Soil Hill

   After only arriving at Leeds/Bradford Airport late last night, it was a bit of a struggle to motivate myself to get up early and out to Soil Hill this morning, but it was well worth the effort. It was a thoroughly enjoyable morning in superb birding conditions. The only unpside of landing late into the evening was that as I was leaving the airport, I was able to heat two flocks of Common Scoter flying over calling.

  The highlight of the morning was a distant Osprey that flew north at 07:55 up the Ogden valley, before continuing over Thornton Moor Reservoir. This is my 7th Osprey on Soil Hill, and my 5th in the Spring. It has been an excellent spring for the species in Calderdale, with another two birds also reported later in the day. Given there had been five during the previous week, I was optimistic I might bump into one whilst I was home, but to get it on the first morning was really something! 

  There was not a huge number of migrants around, with the last few Fieldfares still lingering in the fields on Taylor Lane representing the winter species still hanging on. Another winter species still present is Jack Snipe, with two individuals seen today. This included a rather conspicuous individual that I was able to spot before it got away, without using the thermal! Common Snipes were also present, with a scan from the bottom of the North Slope revealing at least four displaying birds. A Jay on Taylor Lane is always a good species to record for Soil Hill.

-Osprey

-Jack Snipe

-Oystercatcher

Soil Hill

    Last night there were a few reports of Common Scoter migrating over Lancashire, with reports indicating it was quite the movement of birds. Most of the reports came at around 20:00 but I was not aware of them until already 21:30 by which time those flocks would have had ample time to reach Calderdale and continue towards the North Sea.

  However, from Bradshaw, I did some listening and at 21:40 a clear flock of Scoter was heard passing over. Buoyed by this I grabbed my thermal imager, jumped in the car and set off for Soil Hill. There was not much activity however, and during the hour I stayed on the Hill I only recorded one clear flock of six Common Scoter flying over, with just a few calls heard. A very distant large flock of birds flying in formation were probably also Scoter but without calls it's impossible to be sure. A few solitary birds I picked up in the thermal could have been anything! 

  This morning was once again very pleasant, but with little in the way of standout species. I managed to locate two Jack Snipe this morning but sadly one of these was deceased. A Jay was a nice surprise, initially in the North Slope Tree-Line before flying north. It, or another individual, was spotted flying SW a little time later. A late Common Gull flew north. 

-Common Scoter

-Jack Snipe full of life

-Sadly expired Jack Snipe

-Meadow Pipit

Soil Hill

    A lovely day for my first Soil Hill visit of the Spring, with a few migrants around and a few lingering winter species. The highlight was a new personal record count of five Jack Snipe which were all present in the same small area of marsh. My previous record was three individuals, which I have reached on several occasions. 

  In terms of spring migrants, five Willow Warblers were back on territory, with at least six Swallows blogging around and a single Sand Martin which flew southwards over the Hill. 

-Jack Snipe

-Willow Warbler

Species List:
Soil Hill: Canada Goose, Mallard, Eurasian Teal, Common Pheasant, Red-legged Partridge, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Common Moorhen, Northern Lapwing, Eurasian Curlew, Jack Snipe, Common Snipe, European Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Northern Raven, Eurasian Blue Tit, Eurasian Skylark, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Willow Warbler, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Song Thrush, Common Blackbird, European Robin, Dunnock, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Eurasian Chaffinch, European Greenfinch, Common Linnet, European Goldfinch, Common Reed Bunting,

Soil Hill

  The cold weather throughout April has meant migration has been slow to say the least. I wandered up this afternoon without expecting much, and thought two late Common Gulls that flew over heading northeast would probably be the highlight of the walk.

  I decided to venture into the bottom marsh to see if I could work out what the Reed Buntings were up to, but they didn’t seem to be in there again, so I guess they are not breeding there this year. However, I was in for a complete shock on my exit

  It was only by pure chance that I happened to look down at my boots as I was leaving the marsh, to see the golden stripes of a Jack Snipe sat right next to me. This is the first time I have seen one sitting without the help of my thermal camera. Heaven only knows why this individual decided to remain sitting, since I was basically straddling it with my legs, but it very nearly got away with it.

