First juv Buzzards takes to the air andf Fly...................

Had a look at fly flatts today , 9 Kestrels , 8 Sand Martin , 50 Swallows and 50 Swifts , Lapwing , LBBGulls and Tufted Duck with 4 Juvs , 2 Teal .....First Juv Buzzards flying today at Northowram

Juv Oyck

11 Raven was a great sight today along with 25 + Kestrels , 4 Buzzards , 2 SEO , 1 Marsh Harrier , 1 female Sparrowhawk with very tatty tail , a flock of finches contained 2 greenfinch , 6 Chaffinch , 5 Goldfinch  and 4 Siskin , Song Thrush 1 , Mistle Thrush 3 the bird of the day was a fat juv Oystercatcher....great to see....

OGDEN

Had a quick look today , 1 Common Sandpiper , 1 Curlew , 1 Tufted Duck , 2 Teal , 1 Cormorant , Mallards with 2 very young chicks and 2 Grey Wags.

Back to the Hills 2

Its the first time that I have seen at 19.55.... 1 LEO , 1 SEO and one juv LEO hunting in the same field.!! Also between the showers 3 male Siskin , 1 Great spotted Woodpecker , pair of Teal with 3 juvs , 10 Curlew, 1 Buzzard , 8 kestrel and 5 more SEO and 1 LEO which nearly took my head off , must be another breeding pair as is was 'Barking mad' ........A single Whimbrel was calling on the north bank it was seen briefly ,I was going to have a closer look when i got round the other side but got side tracked with all the owl activity .........9 Kestrel together was a rare sight these days.

More butterflys

Today i had my first Gatekeeper of the year (18th  species on my local walk) , 4 Holly Blue , 5 Small Copper , 1 Comma and loads of Meadow Brown , Large and Small Whites

Back to the hills

Marsh harrier looked like a cream crown drifted high west , could be the same  one as Bri had at Fly yesterday ..Pics Not in the same league as Bris. Other birds in the area two pairs of  Tufted Duck  one with 5 chicks  and one with 2 chicks . At least 19 kestrels,  5 SEO ,  3  LEO , 2 Buzzards , loads of Golden Plover , Lapwing , Oystercatcher , Curlew , Common Sandpiper , 100 + Swallows , 11 Pied Wagtail , 1 juv Ringed plover  and a few Swifts.

Butterflys

                                                  Holly Blue

                                                      Small Skipper

                                                       Purple Hairstreak

                                                                  Comma
Its been a fantastic year so far with 17 species seen in and around Hedge top lane and Only house Wood. Purple Hairstreaks , Holly Blue , Orange tip.large and Small Skipper , Small , Large and Green veined White , Comma , Peacock , Red Admiral , Meadow Brown , Small Heath , Ringlet , Speckled Wood , Small Copper and Small Tortoiseshell......

Brian's Gull field

Finally got chance to go and have a look at some gulls today at the Raggalds
Herring Gull x 2
Common Gull x 1
Black headed Gull x 7 + 1 juv
LBBgull x 6
Lapwing x 14

Red Carpet

This is the first Red Carpet in Calderdale since the 1920's near Widdop  , its a high mountain species  and its strong hold is Malham Tarn in Yorkshire...Why this turned up in Northowram is anyone's guess but I am glad it did......

Little Owl

                                                         Seen near Coley yesterday

Birds ,

Had the most fantastic view of a Buzzard carrying a dead rabbit yesterday it was really struggling with the weight of it..Great spotted and green Woodpeckers both bred in the local wood and Blackbirds and House Sparrows  have had an excellent breeding season with 14 + blackbirds and 30/40 House Sparrows feeding in the newly cut fields. Greenfinch also had a good year. 5 lapwing in the fields was a surprise yesterday. Lots of gulls on the move north at the moment but all LBBGulls so far. Still plenty Swifts about.

Butterflys

A real day today for butterflys in and around Northowram fields, 48 Small Tortoiseshell , 60 Ringlet , 50 Meadow Brown , 5 Large Skipper , 5 Small Skipper , 1 Large White , 3 Small White , Small Heath 2  , 1 Comma  and 3 Speckled Wood. ( a distant butterfly above oak looked like Purple Hairstreak but was too brief to be sure)