In December 2010 a pair of Chestnut Teal spent two days at the fisherman’s pond at Toad Holes beck. I photographed the pair as they were escapees possibly from a wildlife collection. The duck originates from southern Australia but is…
Kingfisher and a surprise at Harold Park…
On Tuesday there was a kingfisher at Toad Holes beck giving excellent views as it sat out in the open…however, no camera! So today I went down with the camera and guess what the Kingfisher was still there but there…
Wildfowl safety comes first…
On Saturday myself and other members of the Low Moor & Oakenshaw conservation group held our monthly work day. However, there was a rather a compassionate flavour to work…Let me explain. The Woodlands country park at Oakenshaw has an island…
I have to be careful what I wish for..But…
Yes it certainly is a true saying. But I went out today the sun was shining and Blue tits were singing, two Robins were showing early signs of courtship and the woodland bulbs our group planted in October were nearly…
Christmas birdwatch, sightings update and seasonal greetings…
As I write this blog the big day is nearly here and at last I managed to do a Christmas birdwatch in our recording area. The morning started off well with a Mute Swan (probably a local bird from Harold…
Migration trends of three Finch species passing through Low Moor Bradford…
I have been studying diurnal migration at Caldene fields for many years and it is interesting to note how the population trends of some finch fluctuate year by year. I thought I would look specifically at three common finches the…
Kingfisher alert…
Just received an email from Andrew who was walking in Toad Holes Beck on 23/11/18 when he saw a Kingfisher sitting amongst the Reedmace at the middle pond. Andrew watched the bird for a good 30 minutes. Fingers crossed this…
Visible migration comes to an end…
Did an hours visible migration today and I think it is fairly safe to say that the main autumn migration is now over. I’m sure there will be a few late staggers or cold weather movements but no main arrivals…..But…
Workday and recent sightings
On Saturday we had another workday which was well attended. The task was to clear the Toad Holes Beck entrance at Furnace Road and to remove old hedge cuttings from Furnace Road. Initially the task looked like we would never…
Birstall Scout group meeting…
Yesterday I attended at the Birstall Scout groups meeting and gave a presentation to twenty 8 to 10 years old scouts on ‘ The importance of Insects ‘ I took along a moth trap, a Bee nesting box, observation vessels and…