  Fortunately it allowed me to back away without flushing, and I got some nice photos before walking away. Given that it is almost May, it was a bit of a shock to see this species still present but happy to be proven wrong. This is my joint latest spring individual at this site.   

-Jack Snipe

Species List:
Soil Hill: Canada Goose, Mallard, Common Pheasant, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Common Moorhen, Eurasian Oystercatcher, Northern Lapwing, Eurasian Curlew, Jack Snipe, Common Snipe, Common Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Great Tit, Eurasian Skylark, Barn Swallow, Willow Warbler, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Common Blackbird, European Robin, Northern Wheatear, Dunnock, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Eurasian Chaffinch, Common Linnet, European Goldfinch, Eurasian Siskin, Common Reed Bunting, 

Soil Hill

  Having searched almost every day since my return to the UK at the start of November, it's hard to believe it's taken until the 9th of January to find my first Soil Hill Jack Snipe of the winter. But fortunately, it was worth the wait with a grand total of three individuals being flushed when searching through their usual haunts. Presumably, this apparent arrival of Jack Snipe is a product of the cold front moving through, with seriously cold temperatures on the continent. Whatever the reason, it is good that they are back.

-Jack Snipe

  Buoyed by my success with finding Jack Snipes the previous day, this morning I went up again in the company of Harry Coghill, and using the thermal whilst patiently moving through the marsh, we managed to locate an individual before it flushed, offering absolutely unbelievable views as it relayed totally on its camouflage. This is only the third time I have found an individual this way, and hopefully, it will not be the last. 

-Jack Snipe

Species List:
Soil Hill: Canada Goose, Mallard, Common Pheasant, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Jack Snipe, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, European Herring Gull, Common Buzzard, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Eurasian Blue Tit, Great Tit, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Mistle Thrush, Redwing, Common Blackbird, Fieldfare, European Robin, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Meadow Pipit, Eurasian Bullfinch, European Goldfinch, 

Soil Hill birding; updates from the week 24th October - 30th October

 It was another tricky week weather-wise, with days of consecutive fog and rain creating difficult conditions for birding. But other days have seen southwesterlies and lively visible migration, which has certainly kept things interesting as the autumn draws to a close. This is also my last week on the Hill before my return to Brazil, and this means I finished my Soil Hill yearlist on 103, just the second year I have breached the three-figure mark. 

• Having cleared up Brambling last week, this week I notched up my other outstanding and slightly embarrassing patch-tick (although noticeably rarer in recent years) in Great Black-backed Gull. An adult flew distantly northwest towards TMR as viewed through the scope, on the 26^th. A bit distant for photos, but you get the idea; massive gull with black back! My 122^nd species for the site! 

• The Tawny Owl that was around at the end of the last week was present on four dates this week. As usual, it remains stationary atop a fence post, but always watching you as you walk past it. It’s always a treat to find a day-roosting owl. 

• The flock of Long-tailed Tits that made an appearance last week were still around on the 25^th, moving from the North Slope bushes onto Ned Hill Track where they continued to be mobile and vocal. Although I only counted six, I suspect that there were probably more as they were very mobile and difficult to count.  

-Great Black-backed Gull

-Tawny Owl

Once again the main event of the week was VizMig, with some excellent days with thousands of migrants passing, but equally a number of days with absolutely nothing happening…

• Without doubt the species of the week was Woodpigeon, with three four-figure counts during the week; 2572 on the 25^th, 4085 on the 26^th and the biggest day on the 30^th, when 5467 went south. The crazy thing is that most of the large numbers always moved through in the first hour after sunrise, on the 30^th especially there were moments where I was almost overwhelmed by the large flocks. In addition, also on the 30^th, there were 19 Stock Dove that went south, including two flocks of seven. 

