7th May Cold Edge Dams briefly

Bumped into my brother on the way back from Roils Head and he gave me a lift up to Cold Edge. Only had 30 minutes but managed a Little Ringed Plover, Redshank and a rather small curlew with a shortish bill and what appeared to be a pale central crown stripe (beware small male curlews ?)

Roils Head 7th May PM

Best bird was a Wheatear with a rather olive tinge to the mantle (possible greenland). Kestrel, Willow Warbler, Skylark and 2 Linnets (the area where the Linnets usually nest as been burnt again, see photo).

7th May Marsh Harrier

Derrick Wood reports a Marsh Harrier flying west at Cold Edge at about 1PM this afternoon. A rather dark bird being mobbed by 6 Curlews.

Luddenden Dean

2 hours in the Dean this afternoon. Target birds were Redstart and Pied Flycatcher - but no luck there at all but conditions were not ideal for bird song - but there is still time !

A Cuckoo was singing in the area above Spa Wood so that was a real bonus.
2 Dippers near the lower lodge.
2 Wheatears on Castle Carr Road

5th May Yellow Wagtail

Roils Head PM,

Had nothing much all spring at this site but persistence pays off. Walking across one of the playing fields I heard the now unfamilier call, tsrreee- tsrreee, turning round I found a stuperb Yellow Wagtail. I got the camera out and quickly pressed the button. The image on the back of the camera was completely black. All my settings were wrong, I went into the menu and dropped my shutter speed down to 250 and tried again, still the image was too dark so I went back into the menu and put my ISO up from 100 to 400 to compensate for the bad light. The bird had now moved away but I managed 2 shots before it flew off towards Mount Tabor at 3PM.

This is the first spring record since I had 1 at the same site on 15th May 2007. There were no records at all in 2009, what a shame.

Also at Roils Head 9 Linnets, 3 Willow Warblers and 4 Skylarks.

Thanks for Frog Info

A big thank you to all those who gave me the heads-up on frog activity earlier this year. The clip linked below was compiled from material shot at Fly Flatts and Roils Head. I only managed to perfect the underwater technique when I filmed the Toads a month later, so next year I might be able to improve on this. If you have any site info pertaining to Amphibians and Reptiles in the locale, please pass the information on to the Halifax Scientific Society. Your records really are important in protecting vulnerable habitats.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2O2HDKJfJc

First Fledglings

Pulled up at work this morning to find a male blackbird feeding two fledglings.

Looks like Dotterel have turned up at Pendle so worth keeping an eye out, went up to Saddleworth again last night, managed to lose my leggings which seem to have fallen out of a side pocket. Birdwise, two wheatear, one a big Greenland.

4th May Cold Edge

Thought Id found this little beauty this PM only to find out DJS had it this morning.

Cold Edge briefly this afternoon.

1 Dunlin, 2 Redshank, 2 Curlew, 3 Common Sandpipers, 1 Snipe drumming, 1 Wheatear and a stunning male Whinchat around the old building (that is still occupied).

BTO - BBS Survey

Cold Edge area;
1 Little Ringed Plover
1 Dunlin
1 drake Goldeneye
1 drake Goosander
1 outstanding male Whinchat singing near Moorlands Farm
plus other usual species including 8 Wheatears

Dipper, Todmorden

I was just walking into Todmorden when I spotted a Dipper in the Calder by the Bus Stn. I've obviously had a few sightings here (and perhaps becoming more frequent) but I can't remember one in the breeding season.
I continued through the town centre, and whilst on Water St, I heard a Grey Wagtail calling in the Walsden Water channel ie before it is culverted under the town hall. I didn't spot the Wag, but found a Dipper, which I can only assume was the same one that had flown though the culvert.
Also seem to have our breeding House Martins back, feels like Spring may finally have arrived.

Jumble Hole

All on the Pennine Way, Underbank
3 garden warbler
2 whitethroat
1 chiffchaff
2 willow warbler
1 goldcrest
Buzzard being mobbed by jackdaws and a kestrel
Green woodpecker

A walk on the tops

Up near the Packhorse, we went for a walk, somehow dodged the showers and saw some birds, Curlew, Wheatear, pheasant, mippits, thrushes (song and mistle) and of course lapwings including this little thing!  Is May 3rd early for these chicks - if so the fire must have done for many nests!

