Lee Mount and Fly Flats area

Blackbird pair in the garden - the female was gathering moss and dead grass ! They'll be lucky with all the magpies about here. Also a surprise was a Stock Dove on the lawn - thats a new one for the garden list though I do see them at times through the scope, towards Swales Moor.

A couple of bonus birds on the way up near Nolstar - 2 Grey Partridge feeding in among the remnants of hay left for the sheep. No luck with either Golden Plover or Skylarks. Just got to Fly Flats mid afternoon and the fog rolled in and sideways rain. I just managed to see 4 Oystercatchers and hear some Canada Geese, Curlews and Red Grouse !

Hebden Bridge

Dipper

Castle Carr Road

A nice walk on there this afternoon cool westerly wind in some sunshine ! 

Highlight was of 9 Stonechats along the length - 1 pair near Wainstalls end, then 1 male with 2 females running a fence line half way along and lastly 2 pairs together in gorse and heather. Same count on return avoided duplication.

Also 18 species in total including 1 Kestrel, 1 Buzzard, 2 Meadow Pipits, 4 Curlew and just 1 Lapwing.

There don't seem to have been many Redwings or Fieldfare about up there all winter !

High Royd STW

I check this site just occasionally. Not quite like it used to be since the sludge lagoons were left to the willows ! We just checked the filter-beds from the canal side towpath today. It's often good for migrant hirundines and Swifts later in the year given the insects emerging  from the site, canal and river though a few Sand Martins have been reported from Fairburn Ings and Swillington St Aidan's the last few days so always worth a check !!

Probably just short of 40 Pied Wagtails on the beds this afternoon and 1 Grey Wagtail with 40+ Carrion Crows. Goldcrest, tit species and a Nuthatch calling in the nearby woodland.

Whiteholme

Stonechat female: the white patch on the inner greater and median coverts is quite prominent. Male stonechat seen nearby.

Whiteholme

Raven: 3SW, 1 on pylon calling

Fly Flats area

A nice surprise with a single Redshank this afternoon with 32 Lapwings in the area at the end of the wooden fence line with another 8+ Lapwings and  2 Curlew around the shore towards the south end. Failed to locate BS's Ringed Plover from earlier in the day. One pair of Tufted Duck on the water with 10+ Mallard. Plenty Canada's scattered about, mostly in pairs with just a single Greylag Goose on show.

The only small bird was a Pied Wagtail briefly on the boat-house roof.

At Withens Head there were 6 Curlew. Two Red Grouse raced across the moor.

Blackstone Edge

The first Meadow Pipit and Canada Geese (3 pairs in all) that I've seen here this year

North Bridge

1 of 4 Greenfinches (1 singing)

Mixenden, Fly Flats, Withens Head

Very little to show from any of the sites early afternoon. Conditions a strong gusty >SW with rain.

Mixenden Res'r - 3 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls along with 9 immature Herring Gulls. Several Black-headed Gulls now in full breeding plumage looking good. Very few Common Gulls at the time I was there.

Fly Flats - 19 Lapwing in one of the top fields looked to be finding plenty worms !

Withens Head - 2 Curlew

Shibden Park

Stock Dove and Mallard

Whiteholme

Most of 87 Pink-footed Geese flying SW at 1145 (thanks MH)

Blackstone Edge

Kestrel female

 

Mixenden Res'r and Fly Flats

Mixenden. An interesting morning with a nice surprise of 4 Shelduck on the reservoir. Also on the embankment a pair of Oystercatchers. 2 Cormorants flew over >SW and an adult Great Black-backed Gull dropped in but didn't stay for more than a few minutes.

Plenty of activity with c200 other gulls, mainly Common and Black-headed and at least 12 Herring Gulls. All tricky to count as so many were to and fro-ing and with plenty of disturbance on the embankment where they like to stay and preen.  Most were arriving from the north and departing >SW.

From the woodland a Nuthatch was making plenty of noise with a Green Woodpecker 'yaffling' from the hillside. Then a call from BS with Pink-footed Geese over Queensbury coming my way. Very distant from my spot. They were over towards The Withens, maybe 60 or so.

I headed up to Fly Flats and  4 birds arrived and landed on the water - Shelduck - they must have been the ones from Mixenden.

Shelduck at Mixenden Res'r

Soil Hill

  It was a blustery morning on Soil Hill today, so I did not expect too much bird activity despite the otherwise pleasant and clear conditions. 

  As I began my descent along Perseverance Road towards Ned Hill Track, I spotted a large gull flying SW slowly into the wind, almost adjacent to Ned Hill Track. Whilst I expected to see a Herring Gull in my binoculars, I was stunned to see the bird had creamy-white primaries; a white-winger! Due to the general lack of Glaucous Gull records in the country, I assumed the bird would be an Iceland Gull, but my priority in the moment was to grab as many photos as I could. 

  Once the bird began to move away from me I had a chance to check and confirm the bird was an Iceland Gull and to get the news out. It continued towards Ogden until I lost it as it dropped below the plantation there. I hoped that the bird would have settled on the reservoir but both BS and JJL confirmed that it was not there, so it presumably carried on its way.

   I note that the long-staying bird at Roundhay Park in Leeds was not reported today, so it may be the same bird. Iceland Gull is my 133 species for Soil Hill! 

  Additionally, there was a very dapper male Stonechat at the bottom of the North Slope but sadly no Jack Snipes today. 

-Iceland Gull

-Stonechat

In total managed 32 species today, the full list here; https://ebird.org/checklist/S302937172

Beacon Hill

Stock Dove.  No white, short tail, pink bill.