• Strangely it feels like thrush migration has already ended for the year. On most days where VizMig was happening there were three-figure counts of Fieldfare, peaking at 217 south on the 30^th, but no huge numbers on any dates. Equally, Redwings seem to have dropped off although there were 399 south on the 25^th and then 248 northeast on the 26^th. Otherwise there were no more three-figure counts. 

• There was the first notable movement of Starlings this week. Although c.300 flew north on the 25^th I suspect these were mostly local birds. But on the 30^th there were 827 that went south during the morning. The flocks were large and compact so its difficult to gauge an accurate count with the clicker so there is a good chance I undercounted. 

• And finally a quick summary of the various finches that have been moving this week. Always in small numbers but a few nice species among the commoner birds. 
• The most notable species that went south this week was Common Crossbill, when three flew south on the 25^th, calling. I was too sluggish on the camera, but these are still my first Crossbills here since the summer eruption during 2020. 
• On two dates I had Brambling fly south, just one on the 25^th (although almost certainly more heading south silently) and then on the 30^th when 10 went south, in a flock of calling away. Again though, I suspect that there were more going south. This was the species I really wanted this autumn so its been good to get them on a few different dates. 
• Its been a good week for Lesser Redpoll with individuals passing on all four dates which saw VizMig, including 18 on the 26^th. There was also a flock of 11 blogging at the bottom of the North Slope on the 30^th, they dropped into the small woodland opposite Keelham Farm Shop. 
• To round up commoner species, the last Linnet went south on the 26^th, the only one of the week. The highest Siskin count of the week was 22 which went south on the 25^th, Chaffinch peaked at 42 on the 26^th, with notable other counts of 24 on the 24^th and then 28 on the 30^th. Goldfinch also had some good totals with 27 on the 30^th being the best, and counts in the low-teens on other dates. And finally, a small flock of four Greenfinch flew south on the 30^th. 

-Brambling

It was fairly quiet on the wildfowl front, with little change in species numbers or composition from the previous week. That said, it’s nice to see groups of Canada Geese using the Hill again after missing them for most of the month. Actually interesting wildfowl however…

• On the morning of the 30^th two swans flew north in the very early hours, before the sun had crested the hill. In the field they looked strikingly small, almost like barnyard geese, so I grabbed the camera hoping it would be able to manage the gloom. It couldn’t, but seemed to all but stop my train of thought in its tracks with long neck and bulky structure being quite clear. But as to what they actually were, I couldn’t tell, I’ve never had Mute here, but seems odd for Whoopers to being north. The ones that got away I think…

• The only flock of Pink-footed Geese were 35 that battled west low over the Hill on the 26^th, struggling in the strong winds. 

• The only Eurasian Teal of the week were two flushed from the bottom marsh on the 30^th. Strangely none seemed to be using the NK Pond this week. The same date saw the only Goosander of the week fly north distantly. 

-Pink-footed Geese

-Eurasian Teal

  Other birding continued to be enjoyable this week. There have been small numbers of Common Snipe this week, not the large numbers seen the previous week but at least one has been seen most days. The increased rainfall has created ample more habitat for them, which I suspect has helped disperse them. Jack Snipe I managed on only one date, the 28^th but there were two individuals involved, which is the first time I managed more than a single this autumn. 

  On the 26^th the Grey Partridges made a return to my sightings list, with three flushed in the early hours on Taylor Lane. A flock of seven Partridges I flushed on the summit later in the morning were probably the other group but I was not able to rule out Red-legged Partridge, which were also around on a couple of dates this week.

  Quite a poor week for Goldcrest, with singles on the 24^th and 25^th, then two on the 30^th. Clearly no increase of numbers during the autumn, but maybe it will come after I leave. On the other hand, Stonechat was recorded almost daily, with a peak count of six on the 24^th.

