Thursday

2 Buzzards around most of the morning and a Sprawk hunting Chaffinch around mid - day. More Fieldfare , Redwing and Starlings heading south,,,,

Afternoon vis

Lots of Redwings and Fieldfare on the move this afternoon also a large group of Continental Starlings headed west....

Fen Farm ....

A couple of days in Lincolnshire
Pinkfeet were moving south in good numbers
Skiens south 278 + 35 + 78 + 135 + 50 + 13
Whooper Swan    4 south
Golden Plover      100 +
Green Sandpiper   1
Little Egret           2
Marsh Harrier      2
Blackcap              1
Yellowhammer     36
Tree Sparrow       20
Merlin                   1
Barn owl                 1
Corn Bunting         11

Vis Mig ......(at last)

Its been a slow autumn for Vis - mig with all the fog and today was just the same early  doors..But at 11ish a  flock of Redwing north got things going
Redwing 850 + north
Fieldfare 22 North
Chaffinch   18 south
Siskin         24 south
Buzzard    1 high west
Pink footed geese 134 (photo count)  west
Mipits       27 south
Jay          1 south
Great spot    1 south
Bunting sp    1 high south
Herring Gull   2 north

LRP breeding in Calderdale 2015

A few from earlier this year

Merlin Walney Island Cumbria March

A good year for Whoopers

 

Bufftip back garden July

Ocherous Pug 1st for Calderdale Hardcastle Craggs April.

Rook and ringstone

Juv Peregrine hunting gulls , 2 Widgeon , 4 Teal , 1 Buzzard and a Sparrowhawk

Fly Flatts / Haworths Minor

I had 44 + today at Fly flats feeding on Ragwort very close to the reservoir  some very tatty individuals but some quite smart ones too. A few Black Darter , 1 Silver Y , 1 Small Tortoiseshell and a large moth over the moor which was unidentifiable.............. 1 Widgeon , 2 Wheatear , 20 Mipits , 1 Kestrel , 1 Golden Plover and 4 LBBGulls.............

Shieldbugs in Calderdale 2015

Hawthorn

Forest

Hairy

Birch

Ringstone 2 nd October

2 Widgeon , 3 Teal , 9 Golden Plover 45 lapwing , 70 Goldfinch , 3 Linnet , 1 Cormorant , 1 Little Grebe , 1 Chiffchaff , 84 Swallow , 2 House Martin , 1 Grey heron10 Snipe.....

Its Autumn

Keep an eye/ear out

2nd October 2015

48 Small Tortoiseshell
3 Painted Lady
4 Red Admiral
2 Small White
8 Speckled Wood
6 Silver Y
On my local walk around Hedge top lane fields....(October??)

testing

 

Ringstone

1 Little Owl , 1 Little Grebe , 12 Snipe , 2 Teal , 9 Golden Plover , 1 Buzzard , 237 Lapwing ,1 Chiffchaff , 8 Golfinch , 1 Grey Wagtail ,  1 Swallow ,  25 meadow Pipit , 1 Cormorant ,1 Skylark ,30 BH Gull, 2 Common Gull 8 Herring Gull  over south ,3 Linnet  and 40 Canada Goose.

Hard Going

Its been a bit of a slog this last week .with little to show for a lot of effort..Highlights Plenty of local Buzzards . a willow warbler on the 26th , Skylark , 54 Mipits in the fields and up to 80 Goldfinch and 3 Linnets. Ringstone last friday help 2 Widgeon , 9 Teal ,3 Goldies ,8 Snipe and over 200 Lapwing ,1 Chiff and a long slog round fly produced 2 Wheatear................

Ringstone in the rain..

Not much different today , with 9 Teal , 20 + Mallard , 1 Cormorant , 10 Swallow 100 Lapwing and 10 Snipe.....

Ringstone

Not much shoreline left but a couple of Snipe , 9 Teal  , , Grey heron , 57  BH Gull and 1 Herring and 1 Common.158 Lapwing ,11 Pied Wags , 1 White Wag and 2 grey Wagtail along the dam wall.2 Willow Warblers and a chiff in the garden .100 Swallow , 20 House Martin and 3 Sand Martins dropped in and that was about it....................3 Red Admiral , 1 Small Copper , 2 Small White , and 10 Small tortoiseshell

Nowt then a Hobby

Went out this morning thinking it must be a good vis day 1 Buzzard , 5 meadow pipit , 2 House martins and 6 Swallows south was I could muster in a couple of hours.....Then at about 6.50 a steady stream of BH Gulls started heading north then out of nowhere a Hobby headed low north only a silhouette but  my only Calderdale one this year (so far)..A male goosander  low over Sainsburys car park was a first.

Ringstone again

With the shoreline starting to show , I gave it another try today and struck lucky with 3 Ruff ,1 male and 2 females ,1 Common sand and plenty of BH Gulls and Lapwing.

Ringstone......

3 Common Sands , 1 Widgeon  and 2 Singing Chiffchaff was a bit of a surprise  today and made me wonder what time of year it was ??  Not much else , 20 Mipits , 14 Linnet , 8 Mallard , 1 Teal , 4 Pied Wags 100 BH Gull and 150 Lapwing..............

