Wibsey Park/ Horton Bank Top

 

WIBSEY PARK

                                        Around 20 Tufted

                                    Single juv Mute Swan

                                    Ring number 03Y9

BANK TOP                        Quiet water

                                    Few small gulls

A bright and breezy morning with bright skies and only 60% cloud on a strong SW>6  gusting 8 at a mild 6 degrees.

     Too windy for the tops so a check on Wibsey Park which was very low on numbers on the water with a count of around 20 Tufted plus the usual Mallards and very few Coot and Moorhen. All the swans had left apart from a single juv with a local yellow leg ring, 03Y9.

     Gulls were near none existent with just 12 Black Headed and 2 Common, which is unusually low for this site. 

    On then to Bank Top where it was the same scenario with very quiet water, where do all the wildfowl disappear to?  Only 2 Herring gull and a few small gull whilst the usually high count of Coot and Moorhen were down to 4 Moorhen and 2 Coot. The 2 Mute swan were present along with several Mallards but otherwise nothing.

    At least I got out with the wind not being too much of a feature and quite pleasant walking around Wibsey Park, plus the dogs enjoyed it. The hardest job driving today was dodge the wheelie bins.

     A cold but sunny morning tomorrow starting off at minus 1 degree on a moderate SSW>4 with good visibility.

BS

      

Leeshaw and Lower Laithe Reservoirs.

 

LEESHAW                    Good count of gulls

                                    Canadas and Greylags

                                    Gulls galore

                                    1 of 3 Goosander

LOWER LAITHE            Distant Red necked Grebe.

PERSEVERANCE ROAD     Fieldfare, Redwing and Mistle Thrush

A deteriorating day with a dry start and the usual daily hill fog. Leeshaw was clear but very dark with full cloud on a cold SW>4 at 3 degrees. Rain moved in by 0945 hrs.

     A real gull day this morning with around 300 mixed gulls in a distant field but very mobile and keeping at distance. Several more were on and around the water but no GBB present as yet but usually manage one or two around this time at this site.

    A male and 2 female Goosander were on the water as well as 2 Cormorants and the usual Mallards, whilst around 50 Greylag and c40 Canadas geese plus the over-wintering Pink Footed Goose were in the big field along with a few Stock Doves.

    A Dipper was down in the beck along with 2 Pied Wagtails and a Meadow Pipit.

A quick visit to the Sladen Valley to check Lower Laithe reservoir produced around 100 gulls and the long staying Red Necked Grebe which was diving continuous in among the gulls, but quite a distance out on the water. 

   On the way home I came over Soil Hill, due to a road closure, and found several Fieldfare, Redwing, Mistle Thrush and Starling in a field alongside Perseverance Road. Also a few Lapwing were in the ploughed field.

    Tomorrow looks dry and bright if you can stand up in the strong gale force to storm force sou'westerly, gusting up to 60 m.p.h., which going by the Queensbury Beaufort scale reads off as , 'Nobbut a stiff breeze',  and checking the 'Queensbury Housewife Guide' it shows as,

 ' A good drying day for t' weshing. 

BS.

    

    

Dodging the fog, Thornton Moor Reservoir. (permit only)

 

                                    An eerie TMR

                                    Gulls in the mist.

                                        Fog in the valleys

                                        Fog clearing

                                        Still reflective water.

                                    Still some snow left

                                Windy Corner where HC,DCB and myself stood

                              for vis mig  35 years ago.

                                Leeshaw is under all that clag.

                                    Paul Clough mast on the left

                                    A few pre roost gulls left.

A real awkward morning fog wise with very dense banks of fog scattered about both on the tops and in the valleys. A very light NW>2 at 3 degrees.

       At first light, Queensbury was in the clear with bright blue skies, as was Fly Flatts, but from the bedroom window I could see the fog coming up from the valley over Slaughter Gap and heading for Fly Flatts. Ogden was in dense fog so I took a chance on Leeshaw and Leeming but from the top of Long Causeway I could see that both were shrouded in fog. 

     Thornton Moor was in the clear so parked up at the reservoir. By the time I'd got geared up the fog was rolling in thick and fast but luckily cleared again after 15 minutes so game on.

