Oxenhope... an AUGUST mega mip day! 30-08-2009

Sunrise this morning through torrential rain! (c) 2009


The team this morning.... listen!! (c) 2009


Pere....... flypast..... a montage (c) 2009

Todays skein of Cormorants SW (c) 2009

0545 - 1200hr Dave Barker, Chris King, Howard Creber

SW F2 rising SW F 4 then reducing S F1, 12degC at 0600, 5km increasing 100, 8/8 low deep stratus with fractus base reducing 4/8 increasing 8/8 late morning, heavy rain initially ceasing c0605hr, QNH 1015 falling.

A phenomenal August morning, perhaps owing to the very poor start weatherwise with a tremendous shower clearing the area and our part of Airedale just at sunrise. Quite unlike the last few early morning visits the birds were slow to start appearing and as mooted above the weather may well have held them down. But very soon by 0625 mipits started to pour through... low, high and some even above the low cloudbase!! The majority were going west but some were going SW and even hard and fast SOUTH! Never seen this as early in the season before and never as many as this in August either! EIGHTY was the largest flock which just kept coming and coming up out of the gloom in the valley below. The sky was dark and forboding with fractus down on the moor top, all giving ideal conditions for viewing in and across the direction of approach... few being missed! The movement had almost stopped by 0915 but a few kept on coming throughout the morning. Albas also on the move this morning in ones and twos, for the first time proper this autumn and most excitingly we located a certain White Wagtail on the wave wall some distance down.... we all agreed... a real cracker! Interestingly it was still in adult summer plumage with a male cap extending right down the nape sharply to the silver grey mantle.... it had nothing on its flanks!!! It went off west after a short stay in the company of a first w pied. Grey Wagtails also very strong today in ones and twos, with a single flock of five through at 0845. Swallows very slow to start up here today moving both south and west... the first bird was at 0649 but most did not start appearing until the mipits had almost dried. We thought they might have been going early doors but keeping lower down through the col.... BS from Ogden confirmed this to be the case! Four Tree Pipits were heard going high SW in the early, gloomy part of the morning.... the last one was at 0650hr. The first very early Siskin of the autumn were heard going SW and a Pere.... gave a close flypast as it went fast and low west to be lost from view high above the moor... possibly on its way to the coast? The late morning exotics included a Herring Gull going west, two Ringed Plover going NW, two Common Tern going W, 21 Jackdaw in one flock fast south and yet another couple of Cormorant skeins totalling 7 SW with a single E..... All in all a brilliant morning for so early in the season.... Get out and give it a go!!

Moving Birds in order of appearance;

Meadow Pipit 1137 > W with a few SW and S

alba Wagtail 18 > W and SW

Tree Pipit 4 > SW

LBB Gull 41 > S and NW

Grey Wagtail 12 > W

Swallow 575 > S and W

Goldfinch 61 > W

Chaffinch 1 > W

Cormorant 8 > SW and E

Reed Bunting 1 > W

White Wagtail 1 > W

Wheatear 2 > SW

Siskin c3 > SW

Lapwing 40 > NW

Peregrine 1 > W

Sand Martin 2 > SW

BH Gull 29 > S

Greenfinch 1 > W

Herring Gull 1 > W

Sparrowhawk 1 > W

Canada Goose 1 > W

Ringed Plover 2 > NW

Common Tern 2 > W

Snipe 3 > SW

Jackdaw 21 > S

Other

Willow Warbler 1

Pre sunrise sky through the pouring rain.... looking ENE (c)

Pouring rain and fractus sky.... looking NNW (c) 2009

Initial rain storm moving off east over Leeds (c) 2009

Another rain storm avoiding us and moving off over Bradford... looking east (c) 2009

Dave