Pennine Skywatch: Oxenhope... wild skies! 21-09-2010

Oxenhope, Bradford (W Yorks, England)
Tuesday 21 September 2010
Counting period: 6:25-11:40
Weather: CALM-SSE-SW F2, 11-18degC, 100m - 30km, 4/8 shallow fog banks, QNH 1017 rising
Observers: Dave Barker, Howard Creber, Rodney Procter

Moving birds;
Greylag Goose 3 -
Collared Dove 6 -
Magpie 11 -
Shelduck - 3
Skylark 3 -
Jackdaw 19 -
Sparrowhawk 3 -
Swallow 3093 -
Starling 10 -
Kestrel 3 -
House Martin 16 -
Chaffinch 224 -
Brambling 5-
Ringed Plover 2 -
Meadow Pipit 2877 -
Greenfinch 51 -
Lapwing 22 -
alba wagtail sp. 42 -
Goldfinch 60 -
Dunlin 6 -
White Wagtail 1 -
Siskin 24 -
Common Snipe 8 -
Stonechat 1 -
Linnet 138 -
Black-headed Gull 230 -
Wheatear 1 -
Lesser Redpoll 4 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 450 -
Song Thrush 1 -
Reed Bunting 4 -
Woodpigeon 33 -
Mistle Thrush 40 -
Red Admiral 4 -

Totals: 7393 individuals, 33 species, 5:15 hours

Comments: Broken sky in the early part of last night, then open from midnight rigt through to early pm when cloud over drew from the southeast. Massive shallow fog banks prevailing fromn c 30min after sunrise for about an hour. Calm initially then light southwesterly from mid morning and QNH rising all the time. A phenomenal morning with movement right from the off nodoubt a partial product of the widespread fogbanks. Mipits were the main movers during the first part of the morning, even during the hour of fog we could hear them going over the top in masses, but could see or count NONE so the mip total in this respect is a massive under representation as the peak period of movement was obscured. The mip movement was broad front high mainly south but some weaker westerly movement as well... and streaming up the valleys in addition. Movement kept going all morning and into the afternoon as well albeit ata much reduced rate! Swallows were terriffic, same as mips but not starting till much later, broad front high and very high, streaming up the vallies and along the ridge as well... these ridge movers were coming up and breasting the embankment fight into our faces and on south almost beneath the trypod legs... a terriffic experience which we will all cherrish for ever! Chaffinch were for the time of year exceedingly strong, all going west as expected in the early season but definately not in these numbers! A flock of six Collared doves went high east... not sure I have ever seen such a flock on the move before? A small group of five Brambling took us unawares until we heard calls over head... the group spead through SW a direction not normally prominent here! Many more House Martins were heard during the foggy hour than could be counted ad it was thought that big numbers were going over head. The waders all went W and NW. A train of eleven Magpies W was good and a few Red Admirals were also streaming west..... A Song Thrush passed high west... a good bird for up here on the moors as we dont normally get so many going through! The first Jackdaws of the season went west. Three Shelduck an obvious product of the improving conditions and open sky overnight were on the water at dawn... they eventually left uner pressure from a heron NW. All in all a terriffic morning with birds moving throughout that taxed even the three experienced observers to the limit!!

....................................
Counting period: 14:00-19:00
Weather: SW F2/3, 18degC, 65km, 4/8 to 8/8, QNH 1018 rising
Observers: Dave Barker

Moving birds:
Common Buzzard 2 -
Skylark 29 -
Kestrel 2 -
Swallow 32 -
Peregrine 1 -
Meadow Pipit 164 -
Common Snipe 4 -
alba wagtail sp. 6 -
Curlew 5 -
Jay 3 -
Black-headed Gull 399 -
Siskin 10 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 96 -
Red Admiral 3 -
Herring Gull 3 -

Totals: 759 individuals, 15 species, 5:00 hours

Comments: The lunch time BOP slot produced a couple of Buzzards W. Three Jays also passed in this direction... mips were slowing down and Swallows had virtually stopped.

Dave, Howard and Rodney

Pennine Skywatch

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Oxenhope... wild skies! 21-09-2010

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