Cold Edge area

Did the Breeding Bird Survey this morning in that area with a good mix of the usual species plus a few movers including 6 Black-headed Gulls, 2 Linnets and a single House Martin all  heading >N
2 Golden Plover at Withens Head and just 1 opposite Nolstar - but no sign of yesterdays Dunlin.

A few Swallows at Cold Edge and a single Wheatear with a few Willow Warblers about singing.
Pair of Kestrels bonding and a Little Owl in the usual spot.
Barnacle Goose still at Cold Edge latched on to a Canada !!

Pair of Ketrels - male at the top - showing the differences in the under tail pattern between male and female !

Ryburn to Baitings Reservoir

Had an hour walking from Ryburn up to Baitings and back yesterday afternoon, pleasant when the sun was out but didn't feel like spring!

12+ Swallows
1 Cormorant
3 Canada Geese 
4 Wrens
6 Willow Warbler
Chiffchaff calling but couldn't see it!
2 Song Thrush nest building
2 Treecreeper
4 Goldfinch
1 Dipper, I'm presuming a different one to the other pair we see as this one was up stream close to Baitings??
2 Curlew flew over calling
And another surprise was a Common Sandpiper, moving up stream between the two dams

A couple of resent photos from the last weeks. The Short-eared Owls were just outside our area, one in the warm setting sun of the week before, the other a week later in snow!
The Common Sandpiper was one of a pair that were at Ringstone and  Curlew over Dean Head  cheers

Fly Flats etc

Another wild afternoon with sideways hail from >NW
3 Common Gulls (1adult) came in with a Black-headed Gull for shelter but couldn't find any so they sat it out in the middle !
No sign of any Herring Gulls this afternoon, just 3 ad L B B Gulls and 2 each Redshank, oystercatcher and Common Sandpipers.

Withens Head - 3 Golden Plover

Nolstar - 5 Golden Plover and a single Dunlin with them in the snow was unexpected.
Also  2 Skylarks

 Distant Dunlin

Golden Plover

Fly Flats etc

Fly Flats - this afternoon was very poor weather again... cold 2c and persistent wintry hail/snow showers sideways from >SW and some mist drifting through.
2 Dunlin by the boat house was the best I could do along with 2 Common Sandpipers and 2 Oystercatchers nearby
2 immature Herring Gulls
1 immature L B B Gull and 2 adults

Cold Edge
c20 Swallows - though what they were finding to eat in those conditions, goodness knows !

No sign of the Golden plover today - well I couldn't find them !

Golden Plover

On the tops above Hubberton this morning. 21 Golden Plover, plenty of Wheatear, Curlew and Skylark.

Fly Flats etc

Fly Flats
Rough conditions again with heavy hail storms from the north. No new arrivals or passage birds.
3 L B B Gulls
2 Herring Gulls

Withens Head
1 Snipe
1 female Wheatear
1 Little Owl
Curlew and Lapwings

Cold Edge Road
21 Golden Plover in fields near Nolstar along with 2 Skylarks

First Breeding Record of 2016?

Nothing too exciting I'm afraid: recently-hatched Mallard chicks on the Calder in Todmorden town centre this morning.

Ringstone etc

Ringstone this morning with AT
1 Ringed Plover and 1 Common Sandpiper both disappeared around 12:30
9 Golden Plover and a few Lapwings
2 Moorhen and a few Swallows
1 Herring Gull >NW
Thanks for the woodpecker plates Roger
Sorry Dave T - the Ringed Plover turned up just after you left - but it didn't stay long.


4 Wheatear, a pair of Goldeneye and a Grasshopper warbler singing at Withens Clough. (NG)
2 Oystercatchers at Green Withens (ND)

Temporary lodging

As you may know, the RSPB are doing a substantial twite survey project in the Pennines this spring and summer. One of the Conservation Scientists, Nick Wilkinson (who some of you may know from previous survey work) is coming down w/c 2 May through to the end of August.

He is going to be staying in a house of mine in Mytholmroyd, but the building firm have not fully completed the flood restoration works yet!

Could anyone take a lodger for the first two weeks of May? I think his needs are very basic!

Please respond to me, and I'll get back to Nick. mattbell1000@hotmail.com

Other news today

Several Wheatears up the track to the top of Soil Hill (AT)

A single Shelduck at Ringstone Reservoir late morning (RR) - with just a little shoreline showing !

Fly Flats and Withens Head

Cold 5c >NNW F5 with sleet showers and some bright spells curtailed most things late morning.
5 Sub-adult Herring Gulls along with 6 adult and 1 immature L B B Gulls loafing about maybe looking for Canada eggs and chicks !
4 Common Sandpipers
1 Redshank
2 Curlew
c10 Lapwings
usual Canada's and  a few Mallard but little else of note - even the Meadow Pipits were keeping down out of the wind and sleet

Withens Head
13 Golden Plover in the top field along with 2 Lapwings and a Curlew
No Golden Plover at the Nolstar fields lower down

Ringstone

Just a quick stop off tonight on my way home when the light was fading..
1 Little Owl
1 drake Goosander
Pair of Oystercatchers
Golden Plover heard but not seen
Pair of Greylag Geese

A little bit of shoreline showing ....

Brighouse area

2 nice early Swifts over Brighouse yesterday afternoon from Mike H

Cold Edge and Withens Head

Cold Edge
1 Little Grebe
12+ Swallows
1 Willow Warbler
1 Sand Martin
1 Little Owl
2 Wheatear
plus usual species

Withens Head
9 Golden Plover - included 2 individuals as below looking like the northern form males just coming into full summer plumage.

 Golden Plover

Meadow Pipit

Lower Gorple

A short walk from the car park to Lower Gorple dam this evening, c.7pm. I highly recommend it! Loads of great birds to see in such a short distance, and sights that people from outside of the Pennines would be very jealous of.

- 7 male wheatear
- 36 golden plover
- 12 (?) snipe, chipping and drumming right over our heads
- 2 common sandpiper
- 2 redshank
- 1 male stonechat
- 3 greylag geese
- 1 short eared owl
- 7 curlew
- 19 lapwing
- 20+ meadow pipit

Jumble Hole

After none displaying last spring at all, I finally had a woodcock roding this evening. Not sure why they had a blank 2015, but pleased to see it.

Also, a blackcap was singing earlier.

Lee Mount and Luddenden Dean

Lee Mount this morning
2 Sparrowhawks
1 Common Buzzard
2 Greylag Geese flyovers was a bit of a surprise - never had these over the house before !

We went down into the dean this afternoon in the hope of a possible early Cuckoo but nothing doing. Last year DP had one there on 20th April so there is s chance anytime now.
No early migrants other than Willow Warblers - 10+ and vocal also just 2 Swallows.
Great - spotted Woodpecker
1 Tree creeper
1 Nuthatch
1 Grey Heron

Coach Road 'Peckers

There was a grand total of 6 G S 'Peckers at Coach Road today, along with the usual woodland species, including 3 Song Thrushes, Chiffchaffs and Nuthatches. It seems more than likely that the increasing number of Great Spots have helped to drive out the Lesser Spots from their traditional site, as there have been no sightings for over a year now.

Fly Flats and Withens Head

I went to check for Twite again at Fly Flats after yesterday's brief encounter - but nothing doing. Drizzle was not helping so didn't find much.
A single Common Sandpiper still there with the usual waders
6 Wheatear along the embankment

Withens Head
1 Wheatear
1 Little Owl

Ogden Garden

Five redpoll on the garden feeders yesterday afternoon and again this morning. Sun flower hearts seem to be the attraction