Crimsworth Dean

6 House Martins near the crags car park
1 pair of Spotted Flycatchers with their second succesful brood now fledged - still time for another brood!
c4 Green Woodpeckers including one adult with a juvenile
3 Great Spotted Woodpeckers

2 juv Little Owls now fledged
c10 (or more) Kestrels in and around the dean suggests an excellent breeding season locally for this small raptor
6 Curlew
1 Grey Wagtail
c6 Stock Doves

30th July

Quick visit to High Road Well Moor this pm produced 28 Stock Doves and amongst the Bhgs a single Common Gull and a second summer Lesser black back.

Problem solved

Last few days, Lapwing, Kestrel, Shortie and Sparrowhawk.

Last few days

Undisclosed site. 1 Buzzard, 3 Kestrels, 2 Sparrowhawks, 2 Shorties, 6 Goosanders, 17+ Stock Doves, 1 Oystercatcher, 4 Curlew, Lapwing with well grown young etc.

ps Is there a problem with the blog, it dosn't seem to want to let me add photos at the moment.

The Wallabies of Whirlaw

A pal of mine did the Calderdale Way last week and informed me he saw two wallabies on Whirlaw above Tod'. I have to say when he sent me a text at the time to tell me I thought nonsense, it was probably a couple of big hares. Well, I have just seen the photo and it is a wallaby. Are these a known Calderdale escaped species? Is everyone as staggered by this as I am? Can anyone tell me more?
I eagerly await some responses on this matter.

Regards, Chris

NERF Conference

Northern England Raptor Conference
20 November 2010
Rishworth School, Rishworth, Halifax, HX6 4QA


This year's annual NERF Raptor Conference is being hosted by Calderdale Bird Conservation Group at the prestigious venue of Rishworth School.

The conference committee has drawn together an exciting and varied program that will address a wide range of issues that are of interest to Raptor Workers, including habitat management, the use of technology to track and monitor individual birds as well as contributing to the debate surrounding the status of eagle owls and lowland hen harriers.

There is ample on-site parking. Registration, coffee and exhibits will be available for delegates from 0830 and the conference will open at 0915. Lunch and afternoon refreshments will be provided.

This year’s conference has four themes and each theme has two highly respected speakers. Some of the issues are extremely contentious and delegates will have an opportunity to put in-depth questions to the speakers at the end of each session. Paul Irving, NERF Chairman, will also bring us up to date with current developments within the Forum.

Habitat management

· Alistair Crowle, Natural England
The effects of 60 years of management of upland SSSIs
· Simon Thorp, Heather Trust
Heather Burning Regulations, three years on

Analytical science

· Lee Walker, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
Predatory Bird Monitoring Scheme
· Arjun Arun, RSPB
Peregrine persecution in the NERF region, a 10 years study

Monitoring

· Stephen Murphy, Natural England
Hen harrier dispersal - satellite tracking
· James Leonard, RSPB
The use of technology, including cameras for monitoring, research and crime detection

Species studies

· Dr Andrew Kelly, Belfast University
New research into the status of eagle owls
· Paul Castle, Wiltshire Raptor Group
Montagu’s harriers and lowland hen harriers

Delegate Fees
£10.00 for delegates aged 14 – 18 years and £20.00 for adults. Once again demand for places at this year’s conference is expected to be high. Please book early to avoid disappointment.

This is a high profile national conference and one for which we are proud hosts, any birder with an interest in raptors is bound to find something of interest here, to book please contact midgleybirder@yahoo.co.uk

Hunter Hill area

Juv Little Ringed Plover

Juv Gt Spotted Woodpeckers feeding in the top of gorse bushes - they just took off before I got them!

2 of the 3 Lapwing chicks

Cold Edge/Hunter Hill/Fly Flats/Ogden

Nothing doing at all at Hunter Hill vis mig spot this morning other than 41 Swifts >SW at around 08:30
2 juv Great spotted Woodpeckers were feeding on the edge of the moor in the top of gorse bushes - unusual!
1 Little Owl

Cold Edge
2 LRP's
2 Oystercatchers
1 Lapwing with 3 large chicks in nearby fields - not flying yet
No sign of the Black Redstart

Fly Flats
c60 Swifts feeding over the res'r
1 Golden Plover
1 Oystercatcher

Ogden golf course - loads of Meadow Pipits on the deck and lots of juv Swallows

27th July Evening

Out and about with SC last night. Shortie carrying prey to young on the ground at last. Was becoming very worried about the lack of sightings of this species this summer after good numbers arrived back at traditional sites in April. Also 6 Kestrels, 1 adult Peregrine, 2 Oystercatchers, 5 or 6 Curlews etc.

Of note just seen on the news, the Catalonia parliament have voted to ban Bull Fighting from January 2012, lets hope the rest of Spain follows soon.

House Martins

I found egg shells under our House Martin nest this morning so their second brood must be hatching.

Withens Clough

Common Sandpiper 6 incl juvs
LRP 1 adult
Short-eared Owl 1
Oystercatcher 1
Reed Bunting 2 incl 1 carrying food
Canada Goose 18
+ usual

Withens Clough

Two Twite there this evening

Cold Edge

No sign of the Black Redstart this afternoon
2 Dunlin
1 Oystercatcher
3 Curlew
LRP

Another Path at CB(there obsessed)

Why have one path when you can have two.This one goes straight over a small colony of Common Blues..I am sure they did' nt mention this at the latest meeting ...or is it just me.

2nd Black Redstart

BS found an adult male at Soil Hill this pm. Unfortunatly it disappeared soon after and could not be relocated.

More of yesterdays Black Red

Dave's Black Redstart

Went up with SC after tea to look for Daves Black Red and found what appears to be a juvenile. Still showing slight yellow at base of bill. This as moved hear from somewhere else, they have not bred here, we would have known, the site as been checked regularly throughout the spring and summer. Still a great record Dave well done.

Cold Edge/Hunter Hill

I tried vis mig this morning between 8 and 10 am at the Hunter Hill watchpoint but hardly any birds moving today.
54 birds of 7 species mostly moving very high
4 LBBG, 34 Swifts, 2 Skylarks, 2 Meadow Pipits, 4 Mallard, 3 Goldfinch, 5 B H Gulls

Plenty of birds around the site mostly feeding in and over the surrounding fields including
c50 Swallows, c50 Meadow Pipits, 1 Grey Wagtail, 1 Pied Wagtail, 5 Stock Doves, 1 Green Woodpecker, 11 Skylarks and 65 Jackdaws etc..

This afternoon was more productive with a Black Redstart (fem/juvenile ?) near Cold Edge and 2 Grasshopper Warblers singing in short bursts from the surrounding vegetation.
A pair of Lapwings with 3 large chicks was good to see in a field down Cold Edge Road below the Withens.
1 Little Grebe on a small dam below Cold Edge dams was a surprise.

Todmorden

A Goldcrest was in the garden early this morning in the fir trees - first one I've seen here in over 10 years.

At 08:30 I heard a Grasshopper Warbler at Strait Hey. BL said he'd had one last night about a mile away at Jail Hole so it could possibly be the same bird?

Red Kite at Lightcliffe

A Kite was reportedly seen in the Till Carr area of Lightcliffe sometime in the past week.
Full story on the front page of the 'Brighouse Echo'.