Oxenhope reservoir The Nab.
A bright clear morning at Fly Flatts at 6 degrees on a WSW>2 deteriorating by 0945 hrs bringing heavy rain.
I was hoping for a turn about at Fly Flatts this morning with at least 1 half decent bird to restore my enthusiasm in the place but unfortunately it let me down again for the 5th visit running.
Two hours looking including a walk the length of the west bank and 3 feeding stations in operation I unbelievably came away with 2 Mallard and no other bird of any description, not even a single fly over.
Things fell into place on the way home with a stop off at Mixenden to find 3 Ring Necked Parakeets
in the usual spot near to where up to 6 birds have been reported on a garden feeder.
A late afternoon visit to Oxenhope Reservoir failed to find the 4 Goldeneye on the water with just 1 Teal and 13 Mallard. Around 200 small gulls were on the water along with 150 Herring and a small number of LBB, on at least being an intermedius.
As I was tackling up large black clouds came over the Nab followed by a powerful hail storm giving me a good battering but to take my mind off it I could hear Pinkies going overhead in the clouds but sounding very close. A scan to the east failed to locate them but luckily CK was just on his way up and stopped the car near Sentry Hill just in time to see 2 large skeins close together with around 200 geese in each skein heading >SE.
Gulls were still piling in and the counts below are the final counts Chris got up to as he left in near dark with birds still coming in.
Mixenden
3 Ring Necked Parakeets
Oxenhope Reservoir. BS. CK.
400 Pink Footed Geese >SE. 2 skeins of C 200
1 Teal
13 Mallard
c 5000 BH gull
c 1500 Common gull
300 Herring gull
10 LBB gull
BS