Oxenhope... great skies... few birds! 20-09-2009

A brilliant pre sunrise sky on high stratus overhead with narrow open stirp in the far east (c) 2009


Open pre sunrise sky to the north east, stratus overhead (c) 2009


The Dales at Dawn!..Open sky to the very far west and north west at sunrise advancing during the morning (c)

Looking north at dawn... the big lump on the horizon is Great Whernside (c) 2009

Post sunrise sky with deep stratus overhead (c) 2009

The trailing edge of the front passing overhead... mid morning... open skies coming in from the west (c) 2009

0630 - 1115hr Dave Barker Howard Creber Chris King

W F1 / calm becoming NW F2 by 1000hr, 7degC, 65km+, 7/8 initially and for the first part of the morning as an inactive front passed over from west to east... becoming 1/8 mid morning, QNH 1022 rising.

A fantastic morning to be out with a very early pre sunrise rosy sky due to an open strip to the east and high stratus overhead leading to a brilliant sunrise. The coldest of the autumn so far here. For movement, a poor morning relative to yesterday with no post sunrise mipit rush at all and very few birds early doors. A small scale mipit rush with some big flocks just after 0840 but that was it. We did however note on two occasions very very high mipits going south whilst scoping high contrail vis that would just have been totally missed if it had not been for this. No inversion mist in the vallies at sunrise and no dew on the grass at all. However considerably after sunrise during the dearth of birds in the sky... we stood and watched a small scale formation of mist over Bingley and Kieghley but this was short lived today. As the back edge of the front passed overhead the skies were fantastic with many dramatic alto and cirro sp on offer at the transition. But soon the edge moved over and increasingly open skies prevailed for the rest of the morning... we thougth the warmth might swing the movement for the good, but not to be today as the skies in relative terms remained empty. A massive skein of Lapwing c35o strong at great altitude moving north west was of interest. Virtually everything had stopped by c1000hr. 54 Goosander early doord and a roost of small gulls c 400 strong.

Moving birds in order of appearance:

Meadow Pipit 677 > W initially and then S

Chaffinch 53 > mainly S

alba wagtail 11 > SW and W

BH Gull 224 > S

Swallow 18 > S

Mistle Thrush 27 > W

Redpoll 24 > S and W

Willow Warbler 2 > SW

Goosander 4 > SE

Lapwing c350 > NW

Skylark 2 > W

Greenfinch 12 > E

Jackdaw 5 > W and SW

Linnet 28 > S

LBB Gull 34 > S

Starling 1 > S

Tree Pipit 1 > SW

Small tortoiseshell 2 > SE

Red Admiral 3 > SE

Sparrowhawk 1 > SE

Grey Wagtail 1 > W

The team this morning after the sky had cleared (c) 2009

Dave