       Quite a few pre roost gulls still on site but were slowly moving off to the fields before returning late afternoon for the winter gull roost which held up to 10,000 gulls when we used to record it years ago. Luckily, in those days, we had gull experts, Mick and Phil Cunningham in the hide with us picking out the specials, until darkness stopped play.

      The water was not up to its usual winter standard with no Goldeneye present though the YW warden told me that there had been Wigeon there on Monday.

   A single Teal was among 12 Mallard whilst the highlight was a female Pintail which flew in from the north and landed at the far end of the water but right in the sun and no time to trek back on to the south end again.

    Otherwise, 6 Stock Dove, 2 Mistle Thrush and a Kestrel, along with Red Grouse plus Grey and Red Legged Partridge.

     This site used to be the pride of Bradford many years ago turning up an amazing number of species when it was well watched, but unfortunately it is rarely used now and the hide which YW built over 30 years ago now stands empty and looking very derelict with its windows smashed. Fortunately, the trees we planted in the 1990s have thrived and are now mature trees.

    A wet and misty day given for tomorrow with a moderate sou'westerly increasing to gale force later in the day, which is the build up to severe storm force winds on Friday.

BS

Mixenden/Ogden. Just a dog walk.

 

                                        Usual murky scene at Ogden.

As the norm this winter, another foggy damp, dark morning with a light SW>2 at 3 degrees.

     First stop off was Mixenden reservoir which fell flat when I found the walls had been rebuilt where you could gain access so with 2 dogs it was impossible to get into the grounds. The only other unofficial access point is at the north end of the water but nowhere to park anywhere near so another venue bites the dust.

     Peering through the gate only 15 small gulls were present and otherwise empty water.

On then to Ogden which must qualify for being the quietest visit on record with just  22 small gulls on the water as well as the usual Mallards. 

   A walk the full length of the west bank produced 2 Great Tits and nothing more. Even warden Chris asked me why there are no birds present, which I could'nt answer.

     Needless to say, another foggy, cloudy morning tomorrow with possibly a brighter afternoon on a light NW at 2 degrees.

BS

Leeshaw/Lower Laithe/Leeming

 

LEEMING                    Several Herring gull present

                                        Single Grey Wagtail

A dark, dull, non photographic morning with full cloud on an icy SW>3 at 1 degree but feeling much colder in the wind.

       A quieter gull morning at Leeshaw with just 8 Herring, 7 Common and around 50 Black Headed and a low count of 12 Greylags and a single non flying Canada which has had a damaged wing since last summer.

    The water held 2 Cormorant, 8 Mallard, 2f  and 1m Goosander and a single Teal, otherwise just the usual species.

   On then to Lower Laithe where the Red Necked Grebe was still present along with a pair of Goldeneye and a pair of Tufted but all very distant at the far end of the water. Not many gulls present with a few Herring and around 40 small gulls.

   Next stop Leeming, which did'nt fair much better, with no waterfowl other than Mallards and another low count of gulls with Herrings and small gulls. A single Grey Wagtail was in the overflow.

       An icy cold trip this morning but a good check on 3 of my major reservoirs proving worthwhile to get the whereabouts of the Red Necked Grebe which is amazingly sticking to this area.

    A forecast of fog and rain for tomorrow but slightly milder at 3 degrees with a light sou'westerly.

BS

    

Another dabble at Ogden

 

                                    Frozen trees

                                  5 Long tailed tits present

                                    1 pair Bullfinch.

Another dark misty morning at minus 2 degrees on a light S>2 and fog on the tops.

      With hill fog and icy roads I decided on the easy option and had another go at Ogden.

Much quieter than yesterday, possibly due to all the trees being frozen and white with frost with very much the same species as yesterday plus the addition of  5 Long Tailed Tits, Kingfisher, Dipper and a pair of Bullfinch. Just a small count of Black Headed on the water as well as 2 Common gull and a very dark LBB intermedius. No Goosander present today but the Cormorant was still on the water.

     Nothing along the west bank which is still part snow covered and very slippery.

The muggy weather continues tomorrow with full dark cloud and poor visibility at 1 degree on a light sou'westerly.

BS