Stainburn Moor, Harrogate.... set fair! 09-04-2010

Stainburn Moor, Harrogate (N Yorks, England)
Friday 9 April 2010
Counting period: 6:35-8:35
Weather: NW1-2 6c rising to 10c. 4/8 cloud
Observers: A Hanby

Moving Birds:
Golden Plover - 12
Meadow Pipit - 370
Curlew - 1
Fieldfare - 36
Black-headed Gull - 1
Goldfinch - 7
Sand Martin - 13
Siskin - 1
Swallow - 3
Linnet - 5
Hirundine sp. - 3

Totals: 452 individuals, 11 species, 2:00 hours

Present: Oystercatcher 6, Curlew 5, Stock Dove 3, alba wagtail sp. 3

Comments: A pleasant morning set fair for the weekend. Mips- 208 first hour, 172 second; biggest flock 15

Andy Hanby

Oxenhope... express north west! 09-04-2010

Express North West... (c) 2010


Lesser black backed Gulls > NW.... (c) 2010


Goldies > NW.... (c) 2010

Kestrel overhead... (c) 2010

Lapwing... on territory... (c) 2010

Swallows... well almost.... galore! (c) 2010

Wheatear fall... (c) 2010

W F1 / F2, 5degC, 35 increasing 65km, 4/8 haze, QNH 1032 rising.

0730 - 1330hr

A bad start....Slept in... thus missing the first hour of mips, so could have done better... but mipits moving well to start off with and then steady all morning. A Ring Ouzel calling from the breather area at 0735 was not seen during investigation later in the morning so it was assumed to have moved on. Hirundines, some distant, all thought to be all Swallows moving north in singles throughout the morning and on a broad front with the first one at 0916 amounting to 24. Small numbers of Common Gulls moving NW and again BHGulls barely making it into the ranks with just two also NW. Lessers were moving strongly NW on a broad front up Aredale and not all were counted in the late part of the morning. Presume... next stop Walney? A small flock of northern race Golden Plovers also went NW and a couple of distant Buzzards snook NE over the basin. Explorations later in the morning confirmed a fall of Wheatears and a few late morning Skylarks went west. Linnets are back around the edges of the moor. At 1235 whilst on the NE bank... the unmistakeable tsweep calls at first distant then closer from an approaching Yellow Wagtail rang through as the bird came obliquely overhead and off, not high, north. The morning had been fulfilled!!... Interesting that Starlings have evapourated up here today!

Moving birds:

Meadow Pipit 278 > N

Woodpigeon 3 > NW

Curlew 1 > NW

Common Gull 19 > NW

Ring Ouzel 1

Swallow 24 > N

LBB Gull 30 > NW

Golden Plover 8 > NW

Greenfinch 1 > NW

Linnet 10 > NW
Buzzard 2 > NE

Kestrel 1

BH Gull 2 > NW

Carrion Crow 8 > N

Lapwing 1 > NW

Skylark 4 > W

Yellow Wagtail 1 > N

Other:

Wheatear 10

Dave