Sunday, July 14, 2013
Hunter Hill
I tried an hour up there this afternoon which unfortunately got cut short by a call from the police to say my car had been broken into on Cold Edge Road....smashed drivers window but nothing taken from the car. That was the down side to the afternoon the only plus was 2 Wheatears (adult female and a juv) at the top of Slaughter Gap
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Buzzard
A buzzard flew east along the valley below Jumble Hole at 2pm this afternoon, being mobbed by two kestrels. The buzzards wings looked extremely tatty - presumably in moult.
Friday, July 12, 2013
Fly Flatts
It was a nice surprise this morning to find 5 Twite at the feeding station after a number of visits this year drawing blanks. No male seen today but it looked like 3 juvs and 2 females (though they are not easy to tell apart from my experience)!!
2 juv Wheatears - one on the embankment and one on the walls near the top road - I guess these are not local birds as there has been no adults around for several weeks.
One pair of Curlews still about near the windfarm
10 Lapwings
1 Golden Plover
2 Redshank + 1 juv flying
4 Common Sandpipers + at least 2 juvs flying
1 Oystercatcher
c400 Canada Geese + juvs
4 Greylags + juvs
1 Kestrel
1 Skylark
20+ Meadow Pipits and still feeding young
Withens Head
2 Curlew
1 Oystercatcher
1 Snipe
c30 juv Starlings
Colden
An adult cuckoo flew straight through the middle of the Colden school sports day this afternoon. Plus heard from a parent there that they have heard and seen 2/3 whitethroat around the scrub surrounding Heptonstall.
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Tuesday, July 09, 2013
Halifax Town Centre
A pair of Kestrels with at least 2 young ready to fledge. In Square Church spire about half way up in 2 stone portholes - view from Westgate near the Piece Hall gate.
Lee Mount
Not a bad morning in the garden this morning with 1 each of Nuthatch, Great-spotted Woodpecker and a juv Green Woodpecker. All in Shroggs Park in the trees at the back.
Only a few local nesting Swifts around this year with a maximum count of 7. In recent years the daily totals have been around 30 !
Only a few local nesting Swifts around this year with a maximum count of 7. In recent years the daily totals have been around 30 !
Cold Edge
For a change - anything but cold this afternoon up there - 26 c !!
We thought , a perfect afternoon for butterflies - just one Tortoiseshell and 2 G V Whites.
4 B H Gulls
2 Raven over
2 Little Grebe
1 Moorhen
1 Kestrel
Several Reed Buntings, M Pipits, Linnet, Swallows and Goldfinch
c30 juv Starlings
1 fresh out of the nest Pied Wagtail
c40 Swifts very high >W
Oystercatcher, Curlew, Lapwing and 1 Common Sandpiper
We thought , a perfect afternoon for butterflies - just one Tortoiseshell and 2 G V Whites.
4 B H Gulls
2 Raven over
2 Little Grebe
1 Moorhen
1 Kestrel
Several Reed Buntings, M Pipits, Linnet, Swallows and Goldfinch
c30 juv Starlings
1 fresh out of the nest Pied Wagtail
c40 Swifts very high >W
Oystercatcher, Curlew, Lapwing and 1 Common Sandpiper
Monday, July 08, 2013
Garden whitethroat
I had a nice garden 'tick' this evening with a whitethroat. Presumably one of the pair nesting less than 100 yards away.
Yesterday, 2 little owls were right at the top of Crimsworth Dean, where the Haworth Old Road meets the stream. That must be right on the border of our area.
Yesterday, 2 little owls were right at the top of Crimsworth Dean, where the Haworth Old Road meets the stream. That must be right on the border of our area.
Friday, July 05, 2013
Albino Swallow
A couple of photos of a recently fledged Swallow from a nest in Stainland, thanks to Darren for the photos.
Thursday, July 04, 2013
Tern - Ringstone
I assume it is a Common but can someone confirm from these 'record' shots?
Peregrine close by sat on its perch near its website. Seemed to be ignoring the walker who was only around 50 yards away.
Fly Flatts
This morning. Very windy W F5 to 6 and driving drizzle, not pleasant!
