Under starters orders, Fly Flatts

 

                                    Single Wheatear present

                                1st returning wader, juv Ringed Plover

An ease in the wind today with a light WSW>3 with a low, dark cloud base shrouding the turbines but soon clearing to leave full cloud and light rain showers at 12 degrees.

      Hopefully the start of returning waders with a single juv Ringed Plover which was very hard to find and eventually picked up in the scope. It was feeding on the shore continuously and still present as I left, even though there was some sailing club disturbance. I thought I'd done well until MC informed me of a big move of Ringed Plovers in Yorkshire with flocks of 18 at Gouthewaite and Nosterfield and a massive flock of 47 on a reservoir near Skipton.

    The long staying Common Sandpiper is still hanging on though its partner and juv have been long gone. Just a single Wheatear showing but otherwise very quiet with just 2 LBB gulls on the north shore and a Kestrel over the moor. Only 8 Canadas left today.

    With the water well down now and islands starting to show, hopefully I'm on my way.

Back to a moderate sou'westerly in the morning, increasing to near gale pm and bringing afternoon rain.

BS

Storm force Leeshaw.

 

                                Canadas battling the waves

                                Cormorant facing the wind

                        Peering through the drizzle Canadas, north shore

                                    Canadas in to land

A howling W>7 gusting 8 with horizontal drizzle throughout at 12 degrees.

    Far too windy for Fly Flatts this morning and a later text on the Sailing Club grapevine for members to get up to the boatyard with several boats blown over and moving around the compound.

   Leeshaw was very windy, which was'nt much of an issue, but the heavy horizontal drizzle showers made it hard work. Birding this morning was just on the border of the very dedicated or the very insane, not sure which category I fit into but ideal conditions for something maritime coming through and if you don't go you don't know.

    Having said that, nothing special did appear other than a good count of LBB and Black Headed gulls through all >W into the wind but very few stopped off.

  The highlight of the morning was a record count of Canada geese with over 300 present along with around 50 Greylags. The geese were very flighty in the wind moving between the big field, the water and the shore.

   Otherwise Lapwings, Mipits, Cormorant, Mallards and a single Kestrel skirting the shoreline.

Yesterdays Med gull, found by MP, is 3 years old and has spent its life in and around the Netherlands and this is the first sighting of it in the British Isles. The last sighting previous to this was Zeeland, Netherlands in April this year.

Wet and less windy tomorrow with a light south westerly.

BS

Yet another Med gull for Thornton.

 

                                    Adult Med Gull. Ring on right leg

                                   Another find for Mark Pearson

                                    Leg ring  white 34VA

                                    Very flighty in the strong wind.

A terrible morning here on the tops with a near gale force SW>7 and heavy horizontal drizzle. Drier later in the day and slightly less windy.

      Just a very wet dog walk this morning with plans to check the gulls at Ogden late p.m. when the weather calmed down. The plan changed after a text from MP reporting the adult Med gull was back in its previous field.

    Off then on my 6th attempt of this adult , which has been around over a week but managed to avoid me. On arrival there were several Black Headed plus 4 LBB and 2 Herring but a scan through with the bins failed to come up with the target bird. 

    The gulls were a fair distance into the field so out with the scope which soon picked up the stonking adult Med gull with a ring on its right leg. The gulls were very flighty in the wind and each time a gust came they took off, only to fly a circuit of the field before landing again.

    Luckily the light was reasonable so I was able to get some distant shots and enough to read the ring number, hopefully to be identified as to its origin.

    Once again, thanks to Mark for the shout.

Gale force westerlies for tomorrow with some rain.

BS

Leeshaw reservoir

 

                                    Plenty gulls through >W

Horrendous start to the morning with near gale force WSW>6 gusting 7 bringing heavy horizontal drizzle 13 degrees brightening mid watch.

     First stop off was Thornton fields where MP had turned up another adult Med gull. Unfortunately there was no sign of the gull after a visit on the way and way back from Leeshaw.

    Leeshaw was good for moving gulls, as it usually is in these sort of conditions, with a constant flow of LBB and Black Headed heading through low and west with very few stopping off.

   A single Ringed Plover flew through fast over the water disappearing to the west end of the reservoir and looking as if it was going to land but no other sighting as there is no access to see the west or east shore.

  Otherwise, plenty Swallows, around 250 mixed Greylag and Canada plus a few Mipits and Lapwing.

     Not looking good for morning with rain and a strong SW>6 at 30mph gusting force 8 at 45 mph.

BS

It can only get better, Fly Flatts.

 An icy cold WSW>5 at 12 degrees made it feel like winter birding. Visibility was good with 80% cloud and some sunny spells.

   Birding was at its worst this morning with a single Common Sandpiper and 4 Canada geese whilst a few LBB gulls headed >NE and a single Swallow>W.

   No small passerines of any description with even a clear out of Meadow Pipits.

A cloudy day tomorrow with a strong WSW wind gusting at 35 m.p.h. near gale 7.

  Little Stint, Turnstone, Sanderling and Green Sandpiper on the move now, as well as Dunlin.

BS

Cold, wet and windy, Fly Flatts.

 

                                Windblown Wheatear

                                    Still in moult

                                    1 of 4 Common Sandpiper

                                    Lagoon in good fettle.

                                   Plenty shore, SE corner.

Despite the forecast of light winds this morning there was a cold moderate SSW>4 blowing at 11 degrees with a low cloud base which soon cleared leaving a very dark full cloud cover.

     Hard work this morning, feeling more like winter birding in the icy cold, damp wind. A single Teal took off from the south shore and dropped over the west bank towards Dean Head whilst a single LBB gull was by the waters edge at the north end.

     A few Meadow Pipits around and 2 Wheatears were new in around the compound area. Ample shore exposed now but only 4 Common Sandpipers so far with other waders imminent, hopefully. The lagoon now looks 100% right for Green Sandpiper but that's a matter of watching and waiting.

    Nothing in the skies this morning other than a very scraggy looking Buzzard high above Tattie Pie Hill. Canadas are down to around 40 now with all the Greylags moved on.

   A text today from Oakworth birder AK reporting a Swift over the river Worth. Only stragglers left now though MC is still getting them down south at Oxford.

Annoyingly the road closure is still in place at Hebble Brook, this should have been opened last Friday.

     Another blustery morning tomorrow with a moderate sou'wester and chance of rain.

BS

    

A blustery Leeshaw reservoir

 

                                    1 of 2 Little Owl

                              

                                    LBBs moving through

                                8 mega distant Teal in the heat shimmer

                                            LBB in moult.

A very windy morn at Leeshaw with full cloud and light rain clearing to part sun and dry with a moderate W>5 gusting 6 at 12 degrees and good visibility.

    As per usual, with the wind came the gulls, with a steady flow west throughout the watch of LBBs and Black Headed but no Common or Herring. Several Black Headed and a handful of LBBs settled on the north shore but all kept at scope-able distance whilst others moved straight through.

    A group of 8 Teal were a bonus but kept pinned down way across on the north shore with no chance of a decent photo due to the distance and heat shimmer. They remained in the same position throughout the watch and were still present as I left.

    A new mown field held several Black Headed gulls and Stock Doves along with a few remaining Lapwings whilst Swallows were over the water plus a single Sand Martin.

    The only small migrants present were lots of Meadow Pipits and Goldfinch but otherwise quiet apart from the usuals and a single distant cronking Raven.

     A cloudy morning tomorrow with a light SSW wind.

BS