Saturday, March 04, 2006

Watchpoint 04-03-2006

Members only watchpoint
Saturday 4th March 2006
0855 – 1120hr
Weather and Sky:
Lying snow from yesterday under open skies with little wind inducing c –6deg overnight temperatures. Similar during the morning with little temperature rise out of the sun in wall to wall open skies. Water c95% frozen. Wind: WNW F2. Temperature: still –4degC, air temperature in the shade by 1100hr. Precipitation: none – only c 50mm powdery snow up here with no drifting. Visibility: a very hazy 60km at surface. Cloud: essentially none, but deep cumulus, again including cumulonimbus to the very far ENE, probably over the North Sea. Pressure: 999hpa rising to 1000 by 1020hr.

Again a wonderful morning to be out with bracing conditions and again a hot water bottle needed for the camera! But A morning with virtually birdless skies, too little to late was the cry?? Golden Plovers, just a few moving or unsettled off the moors / in-bye with four groups totalling 22 all going west and all picked up initially on call. Otherwise, just a single Chaffinch going west and a couple of Greenfinch going the same way. All the returning Curlews well vanished from up here now. After 1100hr it looked as if the small gulls might be starting to trickle north-west with twelve BH Gulls and eleven Common Gulls passing at moderately close range. Better luck tomorrow??

Moving Birds:
Golden Plover 22 > W
Common Gull 11 > NW
Black headed Gull > 12 NW
Chaffinch 1 > W
Greenfinch 2 > W

For todays skyscapes and landscapes see:
http://skyscapeyorks.blogspot.com/

Dave.

Deep? frozen water this morning Saturday 4th March 2006 (c) Posted by Picasa