Soil Hill birding; updates from the week 04th - 08th September

 This was another shorter week on Soil Hill due to the latter half of the week been spent at Spurn participating in the MigFest there. Although there was an absence of pleasant and sunny conditions, we were still able to make it out birding every day and there were good birds to see, as you would expect for the second week of September. There were no MEGA species as such, but there was a nice scattering of notable migrants to enjoy, especially since it may be the last time I see many of these species this year. 

• On the 5^th there was probably the standout migrant of the week with just the second Common Redstart of the year, which was extremely elusive in the Entrance Copse. After some brief views we then lost the bird in foggy conditions.   

• Once again Whinchats trickled through the Hill with two on the 4^th and a single lingering until the 5^th. Interestingly the two on the 4^th were on the walls near the mast, where the bird on the 5^th was in the usual location at the bottom of the North Slope. It is getting to the impossible stage trying to work out how many have passed through during the autumn, but I would think the two were both new birds, and the single was probably a lingerer from the previous week, given the location. As such, this brings the estimated total to 15 for the autumn, but I have no idea really. 

• The 5^th was a bumper day for Grasshopper Warbler with no less than three appearing at different locations around the site. This is a new record total for me on Soil Hill, although there have no doubt been occasions where the species has been in greater numbers, although undetected. These will almost certainly be the last of the year here. The only other different warbler was Blackcap, where singles were seen on all but one day, with a male and a browncap both been seen on alternate dates. 

• The last few Willow Warblers are still being seen occasionally this week, with as many as six recorded on the 5^th, and still three the following day. Otherwise just singles have been seen, and the species has been harder to find, in contrast to Chiffchaff which is being seen daily with the peak count being seven on the 6^th, with six still present the following day.

• Another species making a much less dramatic exit from Soil Hill is Common Whitethroat. While seven on the 5^th was an impressive total, generally we have only been able to find one or two on each day, and it will not be long before they leave us completely. 

• There was a nice and sudden passage of House Martin on the 8^th, when a flock of 16 birds all headed east together in rather gloomy conditions. Barn Swallow remain ever-present but in fluctuating numbers, varying from just a single on the 4^th to 15 on the 7^th. No noticeable vizmig has occurred as yet, but it will not be long before these two all leave us.  

• There was an impressive six Grey Wagtail recorded blogging on the 5^th, with another two seen on the 7^th. Hopefully there will be some reasonable vizmig of this species as the autumn progresses.  

• Two Jay flew south over Ned Hill Track on the 2^nd. Before this, a single had been jumping between trees on the North Slope Tree-Line and this was assumed to be one of these birds heading south. A nice Jay passage would be appreciated, so it is off to a good start. 

  Birding generally has been poorer compared to recent weeks, in response to poorer weather conditions. However, we made the most of it and there were still a few highlights for us to enjoy. Not least of these was a fantastic view of the covey of seven Grey Partridge in a field off Perseverance Road on the 7^th. They sat for some time in the open allowing for us to really watch them, rather than them dashing for cover or hiding in the grass. This same field has been particularly popular with Rook this week, with up to 28 seen feeding there together on the 6^th.

  A juvenile Buzzard has been hanging around the hill all week, and can even be seen perched on the walls at the bottom of the North Slope. On the only truly sunny day of the week, the 5^th, there was a light passage of three additional birds going south, but otherwise raptor activity remained pretty muted.

  On the 8^th a Curlew was heard at the bottom of the North Slope, which was the only occasion where the species was recorded this week. Two Snipe seen flying over together on the 4^th were also the only observations of this species during the week. For snipe this is a particularly poor return for a species that was nearly daily in early September last year. Hopefully the weeks rainfall will restore the bottom fields and that the species will once again return to winter in good numbers. 

