Low Moor In Dodgy Conditions

Didn’t expect Black Ice to be a threat anywhere below the dizzy heights of Queensbury. Silly me. I nearly went for a 3 hour ambulance wait down Cemetery Rd and a good portion of Harold Park was coated too.

Just Gulls, Coots & Moorhens on the lake so I almost crawled along to Park Dam where the going underfoot was considerably safer.

The Great White Egret was the first bird I saw 😛. It flew across to forage among the bank below the gardens where a Grey Heron was lurking.

 4 Cormorant, 10 Mute Swan, more Coot & 1 GC Grebe.

22 Tufted Duck were spotted but not a single Goosander.

3 Greylag & c80 Canada were in their favoured field.

Ogden Water NLFFB

A really bright cold day. After a most disappointing start to 2025 I hereby declare this venue as No Longer Fit For Birdwatching ☹️.

Mixenden Res held hundred of gulls. The majority were the usual smaller species but a fair few LBBG & Herring were knocking around.

As I left a Cormorant with huge white thigh patches, a white neck and large white breast and belly flew over.

A Short Annual Review Moan

No point in going into detail about missing Tree Pipit or Wood Warbler this year. To put 2024 truly into perspective my records confirm what I suspected…

I couldn’t even tick Goldcrest nor Golden Plover! 😢.

Low Moor Cold Windy Birding

Visibility good on a dry morning. Harold Park was packed with loads of gulls with a fair few larger ones among the BHG swathes. Nothing else besides the Moorhens and Coots so I offed it over to Park Dam.

The wind didn’t seem to bother the birds here and it was quite busy. A dead large gull was belly up but I could just about make it out as a sub adult phase Herring that had only met its demise recently. Overhead power cables seemed the likely cause 🤔.

The Great White Egret was busy fishing in the dense foliage corner where it likes to perch no pun intended. A Grey Heron was on the bank near the houses.

6 Goosander, 5 Tufted Duck, 9 Mute Swan & a Cormorant.

Soil Hill To Mixenden

I had Low Moor in mind this am but decided to try more local instead.  I will be considering a visit to a Psychiatrist in the new year 😫. It was appalling; a beautiful day but hardly any birds.

A few gulls and caawvids around Soil Hell. Ogden was dire: a distinct lack of arboreal avians stood out. Plenty of small gulls on the water plus the f Goosander.

I fared better on the stretch to Mixenden Res 🙂. A Barn Owl was showing well as it absorbed the suns rays. A Raven was noisy for a short spell.

Mixenden had Uggins of gulls including good numbers of the larger species.

Along with a Cormorant was a Great Crested Grebe 😊.

Low Moor Dams

Harold Park lake wasn’t up to much - 1 Tufted, the usual residents and a good number of gulls including Herring & LBBG.

So I left after a short session and headed across to Park Dam.

The joint was 🎸 rocking in comparison 🤠. The Great White Egret was initially perched in a distant tree but in true Xmas spirit it decided to fly across the water and pose for me.

2 Grey Heron, 5 each Cormorant & Goosander, 1 GCG & the 9 Mute Swan.

Tufted Duck have now increased to 13 birds. 

I didn’t have time to count the Canadas & Greylags in the Royds Hall field.

Saturday Walking In Wind

I couldn’t face getting any good birds today so I braved the wind and traipsed round Ogden Water. Proud to say this was a master stroke as apart from a slip up when I saw a dozen gulls on the water there was plenty of nothing to see whatsoever 😏.