More Cold Edge Birds

Oystercatcher

Ringed Plover

                               Common Sandpiper
BS

Cold Edge Dams

Oystercatchers bathing

2 Female Goosanders

It dont get better than this.

Cold Edge Dams , evening visit

Amazing wader conditions for once, if only this stays for the autumn.

1pr Stonechat

1 Whinchat

1 Tree Pipit

sev juv Meadow Pipit

1pr Greylag with 6 young

2 female Goosander

1 Snipe

1 Dunlin

1 Ringed Plover

3 Golden Plover

5 Lapwing

sev Curlew

2 Oystercatcher

4 Common Sandpiper

2 Redshank

3 Linnet

+ usual sp.

BS

One Hundred up

Fern

Hawthorn

                                       Rhododendron
You,ll have to make do with a bit of Flora today as thats all there was.

Ogden.
A disappointing morning due to several factors this morning. Firstly I avoided Fly Flatts because of the big bike race, only to find it came down to Ogden and up Back Lane. Secondly the weather, specking to start with at 0730hrs then low cloud followed by heavy rain turning torrential. And thirdly the ignoramouses walking round Ogden with dogs off the lead letting them run down the now well exposed banking and into the reservoir. They seem to find it amusing to see their beloved pet chasing a Heron or ducks, no wonder there are no waders.
On a good note, the Kingfisher flew across the overflow giving me my one hundredth local species this year.
Otherwise things were deadly quiet, what a contrast to yesterday evening at Leeshaw about a mile and a half away.
6 Swift
2 Jay
1 Kingfisher
1 Heron
usual passerines etc.
BS

Overt ,t ill to Leeshaw Reservoir

Little flock of Oyks

                                           LBBs on the Move

Rekindling old flames tonight with an hour after tea at Leeshaw Reservoir, Oxenhope. I used to spend half my birding life here years ago and now I remember why, what a belting spot.

2 Cormorant
4 Heron
1 Common Sandpiper
1 Ringed Plover,  mover
5 Oystercatchers
2 Redshank
11 Lapwing
17 Greylag with 14 young
9 Canadas with 5 young
2 Cuckoo
17 Linnet
4 Goldfinch
3 Twite
3 Curlew
1 Gt Spotted Wdpecker
5 LBBs >N
1 Tree Pipit
1 Grey Wagtail
BS

Stormy Skies and Sunshine

An evening of torrential rain, distant thunder and sunshine ,developing some lovely skies.

Several Swifts were moving >NW in front of the weather and the local Blackbirds kept singing throughout.

Hopefully there may be a bit of water on Soil Hill now !

BS

Foxhill Today

A good Swift background, sun in the west, black in the east

A quick watch tonight after hospital visiting and errands produced several Swifts all >N passing
Black Dykes Mill chimney, also 4 House Martins and some blogging Swallows. The local House Martins that appeared last week have again moved on leaving Queensbury Martinless, there seems to be a real shortage so far this year.
All quiet otherwise with all resident birds busy with their new families and very little sky movement.
BS

A welcome guest to Shibden

What a pleasure to hear yesterday of a report of a Cuckoo in Shibden Valley, see Calderbirds blog.
Many years ago when we were young birders and knew every bird and nest down there because of the hours we put in it was common for us to sit on the hillside listening to the Cuckoos, up to 3 usually between Shibden Head and the Shibden Mill Inn, waiting for sightings as they flew from canopy to canopy on a summers evening.
The then working Sewage Works was a favorite area for the Cuckoo but this was a dangerous practice as it was out of bounds to the public and this is where we discovered on a few occassions that we could outrun the resident Great Dane that lived there.
Shibden Head was also a good spot by the Hanging Royds barn but that was also a spot to beware on Sundays when the Shibden Gamblers appeared. Gammers, as they were known, came from all over to play illegal toss ha,penny by the Hanging Royd barn and thousands of pounds changed hands. Lookouts, known as Crows were on all the paths leading to the barn and anyone getting too near were steered away in a polite way by being told that the path was too muddy , these fellows were harmless but a bit frightening to us as kids. We used to sit on the opposite hillside watching the gambling take place.
As well as the Gammers in Shibden there were the Oggers, these were normal everyday working fellows who used to go down Shibden with knee pads and binocs crawling round the hillside watching courting couples. An elderly neighbour of ours at that time was a well known ogger and would come home many a time with a black eye or teeth missing when he,d been caught.
All these strange goings on in the valley in the sixties but even then you could walk anywhere down there without even thinking of being harmed, how times change.
Got a bit side tracked from Cuckoos there but my childhood birding memories of Shibden are still a bit of a passion to me, the sort of memories that kids dont get anymore.
Hope I havent bored you.
BS

The puzzle of the town centre waders

Whilst walking in Halifax this afternoon 4 waders flew over very low and very fast, what they were is another thing, had we been at Scarborough Id have said Sanderling or Turnstone. I,ve just been on Calderbirds hoping someone else was down there but nothing.
We were walking on the precinct from the woolshops towards the piece hall by Peacocks when these 4 in a very tight group whizzed over our heads just above building level and veered over the shops towards M& S carpark. At least 2 birds gave out a sharp single note flute type call which was loud enough to make a few people look up, that was until they started watching me dashing back towards the woolshops like a headless chicken.
In the 2 seconds I saw them I got plain white bellys, stubby short winged birds with very direct fast flight.
Will have to find some info on the call but these birds will have to go down on that dreaded list of
Cud av bins.

