The Billy Two Rivers cut used to be all the rage
A reasonable morning at Fly Flatts with full cloud and a WNW>3 at 4 degrees. By mid afternoon the weather had gone pear shaped for reservoir watching with wall to wall blue sky and sunshine at 10 degrees playing havoc with any gull movement.
A pair of Ringed Plovers have now joined the 2 males at Fly Flatts and are using both the south and east shore though there is very little actual shoreline.
Amazing to watch Meadow Pipits moving into the area with several on the deck and swarms flying up the Calder Valley from the SW heading >N. This is something you rarely see in spring as the birds just suddenly appear but this was like watching autumn vis mig in reverse with large waves of up to 40 Mipits or more continuing throughout the watch.
A real taste of spring up there today with calls from Curlew, Lapwing, Golden Plover, Snipe and geese.
Mixenden was very poor with a taste of the dreaded 'nice' weather which cut the gulls down to 7 Herring and 2 LBB with about 70 small gulls. Only other thing of interest was a Cormorant in full courtship plumage wearing the fancy head gear.
Fly Flatts
3m 1f Ringed Plover
3 Snipe
8 Curlew
27 Lapwing
2 Greylags
Sev Mipits
Sev Goldies calling
+ usual sp.
Mixenden
3 ad Herring
4 1w Herring
2 ad LBB
c 70 Small gulls.
1 Cormorant
+ usual sp.
BS