Saturday, October 23, 2010

Oxenhope... block!! 23-10-2010


Pre Sunrise.... (c) 2010


Vegra over the Bush!.... (c) 2010


Eggborough belching forth.... (c) 2010



Snow Buntings on Soil.... just to prove that our flyovers do sometimes come down!!... Three Images (c) Brian Vickers 2010


Oxenhope, Bradford (W Yorks, England)
Saturday 23 October 2010
Counting period: 7:30-10:50
Weather (first period): W F2/3, 7degC, 100km E, 8/8 stratocumulus stratiformis, QNH 998 troughing
Observers: Dave Barker, Howard Creber


Moving birds:
Grey Heron - 1
Meadow Pipit 11 -
Brambling 49 -
Sparrowhawk 1 -
alba wagtail sp. 4 -
finch sp. 7 -
Kestrel 4 -
Fieldfare - 259
Greenfinch 10 -
Merlin 1 -
Redwing 110 -
Goldfinch 25 -
Lapwing 55 -
Mistle Thrush 1 -
Siskin 41 -
Black-headed Gull 16 -
Jackdaw 3 -
Lesser Redpoll 2 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 11 -
Raven 1 -
Lapland Bunting 1 -
Woodpigeon 101 -
Chaffinch 16 -
Reed Bunting 1 -

Totals: 731 individuals, 24 species, 3:20 hours

Comments: PRE PERIOD. Broken to overcast overnight with some rain. Overcast from dawn but improving befor deep fog and rain advancing and enveloping from the north by 1030hr. Wind SW becoming W, then N. QNH troughing 998 at dawn then rising. Sunrise a none event!; ......PERIOD ONE: A diverse morning but with little magnitude, that is except for Brambling which were outstanding with I think my biggest ever flock (40) going close in west. Siskin were also strong! Not a single Starling on the NNW "continental" track today which with out access to the rainfall radar animation would just be unexplainable! but a quick look confirmed a total weather block overnight with a very substantial mass of rain moving east over a large area of the country further south which would no doubt have cut off / diverted their flow? Interesting that Fieldfares were travelling NNW but Redwing SW and SE!!; ..... PERIOD TWO: Fieldfare and Redwing directions continuing as previous. A Merlin batting through was exciting, Several groups of Lapwing going SW were interesting as no such movement on prior days. An influx of Kestrel extra over the norm.; .....PERIOD THREE: A reduction in bird flow with everything closing down at 1030hr when deep fog and rain advancing from the north enveloped all. Then intention was to stay and do another two periods but little point as conditions were terminal in the short term! A Lapland Bunting went through ticking and tueing just in advance of the close down and in front of the weather.

News came later on that Keith Moir had located a Snow Bunting on Soil Hill in the morning (top one), just to prove that our flyovers here do sometimes come down!!!.... very excellent snaps, all Soil Hill, by Brian Vickers.

Dave and Howard

Stainburn Moor, Harrogate... 23-10-2010

Stainburn Moor, Harrogate (N Yorks, England)
Saturday 23 October 2010
Counting period: 7:25-7:55
Weather: NW 2 visibility- excellent
Observers: A Hanby and G Stephenson

Moving birds:
Common Gull 3 -
Redwing 4 -
Meadow Pipit 1 -
Turdus sp. 2 -
alba wagtail sp. 2 -
Goldcrest 1 -
Fieldfare 21 -

Totals: 34 individuals, 7 species, 0:30 hours

Comments: Slow start rather dim mostly

..........................
Counting period: 7:56-8:25
Weather: as above but distant rain visible to N
Observers:

Moving birds:
Greylag Goose 37 -
Redwing 2 -
Peregrine 1 -
Starling 20 -
Common Snipe 3 -
Chaffinch 16 -
Collared Dove 3 -
finch sp. 1 -
Meadow Pipit 13 -
Siskin 17 -
alba wagtail sp. 1 -
Linnet 5 -
Fieldfare 23 -