Garganey

The most exciting birding and wildlife sightings in my opinion are mostly unexpected and generally therefore fortuitous in nature and this mornings events just reinforced that as far as I am concerned.

Just before 10:00hrs I flushed a pair of Garganey feeding on vegetation on the River Calder near industrial Brighouse, an unlikely setting to say the least. I contacted DJS immediately as the pair flew west towards Brighouse in the direction of EGP.

I bombed back to my car and drove home to collect my camera and then returned to an area on the river just east of the town centre and decided to leg it along the river bank on the off chance that the pair might have landed further upstream as there were decent numbers of Mallard and the odd Canada Goose on the river at the time.

As it turned out the Garganey had flown about half a mile west along the river just east of Brighouse, so I got on all fours and scrambled along the riverbank and managed to rattle a volley of shots off before the Garganey took flight once again and flew in a westerly direction high over the town centre following the path of the river.

No apologies for the number of photos of these cracking birds

A few minutes later on the same stretch of water 3 Dipper appeared from the direction of Brighouse and 2 males (presumably) started singing and chasing one another before posturing on the riverbank.

Calderdale birding does not get much better than this!

As an afterthought I have enclosed another photo of the Garganey which were feeding close to the riverbank in a not dissimilar manner to Teal.

2nd May Elland GP

Down at EGP again with SC, looking for reported Garganeys. No luck but had cracking views of 2 singing Garden Warblers, also 2 Blackcaps, 2 Reed Warblers, Whitethroat, Chiffchaff, 1 male Mandarin on the lagoon near the Canada Goose nest, 2 Cormarants, 1 Goosander, 1 Herring Gull, 4 LBBGs, lots of Swifts, Swallows, Sand Martins, House Martins, 1 Grey Wag etc and a Mink crossing the river.

1st May Elland GP

EGP, PM, 3 Garden Warblers, 1 Blackcap, 1 Reed Warbler, 3 Chiffchaff, 2 Willow Warblers, 1 Whitethroat, 9 Goosander, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Sparrowhawk, 2 Song Thrush, 3 Bullfinch, 3+ Sand Martins, House Martins, Swifts, 7 Lesser Black Backed Gulls, 2 Herring Gulls etc.

Langfield/Gaddings Dam & Gorpley Res

Langfield/Gaddings Dam
Twite - 7
Wheatear - 3
Skylark - 6
Mipit - 6
Swallow - 4
Gorpley Res
Wheatear - 3
Curlew - 4
Skylark - 2
Mipit - 4
Little Ringed Plover - watched it for about 10 minutes before it flew off
Lesser Black backed Gull - 2
Skylark - 2
Swallow - 2
Canada Goose - 11

EGP

29/04/2010
2 Garden Warblers singing.
1 Sedge Warbler
3 Whitethroat
Mallard with 9 ducklings
1 G/C/Grebe
5 Goosander(3F 2m)
Pair Tufted

30/04/2010 PM visit
Ski Lake
25 Swift
100+ Swallows
30 House Martins
8 Sand Martins
2 Blackcaps nestbuilding
3 Song Thrush nestbuilding

Drumming Snipe

Hi all,
recent news reports suggest the way that snipe make a drumming noise. Quote ...

"A team of UK researchers found the birds' tail feathers "flapped like a flag" in the wind, something that had not been seen before.

When attempting to attract a potential mate, the males perform a dive to create the drumming noise.

The findings appear in the Journal of Experimental Biology."

And these "researchers" actually get paid for this!! Or am I a bigot? (there's that word again)

Whitethroat

In the c.100 yard 'warbler alley' (!) behind my house on Higher Underbank, Jumble Hole today had

1 Whitethroat
3 willow warbler
2 chiff chaff
2 blackcap

Garden warbler should be in any day now.

Todays reports

Cuckoo heard calling today from Widdop Road area (AH)

moth or butterfly

this was in my house today i was just wondering what it was, if someone knows ?

