A bright sunny morning , 2 degrees on the car as I set off to Waintstalls.
Parking up near the old Delvers pub I legged it down the road passing all the houses and after 150 yds I took a step style on the right.
This path led me straight as a die (excluding bog hop) to the corner of the lower of the 2 dams.
I had a couple of target 'ticks' in mind - Reed Bunting (always difficult for me to find) and Red Grouse (getting scarce?).
Arriving at the small stand of conifers I heard a faint call and I was fortunate to trace the call coming from a Reed Bunting, low down in a tree - tick.
Scanning the open moor from here I chanced upon a Red Grouse - tick - things are going well.
I walked the path next to the lower dam then climbed to walk along the upper dam and then along the top of the lower dam, back to the 'start'.
I did this walk 2 or 3 times during my 4 hours or so birding here.
The north wind blowing over the lower dam was pretty evil today but some birds were able to get some shelter on the far side.
I sat on a sheltered grassy tuft to eat my butties.
I though I'd developed sudden dandruff as small white flakes floated down landing on my shoulders - these fine snow flakes amounted to nowt much really.
After lunch I was going to call it a day but I was hoping for a Redshank to appear so I started out on one more circuit.
Very soon a Redshank called and I picked out two Redshank zooming along from the wind turbine area towards the lower dam.
Being a clever clogs I thought I'd wait and get an awesome photo once they landed.
The Redshank had other ideas as they landed for a second and left -gone - doh!
I stood there scratching me bonce like Stan Laurel as I said "Oh deary deary me [NOT]".
Anyway I decided to hang about some more and my patience was rewarded when I picked up a calling Redshank coming from the South and I got a couple of poor photos. My 3rd tick today,
2 Large Herring Gulls were mobbing a Third Large Gull and I would have bet the farm that the 3rd Large Gull was a Gt. Black-backed but when they all landed the 3rd Gull morphed into a Lesser Black-backed Gull - given away by the yellow legs.
Today was a really, really enjoyable birding outing in a very picturesque setting (to me anyway).
The cold weather helping to keep me moving!
Birds:-
2 Redshank.
1 Meadow Pipit!
2 Skylark.
7 Curlew.
c40 Lapwing.
5 Red Grouse (1 seen, 4 heard).
Reed Bunting.
c70 Canada Geese.
2 Oystercatcher.
Moorhen.
10 Greylag Geese.
3 Chaffinch.
2 Stock Dove.
Pied Wagtail.
3 Crows.
4 Mallard.
Wren.
2 Black Headed Gull.
3 Common Gull.
7 Lesser Black-backed Gull.
9 Herring Gull.
8 Starlings.
1 Magpie.
10 Woodpigeon.
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