  A few final bits; two Raven were blogging on the 30^th, and a Peregrine flew south on the same date, my first for a while. And to round things off, the winter population of Bullfinch has continued to be around all week, with at least three seen every day and a high count of six on both the 26^th and 28^th. Almost all the birds are males, which seems strange. 

-Jack Snipe

Species List:
Soil Hill: Pink-footed Goose, Canada Goose, Mallard, Eurasian Teal, Goosander, Grey Partridge, Common Pheasant, Red-legged Partridge, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Wood Pigeon, Common Moorhen, Northern Lapwing, Jack Snipe, Common Snipe, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, European Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Great Cormorant, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard, Little Owl, Tawny Owl, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Common Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Northern Raven, Eurasian Blue Tit, Great Tit, Eurasian Skylark, Long-tailed Tit, Goldcrest, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Mistle Thrush, Song Thrush, Redwing, Common Blackbird, Fieldfare, European Robin, European Stonechat, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Common Chaffinch, Brambling, Eurasian Bullfinch, European Greenfinch, Common Linnet, Lesser Redpoll, Red Crossbill, European Goldfinch, Eurasian Siskin, Common Reed Bunting, 

Soil Hill birding; updates from the week 17th October - 23rd October

  Its been quite a week on the Hill, with some days being very pleasant and producing incredible migration, while others have been awful with strong winds, rain and thick fog until late afternoon. This is the time of year when the weather can dictate the birding on offer, so it has been pleasing that the days which have been calmer have produced some of the best birding days I have ever had here.  

• The first day with notable passage was the 18^th, when Woodpigeons really started to get going with 1291 all heading south. Most of these birds went south within the first hour of light and seemed to die off after that. This is only a prelude to what was to follow for VizMig this week.  

• It is simply impossible to describe the scenes on Soil Hill on the 19^th this week. The first easterly winds of the autumn and fortunately it didn’t bring the mist and rain that they normally do. What it did bring though we masses and masses of thrushes. I headed up before first light and could already hear flocks of Redwings moving in the dark. Once the light cleared at around 07:30 I started counting as thousands of birds started passing through. With the torrent not slowing down until after lunch, I ended up staying until 12:30 watching flocks pile through. In the end I managed 12679 Redwing, with an additional 1035 Fieldfare and 812 Woodpigeon, as well as a small selection of the usual finches. Outstanding stuff, exactly the kind of day I had hoped for when I knew I would be here all October. 

• The 22^nd of October saw the wind switch back to southwesterly, and with no rain in the forecast it looked promising for VizMig. And so it turned out to be with big groups of thrushes, mostly Fieldfare, heading south from first light until 10:30. In total I managed 3308 Fieldfare with 934 Redwing mixed in for good measure. Woodpigeons were slightly down on what I expected, with ‘just’ 449 going south. Another very enjoyable days birding. 

-Redwing

-Fieldfare

-Woodpigeon

Among the throngs of migrants there were a few standout birds to enjoy as well, some real local rarities and others that are just special for here, including a patch tick…  

• Although it was long expected as a patch tick this autumn, it was nice to clinch my first Brambling on the 22^nd when a single flew south over the North Slope calling. Later a flock of seven also flew south but much more distant. This is my 121^st species for the patch! Fittingly, it was also my 100^th on Soil Hill this year.

• On the 19^th, just as I was finishing up the insane mornings VizMig, I picked up a Red Kite slowly drifting north, to the east of my VP. It came a little closer but was always high and continued to slowly move it’s way north. Remarkably, this is my first of the year here. Long overdue!

• On the 22^nd there was a nice surprise in the North Slope Tree-Line when I spotted a day-roosting Tawny Owl perched atop one of the fenceposts that runs down the slope. Its almost two years to the day since I first found this species roosting on the Hill, and I have only seen it one other time since, so to find it again on the nearly the same perch is quite the coincidence. 

