Swifts on the move

          Crows bathe on the Foxhill changing room roof.

                       Storm clouds over Foxhill

Spoke too soon yesterday about Swifts being scarce as today a steady flow has been moving over all day heading >NE. Conditions were ideal with the black clouds and heavy showers to move the Swifts on keeping ahead of the rain. In mid summer hundreds of Swifts can move in  large feeding parties ahead of weather fronts.
Several Swallows were also moving >NE today.
Early a.m. a Heron flew over the garage >E being heavily mobbed by corvids.
BS

Chapel Lane Graveyard

                         Plenty birds to be found in graveyards

Chapel Lane graveyard today held a singing Willow Warbler which for me is a first here. I walk past 4 times every day to and from work and have had a good variety of birds here. At the moment both Crows and Magpies are nesting hear along with at least 2 pair of Blackbirds. Robin, Wren and Dunnock are residents and Collared doves are usually letting their presence be heard in a morning. Chaffinch and Greenfinch are regular singers and House Sparrows nest in the ivy.
I bet on a good day and a bit of patience you could get up to 20 species in this little area. I used to work with a birder who specialized in graveyards for his birding until he moved on to golf courses.

Nothing much in the skies today amidst the sunshine and showers although Swallows are mostly back at their regular breeding sites. Swifts seem to have gone quiet for the moment.
BS

Foxhill Today

                  The reason for missing Saturday birding, daughter Rachel.

A snowy start to the day with sleet and snow as I walked to work, luckily it did,nt last, we,ve had settled snow in Queensbury at the end of May and even snow showers at the beginning of June in the past.
A single Curlew flew over Foxhill at lunchtime >W which made me look twice, it was one of those small, short billed versions but luckily it called so eliminated any doubts that I was thinking of having.
A pair of Pied Wagtails were on the top pitch along with 5 Goldfinch and the female Wheatear was still near the top of Harp Lane.

Heard today that when Soil Hill is complete it may be closed off for grazing land although there is a public footpath running through it, or there was till it was half buried in muck !
BS

Soil Hill

                                 Soil Hill Reed Bunting

pm visit.

Very quiet on the summit and not a lot more down at the ponds. Sat by the cabin for 30 mins but no Gropper, that could be our bird thats turned up at TMR although there are plenty around locally at the moment. Also there are 2 Kestrels regular hovering over the reed bed so they could have possibly spooked it. A search for Wheatear and Ring Ouzel was fruitless.

2 Kestrel
1 Sparrowhawk
4 Linnet
2 Mipit
1 Skylark
3 Reed Bunting
BS

Ogden

                                Plenty Mud but no waders

Down at the Shibden Mill Inn car park trimming daughters car up with  Just Married stuff this morning and other things to do today so had to make do with a visit to Ogden. Plenty inviting shoreline there ready for a wader invation but so far it has,nt happened.
Water and skies were quiet but it gave me chance to catch up on my warblers.

Mover :- 
14 LBB Gulls    >N and NW

Other
11 Willow Warbler
4 Chiffchaff
2 Blackcap - female
1 Garden Warbler
1 Whitethroat   corner of Syke Lane
1 Greenwoodpecker
2 Treecreeper
1 Moorhen
1 Heron
BS

Queensbury/ Wilsden/ Heaton

Usual Thursday dash over the tops to Heaton delivering shopping to an elderly relative provided a few interesting birds. Queensbury was in the clouds when I set off but I soon dropped below the cloud base and on the way back it had cleared leaving a nice sunset.
A female Wheatear was on the wall opposite Keelham farm shop which is actually Soil Hill area. Female Wheatears seem to be greatly outnumbering the males this year or is that the way it usually is and Ive just forgotten.
3 Golden Plover flew over Well Heads and came down in fields near the knacker yard.
9 LBB gulls headed >NW over the cricket field at Wilsden and a Curlew was on the farm wall nearly opposite.
A Tawny Owl was calling at Heaton but too distant in the trees to get a sighting
and a Fox ran across the front of the car.
Several Swallow and at least 5 Swifts were feeding over St Ives.

No updates on this blog for the next two days due to the daughter getting married Saturday and the wife did,nt seem amused about me walking down the isle with my bins round my neck.
Don,t despair , Ill be back in action on Sunday dredging Fly Flatts for megas.
BS

Harp Lane/ Springhead fields

p.m. visit.

Several Swifts and Swallows were heading up the valley >N even though the weather was damp and murky.
A Woodcock was flushed from the lower end of the lane which flew across the road and dropped down in the Dailie fields.
2 Wheatears were on the Springhead fields,as with all the Fly Flatts birds these were females.
A single Willow Warbler was in the Hawthorn and a Little Owl sat on its usual perch.
A green Woodpecker could be heard from the station

! Green Woodpecker
1 Willow Warbler
2 Wheatear
1 Woodcock
1 Little Owl
16 Swallows    >N
5 Swifts    >N
BS.