One good thing if anyones interested, I bought a £10 top up for my computer doggle at the My 3 shop in the Woolshops and they are on offer for £11 for two vouchers but I dont know how long the offer lasts.
BS

Fly Flatts

Common Sandpipers

0730-1000hrs  Icy cold NNE >5, cloudy, some light rain early on.
No shoreline whatsoever at Fly with the water up to the top and splashing over the banking in the wind.
Canadas have bred well with 83 young ones counted .
2 Twite were very mobile and a single Reed Bunting was near the boathouse. A Ringed Plover flew low over the water and settled on the eastern shore and a noisy Redshank was defending territory.
2 female Wheatear were by the feeding station.

3 Common Sandpiper
2 Twite
2 Wheatear
1 Reed Bunting
83 Canada chicks
1 Redshank
1 Ringed Plover
Usual Skylarks and Meadow Pipits
Again only 1 Curlew seen and heard?
BS

Dailie Fields and Old Railway Station

pm visit in an icy cold  N>5
Checked the valley below Brow Lane which always produced Redstart not so many years ago but that was a bit on the optimistic side. This area was also good for Yellowhammer but thats going back to when Adam was a lad.
The place was heaving with Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs and a Whitethroat proved elusive in the brambles near the beck.
Two pair of Bullfinch were near the Tunnel entrance and a suprise to get a Peregrine whistling over the red bricked chimney.

1 Peregrine
4 Bullfinch
4 Chiffchaff
19 Willow Warbler
1 Whitethroat
2 Grey Partridge
2 Green Woodpecer
1 Kestrel
3 Linnet nesting in the gorse bushes.
1 Little Owl.
BS

Ogden / Back Lane

Plenty Shoreline but no waders

                          A Tranquil Scene

0730-0930hrs   Bright and sunny, cold NW >4
Although the water is now well down its just too late for the spring waders. The shoreline was deserted and the water only held about a dozen Mallard. LBB gulls continued to move through in small numbers and a Spotted Flycatcher was on the fringe on the Back Lane plantation. The Cuckoo continued to call throughout the visit.
1 Cuckoo
3 Garden Warblers
1 Spotted Flycatcher
Several Willow Warbs and Chiffchaff
9 LBB Gull >N  mostly 2nd winter plumage birds
+ usual sp.
BS

Around the area

Night clouds moving in.

Plenty young Starlings

Menwith Hill air force base golf balls on the horizon from Foxhill.

Foxhill park is now alive with young Starlings and House Sparrows tempting the local Sparrowhawk to make several visits.
Shelf Moor pond tonight held 3 Canadas and 1 Moorhen whilst several Swifts fed over the gorse field.
House Martins are now back on site by the Lion Gates and a pair of Grey Wagtails were carrying food nearby.
LBB gulls still continue to trickle through >N.
BS

House Martins arrive

More House Sparrows !

                                                 Spring Lilac

A good move of House Martins today with 9 birds blogging around the mill chimney before moving off >NE.
Also several birds moved through with 14 counted over Foxhill at mid day again all >NE. None have yet returned to their annual breeding sites at Foxhill.
Swallows have also made a comeback today with several bloggers but no sign of any Swift movement.
BS

Queensbury today

One of two pair of breeding Kestrels in Queensbury have 2 fledglings now doing well.
A pair of Mallard flew >E over Foxhill at lunch time and 3 LBB gulls headed >NW,one having very black wings and mantle.
Swallows are a bit scarce at the moment and Swifts keep trickling through >N.
How nice today to get our Queensbury weather back with a cool wind, drizzle and some mist, a lot better than that hot stuff.
BS

Queensbury today

Good news on the garden breeding sparrows

                              I hate this hot weather !

A single Heron flew high >SW over the village early a.m. and a male Sparrowhawk took a young Starling from the garage car park also this morning.
Three House Sparrows have now fledged in the garden and a second nest has chicks. One youngster was taken when a kamikaze Magpie launched itself head first into the ivy and came out with a chick . Hopefully now a second batch will be underway.
A party of 35 Swifts came over Foxhill tonight at 1915hrs all >NW in front of the black clouds which eventually blew over.
Had a customer in today who commented on seeing NKs White Stork sighting on the Qby blog and told me he had seen one a couple of years back over Cooper Lane.
BS