Skylark numbers in SD9627

I completed my BBS early visit yesterday at Blackshaw Head. Among other birds, I saw just a single Skylark which sort of worried me. This prompted me to look back, aided by the BTO website which holds data for all previous years for this square, to see how numbers have moved since 1994 when I undertook my first survey. Having seen the numbers I'd forgotten that in 2008 I only saw 2 Skylarks up there!

The chart here shows Skylark numbers each year and there is a definite downward trend (I still have to add the number from the late visit this year). This is a single 1km square, one observer, twice a year so it isn't statistically significant, but it tells me that I'm seeing fewer Skylarks now than I used to. There have been several small changes to the landscape, such as stable blocks being built and the Pennine Bridleway being improved, but nothing major. My early visit is always done at the end of April so no variation there. The largest step down coincides with the 2001 foot and mouth outbreak.

I'm not sure what this proves, if anything, but I just thought I'd share my concern.

Mandarin

Video of one of the Rishworth Mandarins is here...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sicoZP8GaoE
I'm sure they must be breeding somewhere locally. Various pairs and individuals keep popping up on the canal system and on the odd reservoir.

Saddleworth to Blackstone Edge - Border country

Went on a search for Dotterel at the Saddleworth Moor site, failed miserably. Went up to the triangulation point and beyond then turned round and walked up to Blackstone Edge. Very little birdwise (mipit, skylark and a swallow) but did see a couple of chunky, fairly well coloured wheatears.

Cragg Vale, Withens Clough and Stoodley Pike

Quieter than one would expect at this time of year, but a tree pipit up Withens Clough (higher up than in recent Springs) and two twite over. My ongoing quest for an emperor moth took a peculiar twist today, when I found a single forewing of one on Cragg Road, adjacent to Sunderland Pasture. I also saw my first ever green tiger beetle on the lane up Withens Clough.

Regards, Chris

Tuesday Evening

Apologies for the quality of the photo’s taken yesterday evening using a real Heath Robinson system to capture.

Had suspicions that a Peregrine was around for a while and got a brief view just over 2 weeks ago. Found him with his kill at about 6.30pm yesterday evening, spent a good half hour watching even though he was disturbed twice. No evidence of being ringed but never got a good view of the right leg.

Deanhead Area

Common Buzzard again in the area, also saw this bird or another a few days ago at Ringstone.



Male Stonechat seen briefly which is heartening after the severe winter weather.

Main feature of the visit though was the number of Northern Wheatear seen between Ringstone and Deanhead with at least 20 individuals counted (sorry Jeff!). The new fencing on the moors has provided these cracking birds with an abundance of posts to perch on so it was much easier than previous years to actually see them simply by scanning all the posts and walls.

There were at least 2 likely Greenlanders ('leucorhoa' race) present amongst them.

Red Kite

Seen near Blackstone Edge today by Nick Wilkinson RSPB Twite recovery project field worker (welcome back Nick!)

Is it a bird?..........nope!

By way of a little light relief from all of this bird stuff......here's a video of some Common (or should that be Notsocommon) Toads. Alive and well and living in Todmorden. Enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NWSJh5M8co&feature=youtu.be

Elland GP 26th April

Evening at EGP, highlights were 4 Swift, House and Sand Martins, 6 Blackcaps singing, 4 Willow Warblers, Chiffchaff, 3 Goosander, 3 Cormrants, 1 Tufted Duck and a Roe Deer.

26th April Cold Edge

PM, 2 Greylags, 1 Goldeneye, 2 Tufties, 1 Red Grouse, 1 Kestrel, 2 Common Sands, 4 Curlews, 1 Lapwing, 2 Linntets, 3 Wheatears and 4 Twite feeding on the track at Withens Gap.

Nectar sipping Blue and Great Tits

I've just seen this afternoon what I watched last year, at first hardly believing it; Blue and Great Tits sipping nectar from plum tree blossom.

I've seen bullfinches pecking into buds on winter plum twigs, a habit for which fruit growers can apply for a license to shoot them in certain parts of the country.

I've not heard of nectar sipping by any northern bird, only tropical species. Has anyone else seen it or read of it?

Steve Blacksmith

PS first bats for me over tree tops in Bankhouse Wood tonight.