Birds not too bad though with waders including Curlew, Lapwing, oystercatcher, Dunlin, Common Sandpiper, Snipe and Golden Plover.
4 Teal
410 Canada's + juvs
4 Greylags + 9 chicks
1 Mallard
Not a raptor in sight though plenty Swifts feeding low over the water c60 plus a few others moving through and down into Luddenden Dean.
Plenty mipits and a few Skylarks.
3 B H Gulls >SW
1 L B B Gull >W
Twite feeding area again replenished with nyger seed but not a sign of any Twite - bad news!
Birds not too bad though with waders including Curlew, Lapwing, oystercatcher, Dunlin, Common Sandpiper, Snipe and Golden Plover.
4 Teal
410 Canada's + juvs
4 Greylags + 9 chicks
1 Mallard
Not a raptor in sight though plenty Swifts feeding low over the water c60 plus a few others moving through and down into Luddenden Dean.
Plenty mipits and a few Skylarks.
3 B H Gulls >SW
1 L B B Gull >W
Twite feeding area again replenished with nyger seed but not a sign of any Twite - bad news!
Tree Sparrows
The Tree Sparrows (TS) are doing better each year at the Clifton Tree Sparrow Recovery Project, our only known breeding site for the species in Calderdale. Several boxes (about 11) have TS nests. We've noticed this year that they are now using some of the boxes on the two large oaks, one of which is above the fishing-pond, and one on the near side of the pond when looking from the road; a new observation. The box on the big oak in the lane, furthest away from the cottages (box 1) has again been used by TS as usual.
One very low box only a few metres from the feeders in the hedgerow was used successfully by TS this year, though one juvenile died at the RF (Ready to Fledge) stage. Records will be sent in to the BTO. (British Trust for Ornithology.)
Other species using the boxes are Great Tits Parus major and Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus, (3 of each.) There are about 55 boxes, mostly numbered, though the numbers are not always visible. The highest boxes on one of the oaks are not numbered.
On 23rd June four boxes in a row on trees in the cottage garden had occupied TS nests. The young were at various stages from FS (feathers on wing short) to FL ( feathers long,) and brood sizes were two of 4, one of 3 and one of 5. They are very likely to have two or more broods in the season.
Tree Sparrows are in the eves at another group of cottages in the area, just over the fields, (Mike Stead), but the residents prefer not to have bird watchers peering up at their windows.
House Sparrows have been seen at the site, and it looks like they have bred there this year, as two fledglings were huddling together on the lawn on 23rd June. They are unlikely to use the boxes, as they prefer a bigger hole, but may be ousting TS from the holes under the eves.
We noticed that at least one Rook Corvus frugilegus had learned to cling onto the feeders, so Jane Uttley deftly fixed plastic garden mesh round, which lets small birds in. Jane orders large sacks of golden or golden/white millet which, surprisingly to me, is grown in UK. Our initial grant for the project ran out some time ago, and Calderdale Bird Conservation Group are now paying for the seed. We have a rota to go and top-up.
This encouraging news about TS numbers has been heard from various parts of the country. Yorkshire Naturalists Union Bird Report for 2011 says there has been a 58% increase in England since 1995.
Other sites at which TS used to be seen were at Cromwell Bottom Nature Reserve, and at North Dean Woods (breeding in the old quarry - the late Frank Murgatroyd ) and in the railway viaduct over the River Calder at Salterhebble ( 1 nest in the early 90s - SB.) So they might reappear here soon.
(Jane Uttley and Steve Blacksmith - Calderdale Bird Conservation Group and Halifax Scientific Society.)
One very low box only a few metres from the feeders in the hedgerow was used successfully by TS this year, though one juvenile died at the RF (Ready to Fledge) stage. Records will be sent in to the BTO. (British Trust for Ornithology.)
Other species using the boxes are Great Tits Parus major and Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus, (3 of each.) There are about 55 boxes, mostly numbered, though the numbers are not always visible. The highest boxes on one of the oaks are not numbered.
On 23rd June four boxes in a row on trees in the cottage garden had occupied TS nests. The young were at various stages from FS (feathers on wing short) to FL ( feathers long,) and brood sizes were two of 4, one of 3 and one of 5. They are very likely to have two or more broods in the season.
