Hardcastle Crags, 20 May

Took a long walk from the top car park to the mill, and up past the fork and back.
Similar experience to Dave's the other day - basically sod all! Not even the shy redstart. Can there really be neither flycatcher up there (or anywhere else in Calderdale?)? I even watched each of the trios of boxes I found for 20-30 minutes, and nothing went in or out. Not even blue or great tits. It would seem that whatever is in there (where the boxes are occupied) is sat on eggs. So maybe in 2 - 3 weeks time, there will be more to see.

And it's exactly the same picture at Jumble Hole. Where in the past couple of years there has been pied & spotted flycatcher and wood warbler, this year there's nothing.

Swifts

Seven swifts over the garden at Highroad Road Well today

Swales Moor

A walk on Ringby Lane this afternoon and along the way chatting with Ian, in the same mind as me, enjoying the sunshine.
2 Herring Gulls on the top, one adult, and several L B B Gulls loafing around the re-cycling compound
1 Skylark
2 Meadow Pipits
1 Linnet
One or two Swifts high up and 2+ Swallows over the fields
Some Lapwings in the ploughed field.
Distant Buzzard
Generally pretty quiet other than the usual 50+ corvids on the top.

Blake Dean

                                   A Hobby over Blake Dean today

Hardcastle Crags

Really hard work finding any summer visitors today.
1 Chiffchaff, a few Blackcaps, 2 Willow Warblers, 2 Swallows at Gibson Mill.
Bird of the day was a Redstart singing but at the same spot an hour later all was quiet.

Hardcastle Crags

Pretty quiet in the woodland other than Nuthatches sounding off in several locations.
1 Chiffchaff at Midgehole
2 Willow Warblers
6+ Blackcaps
1 Goldcrest
1 Grey Wagtail
Not a sign nor song of Wood Warblers, Redstarts or Flycatchers

Not much else till we got up towards Shackleton Knoll with a few Curlew and Lapwings
1 each Buzzard, Kestrel and Sparrowhawk
Plenty of Jackdaws and a few Rooks
Not a sign of any Swifts, just a few Swallows
Still it was a lovely day to be out in the fresh air and sunshine

PRINTERS

Does anyone know a decent printing firm, Ive just about had it with those prats in Hebden Bridge, they have had the bird report for 2 months and haven't even got back to me with a price yet despite me calling them last week.

Walshaw Track, Natural England & Mark Avery

A seemingly positive news update from Mark Avery  on the proposed Walshaw Track and the potetial legal action against Natural England:-

https://markavery.info/2018/05/10/a-significant-victory-wuthering-moors-67/

Withens Road

Some nice shots of a Cuckoo today from JM near Nolstar fields with Meadow Pipits in attendance !

Also a Cuckoo reported (Helen P) at Broadhead Clough area and another near Flints, above Baitings Reservoir (AH). Not doing bad for Cuckoos this year but where are some of the other summer migrants ?

Lee Mount

4 fledged Mistle Thrush with the 2 adults yesterday evening in the churchyard.
One of the juvs flew into a window but thankfully it recovered and flew up into a tree unharmed with the loss of just a few feathers !
A few minutes later they were all feeding on the ground when a Carrion Crow had a go at catching one. Amazing how quick a corvid can be when it's after fresh food. Another chick had a narrow escape with the loss of a tail feather.
It's a tough life being a young bird.

Green Woodpecker in Garden

       Nice surprise in the garden this morning with a
       Green Woodpecker calling and showing well, a
       bit of a bogie bird for me so I was well chuffed.
       2 Linnets keep visiting feeders and 2 Stock Dove
       also visiting regular along with Goldfinch,
       Greenfinch and Bullfinch.

   

Cold Edge and Ovenden Moor

Not a great amount of birds today other than the usual species for that area
2 male Wheatears at Withens Head along with  a Little Owl
A single Little Grebe on 'the dams'
1 Oystercatcher and a few each of Snipe, Curlew and Lapwing
A few Swallows at Withens Head
4 Reed Buntings, 2 Linnets, 3 Skylarks singing and a few Meadow Pipits about

None seen up there today but still very few Swifts about generally with just a few reports of small numbers only.
1 Green Hairstreak butterfly on Ovenden Moor

Woodhouse

Woodhouse near brighouse

2 lesser whitethroats in hedgerows by the cricket club also 4 sand Martins over the river 2 swifts and a nice selection of warblers

Reed Warbler

Some shots from JM earlier this week from an undisclosed site in Calderdale. A summer visitor usually recorded annually but still a scarce bird for us.

Reed Warbler

Thanks John - not at all an easy subject to get a photo of.

Jumble Hole

There are now two singing whitethroats close to each other, and the first has begun to show-boat as a result. The video was taken on an iPhone, so the bird was just feet away and didn't care I was there. He's also collecting cobwebs, but I think that's just display behaviour rather than nest building.

Swifts

There were at least three Swifts over the house this afternoon. I've not seen any mentioned on other posts,are these our first ones?