-Common Redstart

-Common Buzzard

-Grasshopper Warbler

-Willow Warbler

-Grey Partridge

Species List:
Soil Hill: Canada Goose, Mallard, Grey Partridge, Common Pheasant, Red-legged Partridge, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Common Moorhen, Eurasian Curlew, Common Snipe, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, European Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Grey Heron, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Little Owl, Common Kestrel, Eurasian Jay, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Northern Raven, Coal Tit, Eurasian Blue Tit, Great Tit, Eurasian Skylark, Common Grasshopper Warbler, Barn Swallow, Common House Martin, Willow Warbler, Common Chiffchaff, Eurasian Blackcap, Common Whitethroat, Goldcrest, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Common Blackbird, European Robin, Common Redstart, Whinchat, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Common Chaffinch, European Greenfinch, Common Linnet, European Goldfinch, Common Reed Bunting, 

Soil Hill & Whiteholme; Week 26th July - 01st August

Soil Hill

Unfortunately, due to the weather I did not visit Soil Hill too many times this week, but on the days that I did visit there were quite a few bits to keep me entertained. For starters on the 26^th I managed a whopping 45 species, which I think is my best count this year, but I can’t be certain about that. Willow Warblers were the stand outs of the week, with small numbers of juveniles present daily giving the place a very lively feel. A Grasshopper Warbler was also nice on the 26^th, as were two Grey Wagtail that flew south and 2 Common Buzzard that circled low overhead. Once the storm had passed, I returned to the hill but there was not the fall of passerines I dreamt about, the highlight on the 1^st being a Green Woodpecker that was calling from down in Bradshaw.

-Common Buzzard

Whiteholme Reservoir

Where Soil Hill was more tranquilo this week, Whiteholme was exceptional. With the storm in the offing I made a visit during the afternoon of the 27^th to sus out the habitat and see which birds were already present. I was stunned to spot a Red Knot still in its summer finery on the centre ‘island’. I then flew to the near shore and became unbelievably confiding, allowing me to gather some nice shots. It was carrying a limp but this did not seem to hamper it behaviour at all.

The 28^th was unexceptional despite the weather, but the storm continued and on the 29^th it delivered. Fog greatly hampered visibility but in the glimpses I was able to obtain of the ‘island’ I managed to spot 6 Arctic Terns all sitting out the storm, which then turned into 7 when they got up and had short fly around before presumably deciding against it. When the fog lifted again there was a summer plumage plover sitting on the island. Frustratingly, because of the wind direction, it kept facing me the whole time, and then the fog descended again. It was another 10 minutes before the fog lifted again, but the bird continued to face me. Consequently I moved along the shore to hopefully get an angle that would confirm my suspicions that the bird was a Grey Plover. I managed a better angle, but it was not needed, as the bird decided to leave the reservoir, flying low over my head revealing its stunning black axillaries.

And then to wrap it all up on the 31^st a stunning adult Turnstone arrived mid-morning and after flying around calling landed in the top NW corner of the reservoir. It lingered here for all of about 30 seconds before it took off again. Frustratingly I was trying to digiscope the bird at the time and as such lost it as it flew off, so I have no idea which direction it went. I did however scour the whole reservoir, and it was certainly not present on Whiteholme, nor on Blackstone Edge. Turnstone is my 150th species in Calderdale and the 15th species of wader on Whiteholme so far in 2021.

-Red Knot

-Arctic Tern

-Grey Plover

Species List:
Soil Hill: Canada Goose, Mallard, Red-legged Partridge, Common Pheasant, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Eurasian Collared Dove, Common Swift, Common Moorhen, Northern Lapwing, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Grey Heron, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Eurasian Blue Tit, Coal Tit, Great Tit, Eurasian Skylark, Common Grasshopper Warbler, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Willow Warbler, Common Whitethroat, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Mistle Thrush, Common Blackbird, European Robin, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Common Chaffinch, European Greenfinch, Common Linnet, European Goldfinch, Common Reed Bunting,
Whiteholme Reservoir: Canada Goose, Mallard, Eurasian Teal, Goosander, Common Swift, Red Grouse, Eurasian Oystercatcher, European Golden Plover, Grey Plover, Common Ringed Plover, Eurasian Curlew, Red Knot, Dunlin, Ruddy Turnstone, Black-headed Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Arctic Tern, Great Cormorant, Common Kestrel, Carrion Crow, Northern Raven, Common Grasshopper Warbler, Northern Wheatear, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, 

