Cold Edge and Fly Flatts

Late afternoon visit to check potential Black Redstart spots at Cold Edge and Withens Head. Nothing doing on that score unfortunately
Cold Edge
75+ Canada Geese
3 Stonechats
1 Common Buzzard
1 Tufted Duck
25+ Mallard

Withens Head
1 Little Owl
1 Red-leeged Partridge calling
10+ Magpies (too many on the moorland fringes nowadays does not bode well for waders when it comes to the breeding season)

Fly Flatts
16 Golden Plover on the NE shoreline were difficult to find facing into the sun but a tip off from BS helped me to locate them - definitely a scope job.
Also a Ringed Plover from BS, see his West Yorkshire Birding blog - it had gone when I arrived, spooked by a Kestrel I gather !

Ringstone

Rock Pipit at Ringstone today.

Swales / Mixenden / Fly Flatts

Never know what the gales might fetch in - but nothing much for me this morning. Unusual to get gales with a southerly wind.
Swales Moor - gusting wind and cement lorry up and down Ringby Lane so retreated.
Mixenden Reservoir - yesterday's duck had gone, though 2 nice Goosanders headed over >SW
Fly Flatts - car full of rain from the open window - 4 Mallard and another hasty retreat !
Over to you Bri !!!!

Oh and just remembered a flock of c80 Redwings >W over Lee Mount at 08:30.

Swales Moor etc

Ringby lane
Pretty quiet up there mid afternoon other than a single Snipe flushed in the top field, 2 Jays >E, c20 Goldfinch and 6 Greenfinch at the back of the house at the start of Ringby Lane opposite the ski-slope

Shibden Head
Sparrowhawk, Kestrel and a few Redwings about

Mixenden Redservoir
4 Teal and 3 Wigeon found by PJWS were still there at 16:30 along with 26 Mallard

Various 10th October

From PJWS at Cold Edge - 3 skeins of Pink-footed Geese >W around 11:30 - 95, 100, 130.
Also 1 f Teal and 2 f Tufted Duck on the lower dam.

Earlier in the day some more 'pinks' with 225 first seen over Shibden at 09:00 (CS) and soon afterwards near Todmorden at 09:20 (PG). Also from (MH). c125 over Brighouse towards Ainley Top at 11:30.

Mixenden Reservoir .......

Very quiet there this afternoon with just a solitary Tufted Duck on the water and a flyover Great Spotted Woodpecker went into the plantation.
At the lower end of Ogden golf course a pair of Stonechats were feeding from the fence line in Carrs Beck. Also 5 Mistle Thrush there and a couple of Redwing flyovers.

Also a pair of Stonechats at Cold Edge this afternoon (PJWS)

Redwings...

Several reports of incoming birds today as well as a few over Lee Mount first thing. No particular direction here as some were >E and some >W but only in small groups.
50+ in holly bushes at top of Wood Lane, Luddenden Dean (PB)
Hundreds on the move >S first thing (AC)

Also of interest today - a Red-legged Partridge in a garden at Stratton Road, Brighouse (per MH), well out of it's comfort zone !

King cross to beacon hill

Mallard 74 people’s park
Dipper 1 on the hebble below nestle’s
Skylark 3 beacon hill
Meadow pipit 54 beacon hill
Chiffchaff 1 singing beacon hill
Pied wagtail 3 springedge 4 beacon hill 8 town centre
Song thrush 1 Stoney Royd
Mistle thrush 2 southowran

Ogden and Withens Head

Ogden - Back Lane. A hunch paid off as Crossbills have been seen recently at Walshaw and several others reported on vis-mig over Oxenhope. I was lucky, c20 flew over my head calling loudly from the reservoir plantation and landing in the tops of spruce trees, where there is a half-decent crop of cones. They stayed in view briefly before they disappeared deeper in the plantation, with several heading back towards the reservoir. I stayed for an hour but did not relocate them though I guess they will stay about for a short while. (?)
2 Redwings also flew over >SW.
12 Stock Doves
Plenty Kestrels in evidence as well but not a lot else other than a Common Buzzard over >E and a few 'mipits'.

Fly Flatts and Withens Head.
I gave up on Fly Flatts as the sun was so bright reflecting on the water. BS was there doing his rounds on the far side and did well with 2 Wheatears, 4 Stonechats and 3 Ringed Plover.

I managed a single Wheatear in a freshly manured field by the former Withens Pub so that rounded the afternoon off nicely.

Today's news !

Copley - c 40 Pink-footed Geese >W over Copley around 08:35 this morning (MM)

3 skeins totalling c100 'pinkies' over Ainley Top this morning around 08:30 could have included some of the ones above, over Copley (?) from WG who also had 4 Swallows this afternoon at farm at Exley.

Cold Edge - female Goldeneye today on the dams (PJWS)

Ringstone Reservoir - adult Whooper Swan in the field then a photo on the water mid morning. (JM. Update - bird still present Saturday morning.

Whooper Swan

 

Redwings and Fieldfares from Scandinavia should be with us in the next few days, or maybe even tonight so it's worth listening out for Redwings after dark !

Traffic management

A novel sighting this morning, a cormorant reviewing the traffic at Mytholmroyd from atop the lamppost. A bit aggressive to the crows but who isn’t at the time in the morning

Swales Moor

Late morning and interesting hour or so with a strong westerly breeze with breaks of sunshine and a clear sky.
37 Pink-footed Geese >W, high over Halifax towards the Calder Valley around 11:15
The highlight for me was 6 Coal Tits coming through the gap in the hill by the ski-slope and heading off high >W
Also 2 Snipe high and >W as well as 5 Skylarks and a Sparrowhawk.
Around the site c50 Linnets and  a few  Goldfinch

Early Warning System !

A message from JM at 08:42 this morning with a large skein of Pink-footed Geese over Brighouse  >W was closely followed by a call from MH, then a few minutes later (AC) who also got a photo count of the skein - 219.

Not long afterwards a call from PG with 75 >SW over Shibden.

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