Although I had to delay the start this morning due to a downpour I finally got my late visit Breeding Bird Survey completed this morning.
I do two squares in one go now. I used to walk up to my nominated square at Blackshaw Head above the Upper Calder Valley so it took a fair long time before I started surveying. A few years ago though, the BTO said that if volunteers wished, they could survey an adjacent square if it made sense to do so, i.e. if they went through one to get to another. It makes the morning a little longer but provides twice the enjoyment.
This morning was more like an April morning with showers coming in every half hour or so. I'll have to invest in one of those gadgets that keeps your paper dry while writing on it (Drywrite or some such name I think). Meanwhile I'll keep opening and closing the clip-board cover to minimise the damp patches on the forms. I had shorts on today as it was mild, but I hadn't reckoned with the nettles! The long grass was wet too from the previous downpour so I had lovely wet feet and a few stings before I'd even started my survey. My wife asked why I didn't put my waterproof trousers on, as I could have taken them off after I'd got past the long grass and nettles - great idea, however she was still in bed when I set off so she didn't pass the idea on BEFORE the event.
There were several highlights this morning, starting with a Cuckoo calling in the first square at the top of Jumble Hole Clough. This was a first for my BBS. Then there was the usual host of Willow Warblers
singing in the wood, and then just over the stream I came across a small family group of Nuthatch - 2 adults feeding 4 fledglings. Their calls were very loud and one of them came down to the side of the foot path and fumbled about in the bracken and grass before managing to fly back up to a low branch.
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| Nuthatch fledgling |
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| Nuthatch fledgling |
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| Nuthatch fledgling |
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| Nuthatch fledgling |
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| This adult Nuthatch was more wary |
Walking into my second square, a Curlew took off from the field and 2 Lapwing were also put up by my entering their field and shouted at me all the way from the gate to the stile at the field top. As I went over the stile a third Lapwing joined the pair, probably a juvenile as it wasn't calling.
The remainder of the morning went as usual with common birds seen, though not as many as previous years. The worst outcome was that not a single Skylark was seen or heard. This is the second year of zero Skylarks up here - not good at all when there used to be so many when I first started doing the BBS in 1994. There always used to be Snipe to be seen and heard too, but I haven't come across one now for about 5 years in my original square
As I walked back home along the Rochdale Canal towpath which runs alongside the River Calder for a good way, I did what I always do and checked the river for Dipper. This morning there was a juvenile feeding.
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| juv. Dipper |
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| juv. Dipper |
Yesterday morning I saw an adult bird in the same spot:
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| Dipper |
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| Dipper |
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| guess what - Dipper |
The Canon 55-250 mm F4 zoom lens that I use has serious low light limitations. I'll invest in a better lens one of these years.
As I was almost home I heard a Great Spotted Woodpecker and found it, calling from a branch near the top of the wood. I got the bins onto it and just before it flew off I saw a Treecreeper under the same branch. It was raining as I got home but I didn't care - a great morning's walking and birding :)
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