Orgreave Lakes

With the dissertation coming together I decided to spend my afternoon at Orgreave in the hope of patch-ticking the Greenshank that had been around for a few days. The only downside being that I was badly caught out in a wintry shower, which was extremely unpleasant. That being said though, there were good numbers of birds to enjoy, and it was a nice afternoon out of the library.

I picked up the Greenshank almost straight away but it was distant and the light appauling so it wasnt until on the way back that I got any photos, even then they were not brilliant. I also got to enjoy a pair of Shelduck, which I can't remember seeing before but I'm sure I must have.

-Greenshank

-Shelduck

There were also good numbers of migrants, which felt a little odd in the falling snow. A wheatear foraging in the snow is not something I ever really expected to see. There were also plenty of Hirundines, including a couple of House Martins. They were perching up on the wooden fences, probably to try and stay warm and dry given the conditions.

Not only Hirundines though, as there were plenty of Warbler singing in the trees alongside the river, including Chiff-chaff, Blackcap and Willow Warbler, plus my first Whitethroat of the year, which was not especially showy

-Hirundines

-Whitethroat

But the highlight of the walk was another self-found patch tick in the form of a solitary Raven that flew over going north. The bird was so tatty it took me a while to be sure I'd got it right, although its fairly clear that it is a Raven. I never expected to get one of these on my patch list here.

-Raven

In addition to these goodies there were also plenty of other birds I did not photograph, including the Yellowhammer again, a couple of flyover Yellow Wagtails and a few very nice Little Ringed Plovers. Other waders included Common Sandpiper, Ringed Plover and an abundance of Redshank.

Species List:

Orgreave Lakes: Robin, Willow Warbler, Linnet, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Kestrel, Blackbird, Reed Bunting, Pied Wagtail, Yellowhammer, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Raven, Gadwall, Moorhen, Coot, Great-crested Grebe, Mallard, Canada Goose, Graylag Goose, Lapwing, Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Little Ringed Plover, Redshank, Common Sandpiper, Swallow, House Martin, Sand Martin, Wheatear, Black-headed Gull, Whitethroat, Chiff-chaff, Willow Warbler, Shelduck, Greenshank, Common Buzzard,