bounce backs
28 Mipits.........>S
38 Fieldfare.....>NW
31 Redwing.....>NW
27 Starling......>NW
15 Reed Bunting..>SE
3850 Pinkies......>SE 8 skeins
PRESENT
18 Greylag
12 Canada
BS