Soil Hill; Isolation week 21

And so concludes my final week on Soil Hill before I return to Brazil to visit Lia, a trip that will take me away from my patch for nearly the entire autumn. The weather this week varied greatly but mainly consisted of wind and rain, but the occasionally sunny spells. Birdlife on the whole was reasonably good, especially with good numbers of gulls building up in the fields below Soil Hill. On a couple of occasions I took the scope out to sift through them but failed to find the desired Caspian. On my last full day I even took to scoping from the road but only got a half an hour in before a juvenile Buzzard flew low over and sent all the gulls away. Still there were good numbers of Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls, with the occasional Yellow-legged thrown in for good measure.

On the 15^th the week got off to an excellent start with a juvenile Redstart on Taylor Lane, although it was extremely elusive. On the same day I had a flyover Tree Pipit and a scattering of Willow Warblers. Five Common Snipe flew off the marsh at the bottom of the Hill as well. On the 17^th the Tree Pipit count increased to three, all grounded individuals, with one of the Sedge Warblers also making an appearance. On the 18^th a pair of Raven flew over in very windy conditions that otherwise made birding a serious challenge. The 19^th was a much livelier day with another appearance from last weeks Short-eared Owl, as well as three more Tree Pipits, now two Sedge Warblers and a Great Spotted Woodpecker. The two Raven reappeared on the 20^th, and they were joined by a flyover Crossbill and the aforementioned Common Buzzard, nicely rounding off my time birding the Hill, which started at the end of March no less.

-Short-eared Owl

-Northern Raven

-Common Buzzard

Species List:

Soil Hill: Canada Goose, Mallard, Red-legged Partridge, Common Pheasant, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Common Swift, Common Moorhen, Common Snipe, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, European Herring Gull, Yellow-legged Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Cormorant, Grey Heron, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Little Owl, Short-eared Owl, Great Spotted Woodpecker, European Green Woodpecker, Common Kestrel, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Northern Raven, Eurasian Blue Tit, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Eurasian Skylark, Sedge Warbler, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Common House Martin, Willow Warbler, Common Whitethroat, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Mistle Thrush, Common Blackbird, European Robin, Common Redstart, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Meadow Pipit, Tree Pipit, Common Chaffinch, Eurasian Bullfinch, European Greenfinch, Common Linnet, Red Crossbill, European Goldfinch, Common Reed Bunting,

Soil Hill; Isolation week 20

  Although not as lively as last week, it was another good week on Soil Hill with a scattering of migrants and another patch and year tick, bringing me up to the landmark 100 for the year at the close of play for the week. The patch tick was one that I have had on the agenda for a while now; Yellow-legged Gull. I’ve been keeping a close eye on the large gulls that have built up in the mown fields as the farmers have been scalping the grass, so I was very pleased when a juvenile flew past me on the 10^th. Initially I was drawn to its pale primary windows, and was pretty pleased after checking other features. I received confirmation from TDJ and GCT so was pretty pleased with that. On the 14^th there were more gulls moving in the afternoon and I picked out two more juveniles flying past with good numbers of Herring Gulls and Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

  The year-tick was one that I was not expecting due to their apparent scarcity this year, but on the afternoon of the 14^th a Short-eared Owl flew across the hill being closely mobbed by a pair of crows. Initially I did not think too much of it, assuming it was one of the regular local owls, but was soon informed of my mis-identification after putting my photo on Twitter.

  Migrant numbers have fluctuated during the week, with Willow Warblers being the flavor of choice with peak counts of 17 on the 12^th but otherwise no more than 6. A Common Buzzard on the 13^th was a nice species I have not seen for a while. Wheatears peaked at two on the 8^th with a single individual remaining for most of the week. Two Snipe flew over on the same date, 2 Tree Pipit flew over on the 12^th as did a flock of around 20 House Martins. Mistle Thrush numbers arrived in the top fields this week as well, presumably exhausting the supply of worms in the lower fields. My top count was 33 but I get the impression there is more…

-Yellow-legged Gull

-Short-eared Owl

-Common Buzzard

Complete Species List:

