BBS at Blackshaw Head

Time for my early Breeding Bird Survey visit today. I've delayed it by over a week to allow for the late start to Spring hereabouts but even so I'm still a little concerned that things may not be as far along as I'd like. I now have two BBS squares to cover as the BTO changed their stance a few years ago in that usually squares are allocated randomly, but for relatively remote squares which entail a fair walk to start off they said that adjoining squares could also be covered. This has two advantages - a) they get more squares covered and b) surveyors can use their time more efficiently. So I now cover a square immediately south of the one I've been doing for 20 years - double enjoyment!

An early start meant that although the sun was shining, there was a distinct nip in the air, so I put on my liner gloves to ensure I could write when I needed to. Of course once I'd done the easy bit of my 3 mile walk to start the first square and started going back uphill, things got a bit warmer so the gloves came off pretty sharpish.

A trio of Roe Deer were in the woods and moved off at a pace when I approached. Getting a good view of them through the trees and branches was not easy and the best I could do was this photo as they paused to ensure I was indeed still coming towards them:

 Half a mile further up and out of the woods into the fields and farmland, a buck ran off through the field. It stood and watched me for a second or two then ran off barking.

Birds were singing all round and a Blackbird with a particularly full beak of nesting material was an amusing sight -

 Looking backwards over the valley towards home, Stoodley Pike was looking splendid in the morning sun -

Willow Warblers are usually here in good numbers so it was pleasing to hear them singing and it seemed my fears that Spring still hadn't arrived were unfounded.

Willow Warbler

Willow Warbler (same bird)

Down into the clough still accompanied by Willow Warbler song along with a few Dunnocks and Great Tits and I hoped to see a Dipper on the stream. The water level is very much down on usual levels but there is still a strong flow so no worries about a drought, as if that would be a worry after the 12 months we've just endured with almost constant heavy rainfall that left the ground saturated, and it still is pretty heavy underfoot but it is recovering now and drying out gradually.

Up the other side of the clough and I left the first half of my first square behind and started the first leg of my original square still in bright sunshine and rising temperatures. A cool breeze was blowing though to remind me that I was still in West Yorkshire and not in the hills of a Mediterranean country.

Meadow Pipits started appearing on cue and a nice find was a Wheatear. This is only my second record of Wheatear in this square so I was well pleased with that.

Wheatear

Wheatear (same bird as above)

I could hear Red Grouse with their "goback goback" calls from the moor just to the south west of me and a Curlew was also singing over there. The song of the Curlew on a sunny Spring morning with blue skies above is truly one of the joys of life and I went on my way heartened by the sights and sounds of wildlife here in the Pennines. A pair of Lapwing were seeing off a Crow that was at least a field away from their usual nesting location.

I reached the halfway point of my surveys and sat down for a rest and a drink, watching a lady tending her horses over in the field on the other side of the stream by the Pennine Way. As I watched a Great spotted Woodpecker came flying out of the wood and landed in a tree just in front of me, then it moved off into a dead tree by a derelict barn. I exected it to start looking for food and hopefully add another great sound to the morning, that of a woodpecker drumming, but unluckily it didn't and it flew off back into the wood.

As I sat there it would be good to say the morning was undisturbed by sounds of civilisation but that wasn't true. A large wind turbine has been erected by a local up on the hill top and although I was quite a way from it I could hear the whooshing sound of the blades. There are a few houses down here and I'd be well miffed if my peace and tranquility was broken by this noise. What do I think of wind turbines? Apart from people jumping on the bandwagon to get grants and make money from over-subsidised, inefficient, noisy, ugly and wildlife unfriendly monstrosities I think they are frankly a waste of time and space.

I set off on the homeward journey and the second part of my second square by walking up (down I guess as it's south?) the Pennine Way. Two Curlew took off from the field as I walked up and thankfully they flew away from the turbine. Research reports that Curlew are one of the species that are most sensitive to disturbance from wind turbines, being impacted up to 600 metres from them. Curlew don't breed in the fields here as the grass is too short so at least these birds won't be displaced from their breeding grounds by this turbine.

A pair of Pied Wagtails were catching insects on the walls, another addition to the mounting species list for the survey:

Pied Wagtail

I was approaching the top of the hill and the highest point of my walk when I saw a group of sheep and their lambs, with Stoodley Pike in the background this looked like an unmissable photo:

Sheep and Stoodley Pike

With the combination of walking and the sun getting higher in the sky I was overheating a little, so off came the coat - unheard of luxury this year...I'll be getting my shorts out next! Over the road and onto the last stretch of the square and a Small Tortoiseshell no less, the first of 4 I was to see on the remainder of my walk:

Small Tortoiseshell butterfly

The one real disappointment of the morning was that there were Skylarks. This section of the BBS square used to be ringing with Skylark song when I started doing the surveys all those years ago but numbers have tumbled until last year there was just one and this year none (yet). I still have the late survey to make in June so there is hope.  Down into Jumble Hole Clough and the expected Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs appeared. Nuthatch and Coal Tit were added too, and a Blackcap singing away.

The stream is looking a little sad and quiet but offerred another good photo with a slow shutter speed:

I was almost done now and was approaching the last section of my second square - a Song Thrush seen at long last. Phew, I was getting worried that they'd disppeared.

The last two species added were Mallard and Grey Wagtail on the River Calder as I finished. By chance I met a friend of mine on the bridge over the river and we had a long chat about wildlife, birds and life in general. A grand way to finish the walk, although I still had a mile or two before I got home. Still, the weather was fine and I could look forward to a nice cup of tea.