Local Views from Soil Hill

         Thornton Viaduct through a tangle of wires

                       Doe Park, a good vis mig and catchment area

Beyond the teasels to Thornton Moor Res, left and Sentry Hill, right.

A trickle of Swifts and LBB gulls today all north with several Swallows blogging around the area.
Nothing else of note apart from a White Stork which I missed flying past the garage, see NKs Queensbury birders blog for details.
BS

Hail ,Sleet and Snow on * the hill *

                      Bad cloud heading my way !

                                            Getting nearer.

                                         Its here !!!
A one hour visit ended in yet another drenching on Soil Hill this p.m.
I was in constant touch with DCB at his watchpoint and we could see the various shower clouds from Gt Whernside to Bradford centre. Small sharp showers kept hitting either Dave or me and then I saw the biggy coming across Bingley Moor in my direction. When it arrived I got rain,hail,sleet and snow dropped on me, lovely.
In amongst the showers Swifts were again moving but in lower numbers and much higher than yesterday.
See Daves vis mig site for his count and all day reports.

Swifts................32 >N
Swallows...........9 >N
2 Kestrels
4 Skylark
1 Meadow Pipit.
BS

More Fly Flatts Birds

                              Greylag gliding in

Goldie waiting for me by my car!

                            Meadow Pipit

Just got call from DCB saying Swifts are again piling through.
BS

Fly Flatts revisited

                                  1 of 3 Oystercatchers

                             Common Sandpiper

                                 Still plenty Wheatears around

Fly Flatts   0730-1000hrs   Icy cold wind NE > 6 dropping slightly. Cloudy sunshine.
Quiet skies apart from a trickle of LBB gulls  north, a few Swallows heading south, and who can blame them, and Swifts just starting to come as I came away.  A Cuckoo was calling near Dean Head and a flighty Whinchat was on heather beyond the feeding station. Wheatears were still plentiful.

Movers :-
11 LBB Gulls  >N
2 Swifts      >N

Other
7 Swallows   >S
1 Whinchat
12 Wheatear
6 Common Sandpiper
3 Oystercatchers
2 Golden Plover
4 Curlew
1 Cuckoo,  calling
BS

Swifts Galore

DCB with his car on sentry hill from Soil Hill. You,ll have to click to enlarge it.

                                                     Skylarks.

An afternoon visit to the hill proved fruitful even though the now cool E>4 was still blowing.

All was quiet to start with other than LBB gulls going through. LBBs must be the most layed back movers there are. Whilst other birds power through on migration LBBs saunter through as if they have all the time in the world.

I called Dave Barker who I could see at his watchpoint and as he was scoping to see where I was he started seeing Swifts high above me. Suddenly the flood gates opened and Swifts poured through heading north on a broad front from as far to the west and east as you could see. After about 30 minutes all was quiet again though Dave was still scoping them far out to the east.

For Daves report and totals see his vis mig blog on the right hand link.

Movers :-

Swift..........................129 >N

LBB Gull....................23 >N

Other :-

1 Kestrel

4 Skylark

2 Linnet

4 Lapwing

No sign of Gropper though not suprising in the cold wind.

No Wheatear or Ring Ouzel either.

BS

Fly Flatts Wheatears

             16 Wheatear counted around the water without scanning the walls etc.
  See full report below.
BS

A Wintery Fly Flatts

                                 A Handsome Golden Plover

                                     Common Sandpiper

                                   A fall of Pied Wagtails

Fly Flatts  0745- 1000hrs. Real Bank Holiday weather with icy cold wind E force 6 dropping slightly mid morning. Drizzle and rain showers. Full winter gear on this morning.
Despite just missing a Red Kite going over early morning, phone call from DCB, quite a productive visit given the weather conditions although sky movement was poor other than LBB Gulls battling through.
Wheatears were everywhere and a fall of Pied Wagtails was evident but no whites amongst them.

Movers :-
2 Swallows   >N
52 LBB Gulls   >N  >NE  & >NW
9 Pied Wagtails,  now blogging.

Other :-
5 Greylag Geese
16 Wheatear
2 Red Grouse
3 Twite
5 Common Sandpiper
3 Golden Plover
+ usual sp.
BS

Little to report

Had to work this morning so not much chance of scanning the skies.
A steady dribble of Swifts headed >N early doors and LBB gulls were coming over >NW most of the morning though only in small numbers.
At Shelf Moor tonight a Skylark was up singing and 11 Linnets were  flying around the gorse bush field along with 4 Goldfinch. Fly Flatts in the morning weather permitting so we,ll see what we can turn up to start May off.
Highlight of the area today has been a Grasshopper Warbler for Soil Hill (NK). For full report click on the Queensbury birders link.
BS