Soil Hill: Canada Goose, Mallard, Common Pheasant, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Eurasian Collared Dove, Common Swift, Common Moorhen, Common Snipe, Northern Lapwing, Eurasian Curlew, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, European Herring Gull, Yellow-legged Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Short-eared Owl, Little Owl, Common Kestrel, European Green Woodpecker, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Coal Tit, Eurasian Blue Tit, Great Tit, Eurasian Skylark, Sedge Warbler, Barn Swallow, Common House Martin, Willow Warbler, Common Whitethroat, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Mistle Thrush, Common Blackbird, European Robin, Northern Wheatear, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Tree Pipit, Common Chaffinch, Eurasian Bullfinch, Common Linnet, European Greenfinch, European Goldfinch, Eurasian Siskin, Common Reed Bunting,

Orgreave Lakes

A bright sunny morning on my day off, so I set off down to Orgreave for a look round. The highlights of the day were the numerous signs of spring, namely the singing Skylarks all around, probably at least 30 birds. There were other more unusual site passerines around too such as a pair of Stonechat and a pair of Siskin...

-Stonechat

-Skylark

-Siskin

Another highlight was a new addition to my Orgreave Patch List! Whilst walking along the hillside on my way over to the Waverley estate I flushed a pair of Grey Partridges from the long grass. They flew over the hilltop where I lost them but its a patch tick for me. I managed to grab one acceptable record shot before I lost them.

-Grey Partridge

I mentioned that I was heading to Waverley and that was because the male Black Redstart had been refound and was behaving himself. It took some finding but once I had it I was able to finally get some record shots, as well as getting the other birders present onto it. I was not able to get as close as I would have liked, but thats largely due to not wanting to flush it for the other birders. The female bird was also present at the far side of the estate, and I was sure I was going to get some good shots of it given how close it was but then it dropped down and vanished. I could not refind it and since I was becoming pushed for time there was not much I could do.

-Black Redstart

On my way back from Waverley through the lakes again I picked up 3 Common Buzzards soaring overhead. I first picked them up on their call before I spotted them soaring almost directly above me. They are a very majestic bird to say the least.

-Common Buzzard

What a day down on the patch. When it pays off like this, there is nowhere better to bird inland that I can think of.

Species List:

Orgreave Lakes: Blackbird, Magpie, Wren, House Sparrow, Collard Dove, Woodpigeon, Robin, Blue Tit, Goldfinch, Reed Bunting, Great Tit, Moorhen, Common Teal, Mallard, Skylark, Goosander, Black-headed Gull, Little Grebe, Lapwing, Meadow Pipit, Pochard, Coot, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Carrion Crow, Wigeon, Fieldfare, Siskin, Mistle Thrush, Mute Swan, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Pied Wagtail, Black Redstart, Common Buzzard, Kestrel, Lesser Redpoll, Linnet, Long-tailed Tit,

University Birdwatching

As per for a January, most of my time is being spent in the library revising or procrastinating. My chosen spot has a stunning view out over Sheffield and that means I get to watch birds flying over, which compensates for the lack of birding I get to do otherwise.

January 10th
Pretty sweet to get Peregrine on the yearlist this morning when one of the church birds flew around the window before heading back down towards the church. Always a pleasure to see, and makes spending time in the library a lot more bearable...

January 15th
Today I had a Common Buzzard fly N over the IC. I glanced up from my notes and there it was, this great beast of a bird being mobbed by crows as it leisurely flew by. Its a library tick for me there, the first one of the exam period.

January 16th
The Buzzard flew back again today before soaring away towards Attercliffe but still more than view-able from my vantage point. I also had a Collard Dove fly by which is only my second library record.

January 17th
Today was a real bumper day. There was a reasonable snowfall overnight though it quickly melted away. It all happened in the morning. I was glancing out of the window when I noticed a large Skein of Pink-footed Geese flying West. I was thrilled, a yeartick and a superb library bird. Then, half an hour later, a second, but more distant and higher skein of around 50 birds. About 5 minuets later a third Skein went over of around 70 birds. What a morning, I was buzzing. In addition there was also a flyby from the female Peregrine. Winning.
I tried to grab a shot of the geese with my phone, but the camera on it leaves a lot to be desired and as such you can hardly make out the geese, although you can make out the individual pixels, which is always what you want from a photo...

