A bright crisp start to the morning with some cloud and sunshine, clouding over by 0930hrs. A light SW>2 at 0 degrees with slippery patches underfoot.
The west bank was a write off this morning with the Christmas tree saga ongoing and not a bird in sight. The north end just provided a single Goldcrest and Mistle Thrush whilst 10 Fieldfare went overhead >W along with a Raven closely behind.
The east bank was slightly livelier with Great and Blue Tits along with the usual Robins, Dunnocks and Blackbirds. The water was still 40% frozen over with just a handful of small gulls and a Herring on the ice but nothing on the water other than the Mallards.
Luckily the Tufted and Goosander have moved on as there is always a fear of divers getting trapped under the ice when the water is part frozen. Such an occurrence happened in February 1956 when a pair of Velvet Scoters were on the water at Ogden. The male left but the female became trapped under the ice and was later washed ashore where it was taken to a taxidermist. Its body remains to this day in a glass case at Cartwright Hall Bradford. These days we're lucky to get a Common Scoter on Ogden, never mind a Velvet Scoter.
Slightly milder in the morning with cloudy sunshine on a light southerly at 3 degrees.
BS