Sunday, March 29, 2009

Fieldfares on the Move 29-03-2009

Fieldfares on the Move (c) Stephen Lilley 2009

Flock of c 200 winter thrushes flying over the area to the north of Glovershaw towards the Menston road.
Stephen

Oxenhope Spring Watchpoint 29-03-2009

Pre Sunrise 0640hr BST... cloud over the North Sea (c) 2009

















Pre Sunrise... The Big Picture (c) 2009
















First Sun on the Hills.... Stoodley Pike (c) 2009
Inchfield Moor with a sprinkling of Snow! (c) 2009

Sun Up... illuminating Castle Scout (c) 2009
Coal Clough.... Wind Turbine Generators (c) 2009
Penyghent... looking North through the haze (c) 2009
Woodcock Hall (c) 2009
Cumulus fractus, developing humilis
Hope you like the shots of our New Horizon!
0645 - 1215hr Dave Barker / Howard Creber
Calm / N F1 / S F2, W F3, -4degC frost snow on some hills rising 4degC, visibility Peak District to Lake District, 0 ok increasing 1 ok, QNH 1012 rising slowly.
A brilliant morning to be out in the hills, with visibility from the snow clad Lakeland hills, south to the Peaks, first thing. Here just a very hard frost, so sharp that the trypod legs were coated in "white". The dawn chorus on the moor was wonderful with Canadas, Red Grouse, Curlews, Golden Plovers and Skylark all prolific in the totally calm, sub zero, sun rosed conditions. Dispite the cold, there was a strong early morning mipit rush, all north and exceptionally high, even at this altitude. It petered out after 0830hr only to resurge later on but even higher. Many at distance were seen through the scope at exceptional hight powering north whilst scoping other things. Also very interestingly there was a lot of directional Skylark activity just after sunrise with movement both west and north noted, also a great height. Cormorants were also on the move and again exceptionally high, mainly NE but a single bird went west. One pair of very differently sized birds were tracked across the sky for about 15minutes as they approached from deepest Lancashire..... passed close high overhead and onwards NE. Two Common Buzzards were tracked moving through from the very far south west, high over the moor and outwards to the the NE till they vanished from view. A single Raven did the same and was without doubt passing through high.
Moving birds in order of appearance:
Skylark 10 > N and W
Meadow Pipit 110 > N
C Crow 15 > N
Oystercatcher 1 > N
Linnet 2 > N
Common Gull 1 > SE
Redshank 1 > NW
Cormorant 4 > NE and W
Wheatear 2 > N at close range
Woodpigeon 2 > S
Common Buzzard 2 > NE
LBB Gull 1 > NW
Curlew 2 > NE, 3 > N.Total 5
Goosander 2 > S exceptionally high
Goldfinch 1 > N
Raven 1 > N
Others:
Dave and Howard

Thruscross 29-03-2009

29th March 2009.
F1 NW initially -1'C, cold clear sunshine 0/8 0730-1030 BST

Sand Martin 1S
Mipit 101N
Starling 74NE
Sparrowhawk 9 (may include some double count though) generally N
Common Buzzard 7N
Red Kite 1 N?
Curlew 5N + many others moving but difficult to determine passage
alba Wag 5N
Grey Wag 2S
Fieldfare 11NW
Siskin 5N
Chaffinch 8N
Grey Heron 1S
Goosander M+F 2NE
Cormorant 1W

Local Sp.
Several GS Woodpecker calling
Stockdove 6
Common + BHG,
Lapwing,
Oystercatcher,
600+ Golden Plover,
Fieldfare,
Chaffinch,
Wren,
Redshank 6,
Canada+Greylag Geese,
Mallard.
+ lots of rather annoying vintage cars on rally

J Blacker AM Hanby

Thruscross 28-03-2009

18th March 2009.
F6-7 NW cold drizzle at times.
0815-1000 J Blacker AM Hanby

Mipit 89N
Curlew 5 N + many around
Alba wag 1N
Lawing 22N
Common G 27N
Siskin 22N
Chaffinch 15N

also 38 oystercatchers and 1 redshank

JB / AMH

Back Lane Ogden 29-03-2009

29/03/2009 0730-0945hrs W>3 Frosty, ice on water.

72 MIPIT > N
1 CORMORANT >NW
2 REDSHANK >E
1 OYSTERCATCHER >W
2 SAND MARTIN >N
6 HOUSE MARTIN over plantation then drifting >N

BS