What a difference a day makes

9 Meadow pipit , 5 Swallows , 38 Goldfinch , , 4 Pied and 3 grey Wagtails and 14 Canada Geese have moved into the fields.....

Wryneck

When you get a text ,,Wryneck at Scammonden you have to go asap, I have missed Yellow Browed ,Woodlark ,Richards Pipit and Wryneck over the last few years so I had to give it a go. I had done all my work for the day and set off straight away.  A Lewis Hamilton drive and I was on the way down to Scammonden.
  I got out of the car bins and scope at the ready, a  bird flushed from the floor and landed about 8 feet away in a small birch tree..well blow me down a WRYNECK showed well for about 2 minutes then flew low down into the Rowan tree about 20 feet away. JB (the finder) turned up , at this point it flew onto the road but was then flushed by a car , and was not seen again..
  We then headed of down the track which was teaming with migrants..John headed off to have a look  at another spot and left me where he had first found the Wryneck...15 - 20 Spotted Flycatcher , 4 Redstarts , 2 Whinchat, 15 - 20 Chiffchaff , 1 Tree pipit , 2 Buzzard , 1 Sparrowhawk , 2 Willow Warbler , 8+ Blackcap and a flock of 15 Siskin....Brilliant ..Many thanks to JB....
   

Sunday....

Started with a small flock of 35 Goldfinch , 11 Linnets and 30 Starling in and around the cricket pitches. A singing Chiffchaff was in the tall hedge and a trickle of mipits overhead.1Whinchat on the lower fence put in a brief appearance. The highlights were a small group of 5 Cormorants north and a Raven east..... 1 Jay ,  1 juv great spot and 40 + Swallows were in and around the horse fields....

Wednesday

Not a bad day started with 2 Goldcrest , 1 Willow Warbler , 1 Chiffchaff , 6 Meadow pipit headed high south. 55 Swallow and 20 House martins , 1 Wheatear  , 2 Whinchat (1 juv and an adult male different from the adult female which has been kicking around).Buzzards herd mewing and one landed on the telegraph pole outside the house then flew low over the cricket pitch (wow).1 great spot , 1 Jay and 4 linnets.

France 2

Highlights...


Birds...A flock of 32 Black - necked Grebes was the most I have ever seen together , Melodious Warbler , Dartford Warbler , Lesser Pecker in the garden along with singing Short toed treecreeper most mornings. Loads of  Purple herons , Night herons , , Crested Larks ,Whimbrel and Blackwits, Spoonbills , Black wing stilts , wood san and little stints , fan tailed warbles and cetties warblers.
Butterflies... Long -tailed and Marazine Blue , Meadow , Glanville , Silver washed , marsh and Knapweed fritillarys , Brown hairstreak , Swallow tails ,White Admiral , Sooty and Small Coppers
Moths...Pine tree Lappet , Beautiful Hook Tip , Scorched Carpet , Burnet Campion ,Trebble Bar , Broad Bordered Bee Hawkmoth ,Black V Moth , Clouded Buff ,Birds Wing , Portland riband Wave , Feathered and Scarce Footman ,Coronet , Tree lichen beauty , Gypsy Moth and Rosy Underwing,Oak prossessionary  (to name a few)

 SilveSSilver Washed Fritillary

 

 

A right good doooo....

A poor start to the day as it rained till 11ish but as soon as it cleared I was out.66 BH , 3 Common  and 1 LBBGull on the cricket pitch. I was on the look out for the Goldfinch flock after Dishfish  had found some Siskin (good local find )  at Soil Hill yesterday, bit of a bogey bird for me in Northowram , I have had a few but I should have had more.??
   As I jumped over the fence a bird flushed into the large nettle patch..looked interesting but when I got to the patch 5  Goldfinch flushed from the same spot. Damm Golfinch( not Siskin) and only 5 of um.
   I headed down the fields to the area which is good for migrants and a male Whinchat and juv female Whitethroat made me feel a lot better. At this point the bird in the nettle patch got the better of me so I headed back for another look , after a couple of minutes a cracking Sedge Warbler showed its self.(very pleased I went back)..
  Did a whole circuit  of all the fields looking for the Goldfinch flock but only managed 2 more Goldfinch .
 At 6 .30 I headed out again the Sedge Warbler and Whitethroat were in the same spot , but little else of note. As I went to leave a flock of finches was picked up heading my way. At least 30 Siskin with 2 cracking males and about 10 Goldfinch mixed in with them...A good day and thanks to Dishfish

Whinchats

A slow week until today , 16 pied Wags on the Cricket pitch , 150 Goldfinch in the fields , House Martin and Sand Martin south and 2 cracking Whinchat on the fences at the bottom of the fields....1 1 willow warbler , 1 LBBgull and 25 BH Gulls in the horse fields ...

Old News

From around the first week of August , I had 2 juv Buzzards mewing in Northowram and 1 Barn owl was seen briefly near the wind farm at dusk.

France One

A stop over near Portsmouth was very productive with a flyover Great White Egret , 30 Little egret a Cetti's Warbler and a bonus Essex Skipper,( UK Butterfly species 53).A Bonxie on the flat sea and little else on the way over to France....

 Brown Hairstreak

 Glanville Fritillary

Swallowtail