Queensbury today

Another dreaded day of baking sunshine and looking at the forecast it could go on all next week, Great !!
Even the ENE>4 today failed to stir any bird movement putting a complete stop to the migration that was just nicely getting going.
Only thing of note today were plenty Swallows over mainly south though several were bloggers and Swifts were absent over the village unless I get any later this evening, not long now before they,re gone.
A few LBB gulls were heading >N up the Aire Valley at midday but otherwise the clear blue skies were once again empty.
Off to do my rain dance now.
BS

Old Guy RD / Raggalds Flood

                Swallows enjoy the cricket practice nets

                                  The well cut grass is an attraction to birds.

    A non existent Raggalds Flood but worth the occasional
               check for Yellow Wagtail.

A quick before work tour of Old Guy Rd and the Raggalds Flood
A single distant Wheatear was briefly on the wall near Micklemoss Farm before dropping over into the Roper Lane side showing full autumn plumage.
The cricket field was lively as usual with 22 Meadow Pipits, 5 Skylark, 3 Pied Wagtails with 6 juvs whilst 12 Swallows were sunning themselves on the practice nets .
6 Lesser Black Backed gulls went over >W and several Black Headeds were around the fields.
Linnet counts are well down now with just 2 being seen.
BS

Greenshank on the move

Oxenhope Greenshank  Photos BS Aug 2013

With a sighting yesterday for me at Oxenhope and a report today of 1 briefly at Leeshaw  it looks like waders are getting on the move. A Green Sandpiper was also seen at Leeshaw KM along with a Whimbrel.
Greenshank and Green Sandpiper were a common sight a few years back with several of each including juvs dropping in together at Oxenhope as well as other local reservoirs but both are now a rare species with very few reports each year.

Busy skies at lunch time today with several Swifts feeding along with Swallows and House Martins whilst Black Headed gulls scratched about in the park for left overs from yesterdays donkey derby.
Bit hard watching the sky today in Foxhill whilst watching for donkey dung which the little Yorkie seems to have got a taste for.
BS

Oxenhope p.m.

          Gt Crested Grebe, unusual visitor for Oxenhope

        Mallard/Garganey type with 3 chicks

                                             Gull Mania

     The effects of a Heron fly over

                                Off to the south end

                                 Busy shoreline

                     LBB heavily in moult

Back to Oxenhope this tea time with just 1 hour to spare.
The weather did me no favours with hot sunshine and clear blue skies although the area was a lot busier than yesterday with a Gt Crested Grebe on the water, a rare bird for here, plus a call and a quick sighting of a Greenshank through the scope in the sw corner but no time to walk down to that end.
As I arrived a lot of the gulls were in the NW corner so I crept along the banking below the wall on all fours, hoping nobody was watching wondering who the nutter was, then carefully got the camera in position  through a turret in the wall ready to snap away when a Heron flew low over the corner of the water and all hell let loose with the gulls then taking to the water in the middle or going across to the southern end, oh well, maybe next time.

400+ LBB gull
200+ BH gull
5 Herring gull
2 Common gull
1 Greenshank
1 Gt Crested Grebe
200+ Lapwing
1 Curlew
23 Canadas
6 Greylag
+ usual sp.
BS

Leeshaw Reservoir 0700-0930hrs

                                                   1 of 2 Heron

                                  71 Golden Plover in the fields

                                                     Juv Meadow Pipit

                The ever present Little Owl

                                              Goldies

                                     A good year for breeding Greylags

    Strange place to find a Willow Warbler in the nettles

                                       Goldies heading off >S

Fogged off at Fly Flatts this morning so down below the cloud base to a murky Leeshaw which cleared after 0900hrs.
Several Golden Plover were feeding in the fields before moving off >S and well as Lapwings.
Some shoreline showing but only other waders present were Oystercatchers.
Odd to find a Willow Warbler in a bunch of nettles amongst several juv Meadow Pipits.
Nice to meet KM up there who had recently in the past few days had Whimbrel and Green Sandpiper and a possible Yellow Legged Herring gull.

47 Greylag
28 Canada
71 Golden Plover
100+ Lapwing
8 Oystercatcher
1 Little Owl
2 Haron
1 Kestrel
11 LBB gull
16 BH gull
1 Willow Warbler
2 Grey Wagtail
4 Pied Wagtail
3 Cormorant
Umpteen Meadow Pipits
+ usual sp
BS

Oxenhope, pm visit

                                  Plenty juv Lapwings

                   Nice bit of shoreline showing

                                    Black Headed gulls coming in

        Distant Curlew, one of the last.

                       100+ Lapwing in the southern fields

               Gulls starting to build up on the southern shore.
Oxenhope  1600-1700hrs
A night of thunderstorms followed by a day of  thick fog and continuous rain until late afternoon with 1 hour of sunshine before the next storm rolled over leaving a dry but misty evening.
A visit to Oxenhope failed to supply the goods with nothing special in wildfowl or waders.
One late Curlew flew over onto the moor and 100+ Lapwings were in the fields along with several juvs on the shoreline.
Pre roost gull numbers are still on the up but a scope through dashed my hopes of Med or Yellow Legged.

300+Lesser Black Backed
4 Herring gull
3 Common gull
c160 BH gull
24 Canadas
8 Greylag
4 Mallards
The eye striped Mallard on the lagoons had 3 very young chicks
1 Curlew
1 Kestrel
1 Common Sandpiper
Sev Swifts >SW
Usual Mipits etc.
BS