Latest Stuff

    Not been out because I'm still without my beloved camera
    but theres still been plenty going on locally. highlight for
    me was yesterday morning as the wife was getting the car
    washed at Shibden Hill garage I sat on the grass bank at the
    top of the forecourt and a Yellowhammer was perched for
    a while on a lone tree it then went back and forth between
    other trees for about ten minutes before disappearing into
    the Shibden valley area, I was made up but peed off I'd no
    camera, some were also seen in other local areas too by other
    people.  3 Buzzards were soaring and screeching over Claremount,
    and a Linnet was on the feeders which came back 2 hours later
    with a friend, I managed to get a shot of the Linnet as I ran in the
    house and swept the dust off of an old camera hoping that it still
   worked, luckily it did tho not great but it'll have to do.

   Peregrines were seen at a famous landmark in Halifax and a
   Cuckoo was at Giants Tooth, Ogden Water,
   garden had Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Bullfinch, Dunnock, Jackdaw,
   Wood Pigeon, Starling, Blackbird, Collared Dove, Sparrowhawk,
   Stock Dove and Linnet.

   Phil D got some fantastic shots of an Osprey fishing at a Reservoir
   just outside the area, Ive got to admit I'm a tad jealous.
 

                                          Yellowhammer taken last year

Cloudy, Rainy Garden

    Garden today in miserable rainy weather was visited
    by 4 Bullfinch, 2 Stock Dove who are beginning to
    regularly, 2 greedy Wood Pigeon, Goldfinch, Starling,
    Dunnock and one feral Pigeon and Jackdaws.
   
    Great find yesterday by JL of a Ring Ouzel between
    Bradshaw and Oats Royd and Swallows have arrived
    some were seen down by Cromwell Bottom.

    Last 2 nights my Bats have returned to flying around the
    garden which always amaze me.
 
    Some pics from the past
   

Cromwell Camera Smash

 Set off down to Cromwell Bottom on a beautiful morning
 intending to be out all day doing my rounds but it wasn't to be,
 half hour into my walk and smash, my camera had dropped off
 of my strap and the camera smashed to bits but lens still working
 hopefully, I usually check that its screwed on tight as well but
 not this morning so I'm a bit devastated to say the least.

 The Herons were very active this morning over the car park,
 2 Teal were on the river, Chiff Chaff were in full cry and a
 Wren was seen bobbing about before my disaster.

 Garden had Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Dunnock and Jackdaw,
 Collared Dove and Stock Dove.

Super Soil Hill

     Took a trip up to Soil Hill today, a place that I dread to
     go to if I'm being honest but it was well worth it today,
     the first bird I saw was a distant Buzzard and with it was
     a Red Kite which I didn't realise at the time until I put my
     pics on the computer, my next bird was a Snipe which flew
     up just in front of me, lots of Skylark up there along with
     Meadow Pipits, down at the bottom pond were 4 Oystercatchers,
     Wood Pigeon, Lapwings, Mallard and a Duck that I couldn't make
     out, then up popped what looked like a Ring Ouzel from the trees
     disturbed by a couple of Magpies, I'm 90% sure it was but at that
     distance I'll call it a maybe and it only showed itself for seconds,
     2 Kestrel were busy hunting and one flew just by me low down
     but no chance of a pic as it had sneaked up on me from behind,
     back at my car I seen a Pied Wagtail dancing around on the
     water board building roof.

    Next I took a drive up to Castle Carr Rd where I seen Curlew
    flying up towards Fly Flatts, Little Owl was chilling on a wall
    a few Meadow Pipits and Pheasant were other birds up there, I
    then went up to Nolstar in hope of Golden Plover and Dotterel
    but just got a few Lapwing but there were people riding
    about on a mud jeep in fields nearby so would of scared most
    birds off.

    Garden had Goldfinch, Blackbird, 2 Blue Tits which were checking
    out my nest boxes, 2 Collared Doves and 6 Greenfinch which are
    turning up in larger numbers all the time.