Jackdaws on mass

Jackdaws heading for the roost

Up to 200 Jackdaws pass over twice daily.

A clear day now that the weekend is over but from what I could see from work there was very little movement.
A few Redwings were about but these were not fresh in birds and probably been in a few days.
Jackdaw numbers have risen to approx 200 racing over >S in a morning and back >N early evening heading for the roosts at Wilsden and Hewenden. Seems like the majority of Redwing are here now and we have missed the big arrival due to fog but another week or so and the Fieldfares will be piling in.
Unfortunately DJS didnt relocate the Sainsbury Bramblings but its worth keeping an eye out down there from now as the trees are in peak condition and it will get you some brownie points if you keep asking your better half if she wants to go shopping at Sainsburys.
Foxhill park this early a.m. held 32 Common Gull and 18 BH Gull.
BS

Soil Hill/ Misty and birdless.

Blue skies with the ring of haze above the horizon

Is this the making of a new scrape for Soil Hill ?

Terrible conditions on the hill this p.m. with a strong E>5-6 and although the sky was blue visibility was limited with a low haze along the horizon 360 deg.
A new record was set today with one hour on the hill and not a bird recorded, the hill was deserted, as was the NK pond and fields as well as the sky.
Trudged around in search of birds today geared up with camera, bins and scope and the bird of the day were 8 Brambling in Sainsburys car park when we called there shopping this afternoon. Oh well, theres always next weekend.
BS

Fieldfare/Redwing and Fog

Fog hanging over Ogden

Causeway Foot Col in the gloom

Unworkable Back Lane

As expected the fog won again this morning blanking out the watchpoints. A short ease in the fog provided birds moving low at Ogden mainly Thrushes out of the plantation and off SE. The first Fieldfares of the season left the trees near the Giants tooth and headed >SE along with the Redwings. Chaffinch were moving but in low numbers until the fog closed in again causing shutdown.
Tour of the watchpoints :-
Fly Flatts.......................Completely fogged out
Hunter Hill...................Foggy with limited horizontal vision
Ogden..........................Just below the cloud base with brief period of blue showing through.
Back Lane...................Foggy and unworkable
Ned Hill......................Murky, horizontal vision across col.
Soil Hill........................Completely fogged out.

Redwing....................................................298 >SE
Fieldfare....................................................4 >SE
Chaffinch...................................................29 >S

Ogden
1 Sparrowhawk
Small tit flocks
25 BH Gulls
No sign of Grebe or Wigeon
Mallard numbers increasing

Was that you at Ned Hill early on Denise
BS

More fog/lessbirds

House Sparrows at the feeders

Kestrel last light, Shelf Moor

Thursdays sunrise/ need one of these in the morning.

Yet another foggy grey day with thick swirling fog till mid morning then banks of mist and murky grey cloud.
A strong easterly wind this evening cleared the remainder of the mist and hopefully it will hold it off till the morning despite a foggy start forecast.
An alert from DCB this morning with the promise of big Redwing numbers heading our way was thwarted by the weather but hopefully the move will continue over the rest of the weekend. A call from NK reported Redwings dropping into trees near his house late afternoon.
Needless to say, nothing was seen over the garage this a.m. and Shelf Moor this tea time had very little on offer other than 4 Mistle Thrush and a few Black Headed gulls along with 1 Kestrel looking for its last meal of the day.
One sighting of interest today as we were driving to Halifax after lunch was 4 Jays at Crow Point flying parallel with the car >S which could have been movers although they were very low so possibly local birds?
Norman Todd reported 11 P F Geese >N over his allotment at New House Lane during the week.
Fingers crossed for morning.
BS

Fog on the hill.

Gulls in the gloom

Foxhill midday, as good as it got.

A fogged out day apart from 2hrs late pm before the next bank of fog rolled in. This evening is misty making it look like a foggy morning tomorrow.
5 Common gull and 6 BH gull were in the park at lunchtime and 23 House Sparrows were on the garden feeders.
Slightly clearer at Shelf Moor this evening where 18 Canadas were by the pond and 3 Mistle Thrush were on the wires.
Heres hoping for a decent weekend, I badly need some birds.
BS

Queensbury Today

A bright day with near cloudless skies although grey low cloud hung right along the east horizon which looked to be over the east coast.
Very little was apparent in the sky other than a few mid morning Meadow Pipits >S and 16 Redwing over the garage >E just before mid day.
Foxhill park only managed 2 Common Gulls at lunch time and more empty skies.
The Pinkies have passed either side of me today with reports from skeins to the east and skeins to the west leaving me staring up to space with nothing. Ill have to make the Pinkie Flight Path sign on the garage roof bigger so they can see it better. Even the Ospreys missed the garage watch point this season despite the salmon paste sandwiches on the roof !.
Lets hope the easterlies promised for the weekend blow something our way.
BS

Vis in the air

Plenty Mistle Thrush about this morning

A wet start to the morning but this soon cleared by 0745hrs leaving clear bright skies with a certain amount of cloud.

Meadow Pipits were coming over in good style along with a few Chaffinch and a small group of Skylarks all powering south.

Mistle Thrushes were everywhere down Chapel Lane and in the grounds of the Willows medical centre slowly making their way west along with my first real moving Starlings of the season all high and directly west with an amount of urgency.

By mid day all was quiet and the large flocks of Starlings moving around the Rowan berries seemed to have moved on. Still trigger happy with the camera in my pocket waiting for that flock of Pinkies over my head but so far it has,nt happened. maybe I,ll have to make do with a few hundred Redwing or Fieldfare instead.

