Calder near Elland pm

A Woodcock flew up snipe-like in the scrubby area between the river and canal: giving a good but brief view, it flew upriver towards Elland.
Also -
female Goosander
12 Mallard
35+ Goldfinch moving through treetops
small flocks of LT Tits - largest 15
Jay
GS Woodpecker
Bullfinch
GC Grebe on water skiing lake

ringstone

I went to look at the whoopers was sat in the hide and a golden eye landed right in front of me this is just a quick grab shot before it dived and went away from me.

Ogden and Mixenden Res'r

Ogden;
2 Fieldfare
1 Snipe on Back lane
1 Red Grouse by the 'giant's tooth'
Goldfinch - c60 in the trees (pre roost) by the 'Causway Foot'

Mixenden Res'r
1 Cormorant
1 f Goosander
No sign of the juv Mute Swan

Pink-foots moving in dark.

Not as exciting as the diver, but heard these last night at 10.30 at Skircoat Green, in heavy rain.
Sounded to be quite low, but we couldn't see them or tell their direction, or estimate number.

Various sites

This morning
Sunny Vale
1 Kingfisher
3 Teal

Ringby Lane
No sign of the Snow Bunting
9 Skylark
1 Meadow Pipit
94 Carrion Crows
1 Sparrowhawk

Ogden
4 Redpoll over

Mixenden Res'r
1 Mute Swan - immature

Cold Edge
1 Grey Heron
1 Little Owl

Fly Flats
1 Kestrel

Longfield Dam

Walked past Longfield this afternoon - 31 Mallards; 7 Lapwings; 17 BHGulls; 1 Moorhen; 2 Tufted Ducks

Ringby Lane (Swales Moor)

No Snow Bunting today, but the views were stunning looking over Halifax.

10 Skylark

c12 Meadow Pipits

1 Sparrowhawk

BTO Atlas

Survey work this morning covering Tetrad SE02X for 2 hrs limit (mainly covering Halifax Town Centre as the centre of the tetrad) for the BTO atlas survey 2007 -2011.

623 individual birds from 21 species

No surprises other than 327 Feral Pigeons - well, perhaps not a surprise!
22 Blackbirds
93 Mallard and 28 Carrion Crows in Peoples Park

Only 2 Starlings, no Collared Doves and no House Sparrows recorded in the survey - but they must be there.

Frigate Bird

Amazing sighting flying SW at Lockwood in Huddersfield raises the thought thought it could have been in calderdale airspace.

Changing jobs in January and back to Calderdale so hopefully I will be able to post more reports next year.

a challenge!!

they have these birds at martin mere. they are a hybrid and i was just wondering if anybody would like to guess at what they are a cross between!!

good luck

p.s-if youve been to martin mere and know what they are, dont tell

Ringby Lane (Swales Moor)

1 very flighty Snow Bunting at 1.30 this afternoon by the manure heap flew to the back of the large metal fence where there are lots of weeds.

2 Ravens passed close by me on the ridge calling away and heading towards Soil Hill
6 Skylarks
23 Meadow Pipits
3 Pied Wagtails
4 Fieldfare >NW
12 Common Gulls
lots of corvids

Various sites

From BS -12 Crossbills this morning at Ogden flew into Skirden Clough plantation

No news on the Snow Buntings at Ringby Lane yet today.

I decided to check out the Waxwing locations around Halifax this afternoon. Lots of sorbus berries in and around Hope Street/Raglan Street/Stansfield Close/bottom of Gibbet Street and the areas below the bus station/Wickes car park. No sign of any Waxwings - we probably need some E/NE winds before we have a chance. Only 2 reports on Birdguides so far in England this autumn of 25 in the northeast on 6th Nov and 2 in Sheffield on 17th Nov.

Twite recovery project

Link below for an article in The Yorkshire Post by Bill Teale, which eventually gets round to the twite recovery project.

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/bird-watching/Bidding-to-put-twite-back.5844574.jp

Ringby Lane (Swales Moor)

Snow Buntings - 2 still there this afternoon - very flighty, mostly around the muddy area and the manure heap.
Pied Wagtail c12
Meadow Pipit c7
Skylark 6
Starling 1
Lapwing 17 >SW
Herring Gull 2 >N
Stock Dove 16
Kestrel 1

Ringby Lane (Swales Moor)

From NCD - 2 Snow Buntings still present near the manure heap at 2 pm this afternoon.

Ringby Lane (Swales Moor)

2 Snow Buntings there today - (with apologies for the poor shot, yes they are both there, but it was difficult to stand up on the top today, never mind get some decent photos)!

5 Skylark

1 Common Snipe

6 Meadow Pipits

1 Kestrel

45 Starlings

c120 corvids

Garden Birds (brambling)

i seem to be over run with chaffinch in my garden is any body else

My first Brambling this year and a first in my garden

Ringby Lane (Swales Moor)

1 Snow Bunting there this afternoon on and around the weedy areas surrounding the very muddy patch of ground on the top - this is a different bird from the female I saw on the 9th and 13th November which was very approachable.

This bird is flightier, less approachable and was heard calling in flight.

Todays bird is similar to the earlier one but the head markings are slightly different and the rusty yellow brown marks on the side of the breast are broken with white on the front of the chest - the earlier bird had diffused orange right across the front of the chest. The most marked difference was the back which was slightly greyer and less streaked than the earlier bird. I would guess todays bird is a 1st winter female. it was still present at 15.30.

Also present on the top
Skylark 5
Meadow Pipit 15
Pied Wagtail 2

Herring Gulls (adult and 1st winter ) >N
39 Golden Plover came over high from the east at 15:00 then changed direction to SW to avoid a band of heavy rain approaching from the west

Deisel spill-River Calder

Link giving information from the Todmorden News about the diesel spill on the River Calder.

http://www.todmordennews.co.uk/news/Diesel-spill-Fish-found-dead.5825984.jp

Hebden Bridge 15th Nov' 2009

Male goosander on Hebden Water in the town centre on the 15th. Never seen on here before.

Regards, Chris