Middle Walshaw Dean 5th November

 
 
 
 
If you haven't seen the diver yet I suggest you do before it goes, its a real star, very tame even coming ashore for a time.Its now been here 4 days and in that time only one person as actually seen it dive. Most of the time it puts its head under the surface in the shallows. Thanks to DJP for the lift. 

Walshaw Dean 5th November PM

 
 
 
The adult winter Red Throated Diver showed very well, even coming ashore right in front of us for several minutes. It never dived but snorkled in the shallows. Anybody any idea what its eating.
Also present 1 Common Buzzard, 500 Fieldfares, a few Redwings, 50 Brambling c 50 Chaffinch and c 50 Goldfinch.More diver pics to follow. 

Fly Flatts

05/11/06 0730-1000hrs Cold W>5-6.Drizzle
3 Goldeneye in from SW, very flighty and unsettled,especially when a windsurfer turned up doing about 200mph in the near gale force wind.
68 Starling >W over the water
15 Mipits >W
1 Stonechat
2 Red Grouse
BS

Walshaw Dean - 1:00pm

Red throated diver still showing extremely well.
4 red grouse, c.120 fieldfare, c.100 siskin in plantation

Planning Application - Withens

In last night's Courier there was notice of a Planning Application for Withens: "Conversion of former Water Treatment Works to dwelling". Full details can be acccessed via Calderdale's Planning database - use this shortcut:

Withins Clough 06/02012/CON

There's volumes of material to trawl through. You can comment (for/against) online, but N.B. the Works is not actually in the SSSI. Don't be put off by the fact that the Application is made by Keyland Developments Ltd. This is Yorkshire Water in all but name.

Walshaw area

Fantastic days birding today starting off with Lesser Spotted Woodpecker along Widdop Road. It might be worth checking out the spot again if anyone is passing!

Go past the crags National Trust car park on the r h side of Widdop Road, 150 meters or so along the road going towards the camp site, is a small gully with trees leading up from the crags. The bird was in the top tree, right next to the road(quite a lot of dead branches) then flew across towards the farm copse across the road and lost from view in the farmyard trees.

Red Throated Diver on middle walshaw gave brilliant views - down to 50 mtrs. Well done with the pictures Shaun! Seen to catch one or two sticklebacks but spent a lot of time just looking underwater for prey without much success.

Also at the big plantation below lower walshaw were a lot of Chaffinch and some Brambling and Siskin. Migrating Fieldfares and Starlings were also going through there and Blake Dean in groups of 20 -40. They were moving through at least between 10.30 am and 2 pm so probably more than a thousand of each passing through

Also along Widdop Road a weasel caught and killed a full size rabbit and dragged it off into cover. Initially the rabbit squeeled for about 2 mins and seemed unable to run off with the weasel on its back and round it's throat. How does such a small predator take on such prey several times bigger??

Wainstalls/Fly Flats etc

Walk today from Wainstalls to Fly Flats and round to High Brown Knoll and Luddenden Dean. The moor was dead, surprising on such a wonderful day for walking and nothing doing either on the res'r at Fly Flats!

2 Stonechats were adjacent to the windfarm car park. and just 3 Twite at the feeding station at Fly Flats. 28 Lapwings and 33 Starlings over the res'r going north and 2 Red Grouse, 2 Reed Buntings and 5 Meadow Pipits on the moor.

Luddenden dean was more productive with c180 Fieldfares heading up to Castle Carr and 130+ Redwing and a lot of Mistle Thrushes scattered about the dean feeding on Rowan berries.

2nd November Red-throated Diver

A winter plumaged Red-throated Diver has been reported to me by a Rochdale birder at Middle Walshaw Reservoir.
It was seen at around 1.20PM this afternoon and seemed settled.This could be Calderdales seventh record and the first for 10 years.

Ringstone 1st November

1 kestrel as i walking to the hide,

2 golden eye

15 lapwings

100+ gulls

1 pied wagtail

1st November

 
2 Stonechats had moved from Roils Head to Norton Tower (photo taken through binoculars). 42 Lapwings at Heath Hill Road, 50+ Fieldfare north at Mount Tabor, 10 Redwings over Pellon and 5 Bullfinches at Ovenden Wood.
AC reports 250 Pink-footed Geese over Northowram. 