Meadow Pipit.........................187>S

Skylark...................................4 >S

Chaffinch................................21>S

Starling...................................78 >W

Mistle Thrush..........................13 >W

BS

New blog to view

Nick Dawtrey,Calderbirds has now started a new blog which is well worth a look at. There is a link to it in the right hand column.

Ogden 2010/ a recap

Quiet skies over Queensbury today so heres a recap on the best of the birds reported so far this year at Ogden by 5 birders, NK DJS and Jen, CK, BS. If I have missed anything special you,ll have to comment.

Nuthatch   Jan and other months
Siskin x 20  Jan
150 PF Geese >N  Feb
Pintail        Feb
Chaffinch x 38  April
Goldeneye        April
Marsh Harrier  May
Spotted Flycatcher  May
Cuckoo           May
Dunlin           July
Common Tern   July
Cormorant x 6  Aug
Arctic Tern  Sept
Common Tern  Sept
Gannet     Sept
Wigeon    Oct
Teal        Oct

Plus the list of regularly seen
Willow Warbler     Chiffchaff
Blackcap       Treecreeper
Garden Warbler    Redpoll
Whitethroat     Kingfisher
Dipper       Gt Crested Grebe
and a compliment of all the commoner birds.
My personal species list for Ogden going back over 10 years is 101.
BS

Starling getting winter plumage

Just a test to upload photos an easier way now that the original way has been altered for the worse. BS

Rowan berries/ menu of the day

Blackbirds and Starlings going mad over Rowan berries.

A bright day from start to finish ,( it would be its Monday), with thick cloud hanging in the valleys. Looking down from Queensbury it looked like snow with only the chimney pots showing.

It started off as if it was going to be a good moving day but as the sun got higher in the cloudless sky it trickled to a halt.

Meadow Pipits were coming over >S early doors along with a few Redwing and Wood Pigeons but nothing spectacular.

Mid day Blackbirds and Starlings were squabbling over the Rowan berries with some urgency as if they knew the Scandinavians were on their way. Anytime now we should be over run with Redwing and Fieldfare although moving Meadow Pipits have put on a poor show this year with any big numbers missing us and presumably sticking to the coast line.

BS

End to a perfect visit/ Ogden

Ned Hill Mistle Thrush.

Greylags at Ogden.

See report below.

BS

Seek and ye will find. Ogden p.m.

NKs Wigeon. A mega tick for Queensbury.

The Wigeon today is a female but the one on NKs photo yesterday I put as a male in eclipse. Is it a different bird or was it the light on Nigels photo ? will have to compare the two later. Yet another problem!

I wasnt happy with this mornings Wigeon search and I couldnt see that it would have moved off in last nights weather so when the family bit was finished I donned on my already wet gear and set off again in the rain for another attempt. Luckily the weather brightened and things started to look up when I came across 2 Greylags by the water, a bit of a rarety for here. As I got round to the east side I picked up the Wigeon in amongst Mallards by the shore.Problem was the bushes were high in that area and I had to wait till it moved to a clearer bit for any photos. I strode back along Syke Lane feeling pleased with myself and just when I thought it was all over I found 16 Mistle Thrush and 4 Song Thrush on the wires and in the trees at the bottom of Ned Hill.  As some of the Mistles flew over I got the schack call of a Fieldfare but as it couldnt be seen I dismissed it. Thanks to Nigels photo a poor weekend turned into a stonker.

BS

Sunday Morning washout

Ogden   0800-0915hrs  Heavy rain throughout, swirling fog, calm.
Thick fog on the tops made it an easy decision to head to Ogden and look for NKs Wigeon from yesterday.
Last night I was torn between vis mig watch on the tops or Wigeon in the bottom but luckily the weather decided for me.
Many of you reading this will wonder why all the fuss for a relatively common winter duck but Wigeon would be a site tick for me and a first for the area since DJS s sightings many moons ago. In an area like ours youve to get the ticks when you can.
At Ogden the whole of the duck population were scattered around the edges of the water mainly on the banking and apart from a Gt Crested Grebe the water was empty. The rain was lashing down without mercy and fog banks kept swirling in. I scanned as many ducks as possible which soon became impossible through wet and steamed up bins so eventually had to admit defeat and head home.
The Chaffinch flock was still in the same area on the west shore and several tit flocks were building. Plenty Robins were around the edges but no continental jobs.
Hopefully I,ll get an hour late afternoon or if not its wait till next Sunday, not an easy hobby this!
All I have to do now is sort a pile of wet clothes out and 3 soggy dogs.
BS

An early morning move

A grey but dry start to the morning in Queensbury which seemed to urge a bit of movement although by 0930hrs the skies had brightened and all went quiet.
Walking to work the weeds and Rowans on the edge of the rugby field were alive with Linnets, Goldfinch, Blue Tits and House Sparrows whilst Blackbirds squabbled over the Rowen berries, six Blackbirds were in one tree alone.
Meadow Pipits came over in small groups along with Alba Wagtails and a few Redwings. At 0915hrs a nice little flock of Siskins came straight over the garage >S.
The rest of the day was uneventful although walking around the shops in Halifax with Lynda in the afternoon one doesnt expect too much in the way of mega ticks.
Shelf Moor this evening had 36 Canadas in fields near the pond and a few Linnets and Mistle Thrushs about but still no sign of Pinkies.
We,ll see what the morning brings if the weather holds.

13 Siskin................................>S
61 Meadow Pipit...................>S
7 Redwing.............................>S
4 Alba Wagtails.....................>SW
BS