Tree Sparrows are in the eves at another group of cottages in the area, just over the fields, (Mike Stead), but the residents prefer not to have bird watchers peering up at their windows.
House Sparrows have been seen at the site, and it looks like they have bred there this year, as two fledglings were huddling together on the lawn on 23rd June. They are unlikely to use the boxes, as they prefer a bigger hole, but may be ousting TS from the holes under the eves.
We noticed that at least one Rook Corvus frugilegus had learned to cling onto the feeders, so Jane Uttley deftly fixed plastic garden mesh round, which lets small birds in. Jane orders large sacks of golden or golden/white millet which, surprisingly to me, is grown in UK. Our initial grant for the project ran out some time ago, and Calderdale Bird Conservation Group are now paying for the seed. We have a rota to go and top-up.
This encouraging news about TS numbers has been heard from various parts of the country. Yorkshire Naturalists Union Bird Report for 2011 says there has been a 58% increase in England since 1995.
Other sites at which TS used to be seen were at Cromwell Bottom Nature Reserve, and at North Dean Woods (breeding in the old quarry - the late Frank Murgatroyd ) and in the railway viaduct over the River Calder at Salterhebble ( 1 nest in the early 90s - SB.) So they might reappear here soon.
(Jane Uttley and Steve Blacksmith - Calderdale Bird Conservation Group and Halifax Scientific Society.)
A female House Sparrow (right) at the fat feeder with Tree Sparrows
(Passer domesticus and Passer montanus.)
Male and female Tree Sparrows have no plumage difference.
Two recently fledged House Sparrows. (Juvenile Tree Sparrows have some of the head-markings of their parents.)
Tree Sparrows Passer montanus
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Spotted flycatcher
A pair of spotted flycatcher are nesting in a private garden at Blackshaw Head. Not many about this year, so good news.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Crossbills at Roils Head
Jumble Hole
A pair of whitethroat were feeding young in scrub lower down the Pennine Way this morning, so another new site for them. Dozens of swifts at Eastwood sewage works when the rain set in. Green woodpecker and tawny owls are a daily / nightly feature at the moment.
Fly Flatts
Just a quick walk around the moors before heading over to Fly Flatts for a look. The weather started OK, if not a little blustery, but by the time I was finished it was raining.
Ogden Moor
-Meadow Pipits
-Skylarks
-1 Male Reed Bunting
-Swifts
-This: Snipe or Woodcock?
Fly Flatts
-Curlews
-Lapwings
-1 Golden Plover
-Swifts, very close
-Meadow Pipits
-Skylarks
-Graylag Geese
-Canada Geese
-Common Sandpiper
Ogden Golf Course
-Meadow Pipits
-Skylarks
-Crow
-Curlew
Letter to Craig Whittaker
Below is a copy of a letter sent recently to our local MP by Steve Downing, if anyone wishes to add weight to this Mr Whittaker's (and other MPs) contact details can be found at http://findyourmp.parliament.uk/constituencies/calder-valley
Dear Mr Whittaker,
The Calderdale Raptor Study Group is a member of the Northern England Raptor Forum [NERF]. The Forum, consisting of ten Raptor Study Groups who collectively monitor birds of prey from Derbyshire to the Scottish border, is a member of the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime [PAW].
NERF is also a member of the Defra led Buzzard Stakeholder Group. This Stakeholder Group was charged with assessing the impact that Buzzards, a species fully protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act in the UK, have on the commercial pheasant shooting industry. I represent both the Calderdale Raptor Study Group and NERF on the BSG. Throughout the process NERF has always been prepared to accept the outcome of a valid decision making procedure based on scientific evidence and consistent with EU guidance principles for any possible derogation from the full protection of wild birds. In 2012 the Buzzard Stakeholder Group was suspended.