Ogden/Fly Flats

Visit yesterday in the afternoon but very windy and cold northerly and not many birds about! Just a Great Crested Grebe still at Ogden and 6 Twite at the feeding point at Fly Flats. That was about it!

Jumble Hole

Nuthatch calling there this morning. Despite this being seemingly ideal habitat, this is only my second record for this patch, the other one being earlier this year. Hopefully, colonisation is not far off.

KNOT at FLY FLATTS

29/10/06 Cold NW > 4-5 dropping by mid a.m. Clear blue skies
One of those dreaded moments with no birds for 1 hour then panic for 2 mins and its all over.
0910 at the NW corner of the res and suddenly 3 birds appeared from low over the water and straight over my head. I quickly got on the 2 closest together and found them to be Knot. When I went onto the third bird expecting another Knot it was a Merlin which had obviously put them up.When I looked back for the 2 Knot they were nowhere in sight and couldnt be seen flying off. The birds had either landed or more likely gone up high and away.
A walk round and a scan on the banks proved fruitless.
Also :- 1 Peregrine
4 Greylag >N
15 Fieldfare >S
22 Redwing >S
9 Mipits >
No Twite

SOIL HILL
1030hrs
2 Stonechat
5 Linnet
1 Skylark
No Twite
BS

Ogden

Visit earlier today but very wet weather. Just a Great Crested Grebe on the res'r. Checked the 'Giants Tooth' area but no sign of any Crossbills. Lots of Goldcrests in the woodland and c60 Redwings over >SW and 2 Grey Herons on the wall near the golf club below the res'r.

Luddenden Dean

2 groups of Fieldfares totalling about 140 birds going straight through west today over the Castle Carr area.

There are many Redwings and several Bullfinch in the dean feeding off a glut of Rowan, Hawthorn and Holly berries etc. Also a lot of Chaffinch, Greenfinch and Goldfinch (no Bramblings as yet) in the beech woodlands around Jerusalem Farm/Wade Wood and along the track that leads on the west side of the dean to the lower lodge below Castle Carr.

CONSERVATION GROUP MEETING

For the benefit of all, especially those who I missed from my email list. There will be a meeting of the conservation group at 8pm on Tuesday 7th Nov at Tiffany's cafe King Cross.

Matters to discuss include, Ringstone Management work, EGP, nest box project, Hardcastle crags survey and a private developement in Colden amongst others.

All welcome.

Hope to see you there.

Heath Hill Road 24th October PM

 

Skys darken over Midgley Moor. A fair size flock of Black-headed and Common Gulls were present. Went through the lot of them ( why don't we get med gulls?). 

24th October Fly Flats PM

 
 
 
 

A message from Dave Suttcliffe saw me back at Fly Flats with Roy this PM. I had been here yesterday looking for whoopers but had no luck. Took 94 shots in 15 minutes.
Roils Head PM- still 2 Stonechats present, plenty of BHGs and Common Gulls at Heath Hill Road. 

Pinkfeet movements

Lee Mount/Wheatley Valley
4 large skeins over this morning just after 9.30 totalling around 600 birds heading south east looked spectacular. At or around the same time 270 were also seen heading east over Shibden Valley.

Cold Edge - Fly Flats 23rd Oct PM

Dogs, Dogs, Dogs, everywhere Dogs.
Went to Cold Edge first and was greeted by several dog walkers allowing thier animals in the water and around the shore flushing all the ducks including a pair of Teal I was just about to photograph.5 Red Grouse 1 Greylag a Goldcrest and a Stonechat were recorded.
Ovenden Moor Wind Farm - 3 Stonechats.
Fly Flats - 4 Stonechats a Kestrel and 4 Red Grouse two dog walkers with thier dogs on leads.
Withens Hotel- 2 Stonechats a Goosander north and a Plover over calling was probable a Grey Plover but only seen briefly and could not make out black arm pits in the poor conditions.
10 Stonechats all together.

Andy Cockroft reports 3 Whooper Swans flying west at Northowram this morning and at least 600 Pink-feet went over Halifax around 9.30AM.

Andy has also informed me that the fishing club at Brighouse - Cromwell Bottom has been given a licence to shoot 2 Cormorants ( 2 only) if they shoot anymore they will have thier licence revoked. If you are visiting this site and wittness any birds being shot please make a note of it, how many and at what time.