Oxenhope.... REDWINGS! 26-09-2010

Pre Sunrise REDWING Skies.... (c) 2010


Mid Morning REDWING Skies.... (c) 2010


An Owl for a Grey Plover.... an unfair exchange!... (c) 2010


Cormorants > West... (c) 2010


Dunlin.... a brief touchdown!.... (c) 2010

Oxenhope, Bradford (W Yorks, England)
Sunday 26 September 2010
Counting period: 6:45-13:05
Weather: N F1 becoming NE F5, 7degC, 40km haze, 8/8, QNH 1016 falling
Observers: Dave Barker, Howard Creber, Chris King

Moving birds:
Cormorant 2 -
Common Snipe 6 -
Jay 2 -
Pink-footed Goose 36 -
Black-headed Gull 31 -
Magpie 3 -
Canada Goose - 19
Lesser Black-backed Gull 90 -
Starling 5 -
Mallard 20 -
Collared Dove 1 -
Chaffinch 26 -
Tufted Duck 2 -
Swallow 17 -
Greenfinch 9 -
Golden Plover 14 -
Meadow Pipit 190 -
Linnet 12 -
Grey Plover - 1
alba wagtail sp. 17 -
Lapland Bunting 1 -
Lapwing 1 -
Song Thrush 1 -
Reed Bunting 5 -
Dunlin - 6
Redwing - 243

Totals: 760 individuals, 26 species, 6:20 hours

Comments: Broken skies overnight, becoming overcast by dawn. Wind from northerly quarter ande QNH falling throughout. Disaster this morning as I forgot my bins... ariving early at the watchpoint and feeling my chest in disbelief... a quick dash home redeamed the situation but not back in time to get a Lap Bunt which had passed directly over Howard and Chris as it sped through SSW! and just as I was getting out of the car!! Virtually the next birds seen were REDWINGS, a flock of c 40 at distance out to the east exceptionally high and powering NW, no sooner had we soaked this up than yet another flock going the same direction at a similar height. This set the scene for the morning with nine flocks seen throughout, totalling 243 NW.... An obvious arrival, albeit small, overnight! It should be noted that whilst concentrating on and scanning the skies for Redwing... the birds of the day, that quite a lot of the other movement would have been missed. Here mips appear dead with few going through but a walk through the local "mipit" fields this afternoon indicated there were still grounded big flocks in the area, so if widespread there might just be another big day to come as conditions improve. Disaster for me didnt end with the missed Lap Bunt as Chris and myself went off to check a few spots nearby for grounded birds... no sooner had we left the watchpoint than Howard had a Grey Plover going NW! Needless to say all we found was a Little Owl, the first for some years at this site. Reed bunts were going west, a couple of Jays SE, A single skein of Pinks went E. A group of dunlin came in from the SE, circled, touched down briefly before going on NW.

Dave, Howard and Chris