-Pink-footed Geese

January 21st

Despite the clear conditions today was really very quiet. I did get superb views of a nice female Sparrowhawk fly past the window at eye level though. A real sweet treat.

January 23rd
I had two Peregrines flying round the window. Granted one was only brief but the other stuck around, perching up on the high rise buildings and attacking the local pigeons. It did not catch any though. I have spent many hours up here and I've still never seen any peregrine catch a pigeon despite multiple attempts. Also had 2 Great Tits in the trees in the center of the roundabout.

All things considered its not been a horrific couple of weeks bird wise, with a few nice things to keep the hours tolerable.

Soil Hill 20.08 - 26.08

From 2 trips so far this week I have managed two outstanding birds, and not just by Soil Hill standards. On the 22nd I had cut my time on the hill short on account of my parents who warned me of and oncoming storm. On my way back down Taylor Lane, I was scanning the wall tops when I spotted a largish bird on one of the near walls. I struck me by its shape as being a Cuckoo immediately. However, a jogger was coming, so my heart was in my mouth that it would not flush. It did, but did not go far at all and I was able to rattle off a few photos. Thrilled, I texted out the news but when I looked up again it had gone and I could not refind it. However, on the 24th I refound the bird feeding on Peacock Caterpillars further down Taylor Lane and showing very well indeed. 

If that was one patch tick, the second came on the 23rd when I was walking along the top and flushed a Grasshopper Warbler. To say I was thrilled with this would be an understatement. I've put the description under the date. Having only seen gropper once before I could stand to be corrected, although the evidence seems to be stacked up. A real nice treat.

Also on the 22nd I found a second Spotted Flycatcher down the lane left of the Koi farm. This time I got a proper look at them, and they were even flycatching right above my head, which was pretty awesome to see. Signs that Autumn has really hit the hill.

22.08.2015

Species List:

Soil Hill: Rook, Magpie, Starling, Feral Pigeon, Black-Headed Gull, Kestrel, Linnet, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Wren, Spotted Flycatcher, Cuckoo,

-Spotted Flycatcher

-Cuckoo

23.08.2015
On the Northern Side of the hill's summit I was trudging through the grass when I flushed a small dark passerine. It lacked any white on its tail, which was narrow and pointed, or on its wings, removing both Skylark and Meadow Pipit as possibilities. Its back was a uniform dark brown. I considered Grasshopper Warbler as an option and went to flush it again in order to establish anything else on the bird. It clearly had an orange-y flash on its side, which was very distinct on the second flyby. The back was still very dark but appeared to be streaked. It landed in a field which was barbed off, so I decided to try and play it a gropper call and see if that did anything. I realised that the wind was strong, and my phone speaker was not, so quickly gave up. However, after around 5 mins it flew from the field, did a flyby past me and landed in the scrub behind me. I flushed it a few more times after to try and get a photo but did not pick up any more features, except the lack of a distinct Supercilium. I lost it in the thicker scrub at the top of the North Slope and subsequent efforts failed to re-locate it. From the features described I am confident that the bird was a Grasshopper Warbler, which was a species I never excepted to see on site once the marsh had been demolished. I was pretty thrilled with that.
Also a few bonus birds around this afternoon. First of these was a female type Common Teal which I initially flushed from one of the top pools, followed by a subsequent flushing from one of the fields adjacent to the summit. I also flushed a nice Common Snipe from the scrapes on the top, which was my first of the Autumn.
Species List:
Soil Hill: Rook, Jackdaw, Woodpigeon, Swallow, Feral Pigeon, Linnet, Meadow Pipit, Black-Headed Gull, Starling, Common Teal, Grasshopper Warbler, Magpie, Common Snipe, Skylark, Common Gull,

24.08.2015
Besides the aforementioned Cuckoo showing well, there were also 2 Common Buzzards circling the hill, though quite high and increasing in height as they moved south. Also 17 Mistle Thrushes down the track where the Spotted Flycatchers had been, plus a late Swift going south, and a large group of around 40 Swallows going south high.

