Oxenhope... missing the move! 22-10-2009

The Golden Moors of Winter!.... in one of the rare clearing spells (c) 2009

Oxenhope, Bradford (W Yorks, England)
Thursday 22 October 2009
Counting period: 7:50-11:00
Weather: ESE F3, 9degC, 100m improving 5000m, 9/8 fog startus and featureles stratus, QNH 995 rising 998
Observers: Dave Barker

Moving Birds:
Golden Plover 27 -
Redwing 125 -
Black-headed Gull 3 -
Rook 1 -
Woodpigeon 3 -
Starling - 340
Meadow Pipit 3 -
Chaffinch 23 -
alba wagtail sp. 2 -

Totals: 527 individuals, 9 species, 3:10 hours

Present: Carrion Crow 45

Comments: Visibility locked out for the first c90 mins but nevertheless there was a moderate Redwing movement in progress with calls and multiple calls all heard from within the fog stratus which was down to c1100ft asl. From the calls and sequential calls heard I estimated that at least eight unseen moderate sized flocks passed close by, seemingly going west? As the base began to fragment, Starlings.... good sized squadrons of over 100 started to pass NW all quite well up on the tail wind. Three passed before the cloud came down again and essentially that was it for the rest of the morning. An influx of Carrion Crows was interesting and a Rook south was very unusual! Radio conversations with Howard across the basin on Wycoller Ark confirmed that both bird movement through that site and the local visibility was much better than here... I was missing out!.... a very interesting comparison! and one that we shall be doing again! At 1100hr I abandoned the watch to spend the last part of the morning counting with Howard on Wycoller Ark.


Dave