Gorple Fire Damage

Important moorland habitat destroyd by fire. This destruction will effect such species as Curlew, Lapwing, Meadow Pipit, Skylark, Short-eared Owl and possibly Long-eared Owl and other woodland species. Part of the woodland as been completly destroyd while other areas remain untouched. Remarkably Woodpigeons were displaying over the burnt wood whilst it was still smouldering.

Moors Devastated by Fire

Yesterday ND and myself came across extensive scenes of devastation up on the moors. Vast swathes of grass and heather moorland, and a conifer plantation have been devastated by fire. The following information is from West Yorkshire Fire Depts website.
http://westyorksfire.gov.uk/incidentFeed/newsroom_v6/newsroom2.html

23/04/2010 12:31 - Shuttleworth Moor, Widdop Road, Heptonstall
Moorland fire, make pumps 10. 2 square miles involved with 800m fire front. 20 beaters and 4 hose reels in use.
Appliances from Todmorden, Mytholmroyd, and surrounding area in attendance along with 2 Wildfire units and a number of specialist officers.

ND will upload some pictures in due course, and I am currently editing some video material.

Whiteholme and Turley Holes and Higher House Moor

On a walk looking for emperor moths (alas didn't find any, how frequent are they up here? It's the first time I've looked) birdwise was noted: three shelduck on Whiteholme Res', plus at least five common sandpipers here and six wheatears also. A sand martin flew over Whiteholme as did a raven.
Is it me or does their seem to be less meadow pipits on the tops this spring and none today were displaying.

Regards, Chris

Site faithfull Little Owl

On a Halifax Scientific Society Ramble today one was on a wall at Rishworth, SE 03811846, in the same place as exactly a year ago (one day difference.) With thanks to Bruce for bringing the GPS device.

Total bird spp this year 27 as opposed to 23 in 2009.

Ripponden river bank to Turner Clough, up to Heys Lane (where owl was) then back along the contour and down to Ripponden.

Today's birds:

Migrant songbirds. Willow Warbler 2, Chiff-chaff 2, Blackcap 1.

Woodland. Blue, Great, Coal (building nest) and Long-tailed Tits. Jay, Wren, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Sparrowhawk, Robin.

Waterside. Dipper, Heron (3 nests, at least 2 occupied), Mallard, Mandarin, Grey Wagtail.

Field and Hedgerow. Little Owl, Rook, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Dunnock, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Pheasant.

The notable plant in this area is native daffodil, flowering well in its usual wood, but far more garden varieties seen planted out in the wild by people!

Butterflies seen were Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Green Veined White, Orange Tip.

Saturday 24/04/10

Male redstart.
Sorry for the poor picture. I had only had time for one before it disappeared. I waited around for an hour but it didn't appear again (email me if you want location details). While waiting I saw a redwing. I'd expected them to have left by now.

At the same site - 4 willow warblers.


Chaffinch, wren, great tit, coal tit and a party of 4 treecreepers.

Also seen:
dipper, grey heron, herring gull, sparrowhawk, canada and greylag geese, 2 common sandpiper, numerous curlew and lapwing.

April photos

Here are a few photos taken in April, Short-eared Owl, Raven, Mandarin at Rishworth and Rusty the Common Buzzard doing a bit of spring cleaning.

soil hill this morning

a quite morning at soil hill.
plenty of the commoner birds but most special was that fect that I managed to get the skylark Photo i had been seeking

plus some mipits also there

and a reed bunting pair down by the pools

plus a lapwing , kestrel, and 4 goldfinches

LEO

Photo of LEO taken on 22nd April.

Testing Testing

22nd April, Cold Edge Dams, 3 Dunlin, 4 Redshank, 2 Common Sandpipers, 2 Oystercatchers, 1 Curlew, 1 Goldeneye, 2 teal, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Kestrel, 1 Red Grouse, 7 Wheatears.
(looks good for waders this spring)

Later out with SC, 2 Long-eared Owls and a male Sparrowhawk at an undisclosed site.

23rd April, Checked another LEO site but no luck.

Hope Im now back on line with no more problems (Fingers Crossed).

LEOs Are Back

First pair of Long-eared Owls for the year are back on sight.
Elsewhere 9 goldies, presumed to have just arrived.