Species List:

Soil Hill: Swift, Mistle Thrush, Starling, Meadow Pipit, Feral Pigeon, Swallow, House Martin, Black-Headed Gull, Kestrel, Magpie, Pheasant, Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow, Stock Dove, Wren, Jackdaw, Common Buzzard, Lesser Black-Backed Gull,

-Common Buzzard

-Cuckoo

Soil Hill: 29.07 - 12.08

To save with constant individual posts about Soil Hill trips with limited sightings I figured I may was well round them up in one long post at weekly intervals (Starting now) and so here is a quick round up of all that I've seen on the almost daily trips up to the hill. 

A quick note on the notable sightings. On the 7th August a Common Buzzard drifted over the hill. It started circling down over the Queensbury direction before flying low but directly over the hill towards Ogden and Thornton Moor, where it started circling again but continuing to drift of. On the 6th I headed up for an evening session where I gained a patch tick of Greenfinch with a flock of 5 birds associating with the small group of trees at the end of the track. A long overdue tick to say the least.

 On the 12th August I managed to get another patch tick. It was a very slow afternoon with nothing happening. It was then that I heard a distinct 'Spizz' call overhead and looked to see a Tree Pipit flying over. It alighted on a wall, so I rushed for my camera, but when I looked again it was gone. At this point a second Tree Pipit flew over calling and this seemingly was enough to bring out the other bird from the wall, and both birds continued flying south. No record shot there then!

29.07.2015

Species List:

Soil Hill: Wren, Kestrel, Mistle Thrush, Swift, Swallow, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon, Carrion Crow, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Black-Headed Gull, Meadow Pipit, Skylark, 

30.07.2015

Species List:

Soil Hill:Carrion Crow, Swallow, Swift, Wren, Starling, Mistle Thrush, Kestrel, Meadow Pipit, Woodpigeon, Skylark, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Common Gull, Stock Dove, Linnet, Rook, Jackdaw,

01.08.2015

It is important to note that it rained intensively on this day, and I quickly gave up upon arriving on the hill

Species List:

Soil Hill: Meadow Pipit, Woodpigeon,

06.08.2015

Species List:

Soil Hill: Mistle Thrush, Linnet, Feral Pigeon, Dunnock, Greenfinch, Starling, Woodpigeon, Kestrel, Carrion Crow, Common Gull,

07.08.2015

Species List:

Soil Hill: Kestrel, Swallow, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Mistle Thrush, Woodpigeon, Wheatear, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Linnet, Stock Dove, Skylark, Feral Pigeon, Common Buzzard, Swift, Meadow Pipit, Dunnock, 

-Common Buzzard

10.08.2015

Species List:

Soil Hill: Lapwing, Starling, Woodpigeon, Linnet, Mistle Thrush, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Pheasant, Skylark, Swallow, Magpie, Stock Dove, Wheatear, Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Black-Headed Gull, Kestrel, Feral Pigeon,

11.08.2015

Also of note today was the first dragonfly of the year on the hill: a real nice male Common Hawker. Its just a pity it did not settle down for a proper photo.

Species List:

Soil Hill: Swallow, Goldfinch, Kestrel, Woodpigeon, Feral Pigeon, Dunnock, Carrion Crow, Black-Headed Gull, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Meadow Pipit, Magpie, Jackdaw, Skylark, Wheatear, Mistle Thrush,

-Common Hawker

12.08.2015

Species List:
Soil Hill: Feral Pigeon, Goldfinch, Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon, Swallow, Meadow Pipit, Tree Pipit, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Skylark, Stock Dove, Kestrel,

And that's it for Soil Hill. Other stuff has been happening, especially in the garden where we have had a nice garden tick of Willow Warbler. A nice yellow individual came and stayed for only a minuet or so, and most of that time was spent in bushes, but it was still and exciting sighting.

But not as exciting as when my dad went out one night to lock the garage only to come back saying there was a Common Toad near the pond. This is a garden tick and pretty special. Not bad going at all.