• The final real notable species for the week was in the afternoon of the 23^rd when the high pitched calls alerted me to the presence of a flock of Long-tailed Tits. It was this time of year in 2020 when I also found this species here, when they lingered for just short of week. This time it was a flock of nine birds on the Ned Hill Track. Time will tell how long they will keep visiting the Hill for.  

-Brambling

-Red Kite

-Tawny Owl

-Long-tailed Tit

There were a few bits of Wildfowl this week, some on passage and others visiting the site itself. Although there were no huge numbers on passage, it’s always nice to see flocks on the move. 

• It’s been a long time coming, but the first Whooper Swans of the autumn finally passed south past Soil Hill this week. A group of 15 went south on the 19^th, passing down the Ogden Valley, with another small group of 8 on the 22^nd, which went out much further to the east over Bradford. 

• The 19^th was the only date this week where Pink-footed Geese were moving, with two small skeins totally just 91 birds heading northwest in the low cloud. 

• The NK Pond has hosted variable numbers of Teal during the week, with sightings every other day ranging from just three individuals to a personal record of 9 on the 22^nd.

-Whooper Swan

-Pink-footed Goose

-Eurasian Teal

  There was plenty of other good winter to be birding this week, even on days with poorer weather conditions. The poorer weather conditions produced a huge count of Common Snipe on the 20^th, when a passing ATV flushed a flock of 15 off the summit. Further walking produced another eight individuals bringing the total to 23! Another impressive count was on the 22^nd, when I totalled 15. My hunts for Jack Snipe have been successful for the most part, although no more than one individual at a time. Frustratingly though for most of the week it flushed before I was able to locate the bird with the thermal. That was until the 23^rd when one sat rather nicely and conspicuously, glowing in the thermal. The only other wader of note this week was a flock of six Golden Plover that flew north on the 19^th.

  Passerine migrants have been much reduced, as expected. Probably the last Chiffchaff of the year was present on the 17^th, and given that almost a week has passed since then, I think it is safe to say that this will indeed be the last of the year.  Goldcrests have been present almost daily but the best count of the week was just two on the 18^th. And finally, there have again been a number of Stonechat hanging around the Hill, with up to four being present almost every day, although they are mobile around the site.

   Throughout the week there were finches present in varying numbers, generally on VizMig but other times settled in the bushes feeding up. A Lesser Redpoll on the 21^st was the first I have ever seen on the deck here, surprising given how many I have heard and seen flying over. Siskins especially saw some nice totals on passage, with 29 on the 17^th and 28 on the 22^nd both being my best counts for this species here. Bullfinch have also been present daily, with the best count being four on the 22^nd. These were settled in the North Slope Tree-Line.

  The final note of the week was a flock of I estimated 500 Starlings on Perseverance Road on the 21^st, moving around in the fog in rather atmospheric conditions. 

-Jack Snipe

-Lesser Redpoll

-Starlings

Species List:
Soil Hill: Pink-footed Goose, Canada Goose, Whooper Swan, Mallard, Eurasian Teal, Goosander, Common Pheasant, Red-legged Partridge, Feral Pigeon, Stock Dove, Common Woodpigeon, Common Moorhen, European Golden Plover, Northern Lapwing, Jack Snipe, Common Snipe, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, European Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Cormorant, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Red Kite, Common Buzzard, Western Barn Owl, Little Owl, Tawny Owl, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Common Kestrel, Eurasian Magpie, Western Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Northern Raven, Coal Tit, Eurasian Blue Tit, Great Tit, Eurasian Skylark, Common Chiffchaff, Long-tailed Tit, Goldcrest, Eurasian Wren, Common Starling, Mistle Thrush, Song Thrush, Redwing, Common Blackbird, Fieldfare, European Robin, European Stonechat, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Common Chaffinch, Brambling, Eurasian Bullfinch, European Greenfinch, Common Linnet, Lesser Redpoll, European Goldfinch, Eurasian Siskin, Common Reed Bunting,