Back from Leeshaw with an empty camera

With rain threatening all day it finally arrived as I got to Leeshaw late afternoon with scud clouds piling over the moor cutting visibility with mist and heavy drizzle turning to heavy rain.
A 15 minute scan before I was blanked out produced 14 LBB gulls and 32 BHGs with no Yellow Legged present. Only 3 Oystercatchers showing now with the main group moved on whilst around 150 Lapwings were on the shoreline.
                                                           Meadow Pipit numbers are building whilst 2 Cormorants were on the water tower. With visibility now gone it was on to Lower Laithe which was just below the cloud base but very heavy rain. 28 Black Headed gulls were on the valve house railings with 4 Cormorant on the shore. The water held 23 Canadas and 5 Mallard and that was the best I could do.
                                                     With July nearly out now we,re fast approaching August, the month of Scoters, Waders and Med gulls whilst passerines turn up on dispersion.
BS

End of an era

                                                         BUDDY  2008 - 2017
Had the awful job of taking one of my birding mates on his last visit to the vets today after him struggling with cancer the last 2 months. Buddy has been on thousands of birding outings with me over the last 14 years with him getting to know every site and even having his own favourite spots where we used to stand , Cold Edge Dams being one of his favourite where I spent a lot of time vis migging with him when he was a pup. One of those special dogs, Buddy by name and buddy by nature, he.ll be greatly missed.
                                                A quick walk around Fly Flatts to clear my head produced very little though my heart was,nt in it today. Nothing special on the water and just 2 Wheatear and a few Mipits on the west bank dodging the patrolling Kestrel.
Around 8 Wheatear were in the Nolstar field.
BS

Leeshaw/Ogden

                      Yellow Legged Herring gull at Leeshaw

           At distance on the north shore

 Fly Flatts is not the only place for late Mallard
            These were at Ogden

          Just a handful of BHGs at Ogden

               and a single LBB.

 Yesterdays plant replaced today with 2 Photinia
        Fraseri, ( Little Red Robin).
Took the easy I.D. route with this and read the label.
Remember this one Angela for when I forget

        No improvement on the Ladybirds

  But dont worry, the Parrot will get em.

With lashing rain and low misty scud clouds over Fly Flatts it was across to Leeshaw reservoir where I got around 15 minutes clear to walk the dogs and then the horizontal drizzle arrived on a strong SW>5 soon turning to lashing rain blanking out the reservoir with no signs of clearing.
                                                                                  Before this happened a quick check of the area produced the 4th Summer Yellow Legged Herring gull across on the far shore along with 3 Lbbs and 7 Black Headeds.  6 Oystercatchers were present on the NE corner shoreline whilst Canadas and Greylags were on the water.
                                            With watch abandoned it was head for home but as I got near Ogden the sky had cleared somewhat so a quick divert to check the water.
Just a handful of BHGs and a single LBB on the shoreline , 2 Cormorant on the water and 6 Mallard ducklings in the feeding corner.
Looking as if that was as good as it was going to get it was back home to plant the new additions to the garden bought earlier at Harden Garden Centre, eck ! have you seen the price of some of the plants lately.
BS

Yes , its Fly Flatts again

                                            3 Common Sandpipers present

                                  Calm waters below the Nab

                                  and along the west bank

 Just when you thought it was all over
                                  another Mallard family.

 Same Kestrel at distance working the
                 Slade, flat moor area.

1515 hrs and another pilgrimage to Fly Flatts in perfect conditions with near dead calm and 100 % light grey cloud cover.
                                   Today was one of those exceptionally quiet days which you have to contend with every now and then although at this time of year I,m always expecting the unexpected. No disturbance up there today with just me and swarms of Midges  which always appear when the wind has dropped which fortunately is not often at this site.
                                                                    Just the 3 Common Sands seen and 2 Wheatears plus the surprise of a very late brood of Mallard ducklings with a single LBB gull on the water keeping a close watch on them.
The female Kestrel was well out over the flat moor today working the Slade area giving the Mipits a bit of freedom to feed along the west banking. Nothing new in birds but always a pleasure to be up there even now that the moor is so quiet with Curlews, Golden Plovers and Lapwings gone leaving a strange empty feeling up there. Its a matter now of being patient and waiting for the migration to start.
                                                                 Many thanks once again to the Angela and Gary team for texting me about yesterdays plant quiz and describing it as of the Melianthus family which I Googled to find it can grow to 12 ft tall and is deadly toxic if eaten even in a small amount so have had to lug it round to the front garden in case Pippa decides to nip a leaf off it as she does with flower heads.
                                                                 Once again Angela and Gary have shone and its a big thank you for taking an interest in the blog for so many years.
BS

A Monday visit to Fly Flatts.

                      Peregrine at Mega distance way across the moor
                     on a shooting stand

    Hope it doesnt hang around there next month when the
                                            sad men appear.

                                      1 of 4 Common Sandpipers

    The scruffy juv I took a few weeks ago has made a
                                        handsome bird.

                Male Wheatear shedding its coat.

 One for the gardeners. We bought this plant amongst
 others at a garden centre late spring to put in pots.
Its now a large, flowerless plant but the question is, what is it.

Fly Flatts p.m. visit with 75% cloud cover with some sunshine and a bracing NE > 5.
                                                                           Plenty disturbance as I arrived with the fire brigade just packing the dingys up from training on the water no needless to say, quiet shoreline and water.
By the time I,d walked the length of the reservoir and back the dust had settled and things were getting back to normal.
No Kestrel present today so plenty Meadow Pipits about but only 2 Wheatear along the west banking
whilst a male Reed Bunting flew over low.
                                                                  What looked like a juv Peregrine was perched on a shooting butt way over the moor but scope was back at the car. Five Common Sandpiper are present including the juv that I,ve watched over the weeks grow into a fine bird whilst a single Oystercatcher was on the launch ramp.
Several Black Headed gulls were arriving from the east and later seen high over the fields at Mount Tabor.
A few quiet visits the last few days but we,re now into the last week of July so a biggy must be just around the corner.
BS

A 2nd dabble at Fly Flatts, pm

                  A good turn out of boats today

      Problem here is there are no Give Way signs

                                   Man overboard, scuppered

                                                  Rescue boat on its way.

          This female Kestrel is becoming a nuisance
                         to the passerines.

                                            But what a cracking bird

Back to Fly Flatts at 1500 hrs with yet more Nyjer seed which so far has had a negative effect on attracting any Twite but its causing plenty interest with the Meadow Pipits and Wheatears so its not wasted and there still 3 month left with chance of Twite.
                                                          A perfect bright grey sky in contrast to this mornings blue with the wind moved around to the NW>4-5 and light specs of rain.
Plenty boats out today so waders were absent other than Common Sands whilst the only raptor showing was the local female Kestrel that once again had moved all the Mipits and Wheatears away from the west bank where it was patrolling throughout.
                                                     Whilst it was quiet I concentrated my time watching the Kestrel and trying to get that perfect shot experimenting with different exposures and settings whilst trying at the same time to watch the skies for that big raptor sighting that didn,t happen.
BS