Bright clear blue skies at Leeshaw this morning with a cold N>3 at 4 degrees.
Another record count of gulls where even the local farmer said he has never seen as many. The gulls today were all at the east end of the reservoir either on the water or dam wall and gantry. A good scope through failed to find anything special other than a very distant BHG with a white leg ring as well as a Common gull with the same. BV managed to zoom the latter bird right in showing the number which was only partly visible due to the position of the ring but I should be able to work it out from the photo.
Nothing on the water apart from the usual geese and Mallards but the skies were full of Starlings and Redwing with massive flocks of the latter though at this time of year its impossible to tell if these birds are new in or just moving areas with several dropping down into the hedges of surrounding fields.
Ogden p.m. just had the usual gulls on the water with very few big gulls though today Commons nearly equaled the number of Black Headed.
A check for an earlier reported Brambling failed to find the bird but as a bonus prize I came across a flock of 12 Redpoll in with Goldfinch taking pine cone seeds. Redpolls have been near non existent in the area so far this year with usually good flocks of mixed Siskin and Redpoll by now.
Otherwise it was down to the usual Tit flocks with Goldcrests and Treecreepers mixed in whilst flocks of Redwings were still overhead.
BS