-Common Toad

Orgreave Lakes

Pretty standard affair really, just a nip down late morning/early afternoon for a boot around the patch to see if there was anything about. It was fairly quiet as is to be expected at this time of day when the weather is fairly warm but there were still a few bits and pieces knocking around worthy of note.

I took the alternative route round this time, going along the eastern side of the lakes before walking round the other way. This area was very quiet, the highlight being a nice Sparrowhawk that flew over my head offering me great views of it.

The highlight of the walk was, of course, the Wheatears. There was a superb female flitting around on the rocks near the shoreline and I probably spent a good 20 mins photographing her through the scope. The light was less than ideal but I am reasonably happy with the shots I got. Not bad going at all.

-Northern Wheatear

The warm weather had brought out the Buzzards in force, as today there were 5 circling over the southern area of the site. It was pretty fantastic to see, especially considering my previous site record was 3, and yet today I could manage 4 in one frame of the camera. They came circling really low over the small lake and I tried to get a few photos.

-Common Buzzard

So it was a quiet down on the patch but there was stuff around and it did not feel overly tedious like patch birding sometimes can (Soil Hill)

Species List:

Orgreave Lakes: Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Mallard, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Great Crested Grebe, Coot, Graylag Goose, Canada Goose, Cormorant, Little Ringed Plover, Blackcap, Redshank, Wheatear, Reed Bunting, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Mute Swan, Grey Heron, Lapwing, Oystercatcher, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Woodpigeon, Feral Pigeon, 

Soil Hill and Garden

Bank Holiday Monday: a day spent trying to avoid the crowds. As a result we went to Wycolle in the morning. It was another lovely day but the wildlife remained a little on the sparse side, a pretty usual feature of the site. In the duckpond there were plenty of frogs, as in absolutely loads, and even a couple on the lawn around that we moved to avoid anything bad happening to.

Birds were the usual suspects although my dad and I walked a little further than usual and were rewarded with nice views of Common Buzzard, which is the first time we have seen one here. Other than that there were only a usual assembly of moorland species; Oystercatcher, Curlew, Lapwing being the highlights.

Species List:

Wycolle CP: Meadow Pipit, Pheasant, Chaffinch, Blue Tit, Magpie, Dunnock, Robin, Wren, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Great Tit, Skylark, Oystercatcher, Woodpigeon, Mallard, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Moorhen, Common Buzzard, Curlew, Lapwing, 

In the afternoon I went up to Soil Hill armed with the scope and tripod, hoping to pick out an osprey. Sadly I did not pick one out but I did manage to spot another Common Buzzard, first at half 3 distantly over Oxenhope and then at half 4 more over towards Bradford when I was able to pick out actual plumage features for the first time. Also had a Sparrowhawk, or possibly 2 and 2 kestrels. Aside from them there was nothing unusual, but it gave me a chance to practice more with the scope and get used to identifying small blobs on the horizon for 2 and a half hours. Inexplicably still no wheatears! I bumped into Brian Sumner too, which was nice to have a catch up.

Species List:

Soil Hill: Common Buzzard, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Black-Headed Gull, Feral Pigeon, Woodpigeon, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Skylark, Linnet, Lapwing, Curlew, Blackbird, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, 

Between site visits the garden was a hive of amphibian activity. I reckon we had at least 25 frogs in the two ponds with out first clumps of spawn for the year. There was one group of around 10 frogs all sat together in one of the plant pots, creating a very crowded scene!

-Common Frog

While watching the frogs a Long-Tailed Tit flew over, which is only the 3rd record for the garden. It landed in a tree adjacent to the wall along the field. It then flew off up the track. My mum had said she had seen one on the feeders 2 days ago, so I guess this is the same bird.

There continued to be a few Meadow Pipits flying over, and we heard a bird of prey calling but could not find it. It would seem likely that this would be the Buzzard frequenting the nearby moors, as that's the only bird of prey we have seen around recently.

Species List:

Garden: Long-Tailed Tit, Mallard, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Meadow Pipit, Chaffinch, Blue Tit,