Totals: 142 individuals, 13 species, 0:29 hours

....................................
Counting period: 8:26-8:55
Weather: Wind More N cooling/coldish with rain closing from N F3
Observers:


Mpving birds:
Cormorant - 2
Song Thrush 3 -
Greylag Goose 19 -
Redwing 6 -
Black-headed Gull 5 -
Great Tit 1 -
Common Gull 55 -
Starling 87 -
Stock Dove 16 -
Chaffinch 14 -
Meadow Pipit 2 -
Goldfinch 2 -
Fieldfare - 75
Linnet 49 -

Totals: 336 individuals, 14 species, 0:29 hours

Comments: Interesting most Fieldfare going between N and W whereas redwing generally varieties of S. The Stock dove were in a single flock SW

...............................
Counting period: 8:56-9:25
Weather: Wind Due N cold rain imminent
Observers:

Moving birds:
Greylag Goose 5 -
Song Thrush 5 -
Common Snipe 1 -
Redwing 68 -
alba wagtail sp. 2 -
Starling 15 -
Dunnock 2 -
Chaffinch 21 -
Blackbird 1 -
finch sp. 2 -
Fieldfare 26 -
Greenfinch 2 -

Totals: 150 individuals, 12 species, 0:29 hours

.....................................
Counting period: 9:26-9:55
Weather: Rain and poor visibility after about 10 mins
Observers:

Moving birds:
Goosander 3 -
Fieldfare 5 -
Sparrowhawk 2 -
Redwing 192 -
Common Snipe 8 -
Starling 401 -
Common Gull 4 -
Chaffinch 6 -
Grey Wagtail 2 -

Totals: 623 individuals, 9 species, 0:29 hours

Comments: Big rush of birds just before raid then zilch

.....................................
Counting period: 9:56-10:30
Weather: as above but rain ceasing colder still
Observers:

Moving birds:
Fieldfare 3 - Great Tit 2 -
Redwing 32 - Starling 9 -
Long-tailed Tit 13 - finch sp. 2 -

Totals: 61 individuals, 6 species, 0:34 hours

Comments: Little going on apart form a magnificent flock of 13 Long tailed tits going down the hedge

Andrew Hanby and Graham Stephenson

Reva, Rombalds Moor... 23-10-2010

Reva, Rombalds Moor (Bradford, England)
Saturday 23 October 2010
Counting period: 8:00-10:00
Weather: high cloud at first, then sunny interval followed by showers. Very light northerly wind becoming moderate.
Observers: Shaun Radcliffe only

Moving birds:
Greylag Goose 21 -
Meadow Pipit 3 -
Curlew 1 -
Fieldfare 19 -
Stock Dove - 7
Chaffinch - 10
Woodpigeon - 96

Totals: 157 individuals, 7 species, 2:00 hours

Comments: very little movement to report so I left the site after a couple of hours. A couple of small flocks of fieldfare arrived from the north but landed in nearby hawthorn bushes to feed so not moving through.

Shaun Radcliffe

Caldene Fields, Low Moor... 23-10-2010

Caldene Fields, Bradford (W Yorks, England)
Saturday 23 October 2010
Counting period: 7:30-9:30
Weather: Dry with 100% high patchy cloud cover and a F” S/W wind. Mild 8c and excellent visibility to 20+miles
Observers: Martyn Priestley

Moving birds:
Black-headed Gull 4 -
Jackdaw 15 -
Lesser Black-backed Gull 3 -
Carrion Crow 11 -
Woodpigeon 351 -
Chaffinch 14 -
Meadow Pipit - 2
Greenfinch 62 -
alba wagtail sp. 9 -
Goldfinch 31 -
Fieldfare 5 -
Siskin 1 -
Redwing - 10
Bullfinch 1 -

Totals: 519 individuals, 14 species, 2:00 hours

Comments: A day again of little movement here. Plenty of local Starling about but not one moving bird from the E was noted !!! Only a slight increase in Greenfinch numbers was picked up.

Martyn Priestley