On 30 May 2012 Minister Richard Benyon said "In the light of the public concerns expressed in recent days, I have decided to look at developing new research proposals on buzzards. The success of conservation measures has seen large increases in the numbers of buzzards and other birds of prey over the last two decades. At the same time it is right that we make decisions on the basis of sound evidence and we do need to understand better the whole relationship between raptors, game birds and other livestock. I will collaborate with all the organisations that have an interest in this issue and will bring forward new proposals."
Following an Environmental Information Request [EIR] by the RSPB our members were understandably outraged to learn that Defra had issued licences to destroy buzzard nests and to take buzzards from the wild into captivity. Prior to this decision being taken the Stakeholder Group was not consulted and the assurances given by Mr Benyon in May 2012 were not fulfilled. If the RSPB had not made the EIR our members would have not have been made aware of this irresponsible shift in policy.
On my behalf I would like you to ask Minister Benyon for answers to the following questions:
• why did he allowed these licences to be issued in contradiction of his assurances of 30 May 2012?
• why was the Buzzard Stakeholder Group not re-called and the issues discussed prior to the licences being issued?
• what scientific research was undertaken prior to the decision to issue the licences?
• what legal advice did he, Minister Owen Patterson, and the Defra officials receive prior to issuing these licences?
Furthermore I am seeking assurances from the Minister that he and his Junior Ministers will ensure that Defra Officials will not issue further licences to destroy Buzzards or any other bird of prey prior to undertaking the necessary research that he promised in May 2012.
Dear Mr Whittaker,
The Calderdale Raptor Study Group is a member of the Northern England Raptor Forum [NERF]. The Forum, consisting of ten Raptor Study Groups who collectively monitor birds of prey from Derbyshire to the Scottish border, is a member of the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime [PAW].
NERF is also a member of the Defra led Buzzard Stakeholder Group. This Stakeholder Group was charged with assessing the impact that Buzzards, a species fully protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act in the UK, have on the commercial pheasant shooting industry. I represent both the Calderdale Raptor Study Group and NERF on the BSG. Throughout the process NERF has always been prepared to accept the outcome of a valid decision making procedure based on scientific evidence and consistent with EU guidance principles for any possible derogation from the full protection of wild birds. In 2012 the Buzzard Stakeholder Group was suspended.
On 30 May 2012 Minister Richard Benyon said "In the light of the public concerns expressed in recent days, I have decided to look at developing new research proposals on buzzards. The success of conservation measures has seen large increases in the numbers of buzzards and other birds of prey over the last two decades. At the same time it is right that we make decisions on the basis of sound evidence and we do need to understand better the whole relationship between raptors, game birds and other livestock. I will collaborate with all the organisations that have an interest in this issue and will bring forward new proposals."
Following an Environmental Information Request [EIR] by the RSPB our members were understandably outraged to learn that Defra had issued licences to destroy buzzard nests and to take buzzards from the wild into captivity. Prior to this decision being taken the Stakeholder Group was not consulted and the assurances given by Mr Benyon in May 2012 were not fulfilled. If the RSPB had not made the EIR our members would have not have been made aware of this irresponsible shift in policy.
On my behalf I would like you to ask Minister Benyon for answers to the following questions:
• why did he allowed these licences to be issued in contradiction of his assurances of 30 May 2012?
• why was the Buzzard Stakeholder Group not re-called and the issues discussed prior to the licences being issued?
• what scientific research was undertaken prior to the decision to issue the licences?
• what legal advice did he, Minister Owen Patterson, and the Defra officials receive prior to issuing these licences?
Furthermore I am seeking assurances from the Minister that he and his Junior Ministers will ensure that Defra Officials will not issue further licences to destroy Buzzards or any other bird of prey prior to undertaking the necessary research that he promised in May 2012.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Cold Edge and Withens Head
This afternoon, lots of Curlew about 10+ several juvs, looks like they have had another good year up there. Other waders included Lapwing, Snipe, Golden Plover and Redshank
1 Little Grebe
Plenty Meadow Pipits and a few Reed Buntings and Linnets
No raptors at all though a few Swifts moving through
1 Skylark
1 Willow Warbler
1 Little Grebe
Plenty Meadow Pipits and a few Reed Buntings and Linnets
No raptors at all though a few Swifts moving through
1 Skylark
1 Willow Warbler
