Welcome

Welcome to the Blog of the Bradford Ornithological Group (BOG). Here you will find information about the latest sightings, an archive of information and a gallery photos of the birds of this area of West Yorkshire, England. We are an active group dedicated to the study and conservation of birds within this region which is situated amongst the Pennines of Northern England.

Send your recent sightings and photographs to us at this address: recorder@bradfordbirding.org Please add us to your contacts.


Please note that all images remain the property of the photographer.

SWIFTs IN AIREDALE AND WHARFEDALE - TELL US IF THEY ARE BREEDING IN YOUR AREA.

CONTACT - recorder@bradfordbirding.org

Saturday 30 May 2020

Saturday 30th May 2020

Oats Royd, Queensbury
Yellowhammer, first seen on the 27th, remains in the area and was still singing this morning.
Chris King

Fly Flatts (Warley Moor Reservoir)
Breeding success - a pair of Ringed Plover have produced two chicks! First record since 2003.

Ringed Plover and chick at Fly Flatts       photo: Brian Sumner
Shipley Glen
Two Great Spotted Woodpecker nests were attended by four adults, at one nest a single juvenile was hanging out, calling and showing every sign it was ready to leave.  
The 1st nest site

Photos: Steve Meredith

The 2nd nest site
photo: Keith Allen

On the Glen Road, two Common Whitethroats were singing as were numerous Willow Warblers and three Reed Buntings.  At Brackenhall a post-breeding flock of adults and juvenile Starlings had arrived to feed in the fields.  
Paul King

Low Wood, Riddlesden
Pied Flycatcher, Spotted Flycatcher (possibly the same bird from the golf course - it's not too far away.)  Young blackbirds, blue tits and tree creepers.  Young woodpeckers starting to stick their heads out of their nest holes now.  In the fields next to Low Wood five goose families were grazing: two greylag families, one canada goose family, one farmyard goose with goslings and a goose family of mixed heritage - a greylag and a bar headed goose and offspring.

Aire River (Utley to Silsden): 4 reed bunting, 5 lesser redpolls, 3 willow warblers, 2 oyster catchers, 2 curlew, 2 common sandpiper, 34 sand martins in all across 2 colonies (possibly three), 5 swallow, 3 garden warbler, 4 whitethroat.

In total 49 species seen throughout the Aire Valley (50 including the Bar headed goose)
Josh Selfe
Reeve's Pheasant                        photo: Josh Selfe
Glovershaw
Goldfinch      photo: Steve Meredith

Oakenshaw Country Park
A pair of breeding Kingfishers seen regularly on a pond inlet.
Martyn Priestley

Walsh Lane/Heights Lane, Eldwick
Evening Walk - Breeding birds:  Moorhen with two chicks, a Mallard with five chicks and a pair of Great Tits with three chicks.  Singing Blackcap, Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff.  Two Grey Heron, a small flock of Long-tailed Tit, Pied Wagtails and Swifts.  Also small groups of gulls including Lesser Black-backed, Herring and Black-headed.
Phil Matthews

Friday 29 May 2020

Friday 29th May 2020

Spotted Flycatcher
A female Spotted Flycatcher comfortably sitting on her nest                 photo: Roger Nelson

Fly Flatts (Warley Moor Reservoir)
Waders on the reservoir - Two Snipe, four Dunlin, five Ringed Plover, two Oystercatcher, seven Common Sandpiper and four Redshank.
Common Snipe at Fly Flatts
Report and photo:  Brian Sumner               see more on Brian's blog

Glorious Glovershaw in spring - A selection of photos by Phil Matthews taken on 27th May.





Breeding birds: Curlew, Meadow Pipit, Willow Warbler, Little Owl, Common Whitethroat
photos: Phil Matthews
Harden Moor
A Tawny Owl on Harden Moor.  There was also a pair of Common Whitethroats feeding young.
Alan Buckley

Knotford Nook
A pair of Oystercatcher with two chicks, a Wren with six recently fledged young, up to three pairs of Tufted Duck with one pair having what appeared to be four well-grown young and a pair of Great Crested Grebes.
Phil Matthews



Thursday 28 May 2020

Thursday 28th May 2020

Strid Woods
Three pairs of Pied Flycatcher between the Strid and the shelter.  A Garden Warbler and a Great Spotted Woodpecker.
Storiths
A breeding Garden Warbler with food.  The 2019 Report states that there was no evidence of breeding in this area.  
Report and Photos by Brian Vickers

Upper Wharfedale - Hazlewood
A set of photos from Roger Nelson depicting the breeding season around Hazlewood and Bolton Abbey.







Birds depicted - Greylag Geese family, Green Woodpecker, juvenile Blackcap, Curlew, female Curlew on nest, Oystercatchers, Redstart and Spotted Flycatcher.    All photos by Roger Nelson.

Utley
Swifts have been seen nesting in a house on Skipton Road, Utley.
Keighley Golf Course - Spotted Flycatcher
Josh Selfe

House Sparrow
Looks like a good breeding year for the House Sparrow.
House Sparrows                  photo: Roger Wilkinson

Wednesday 27 May 2020

Wednesday 27th May 2020

Apperley Bridge
A female Gadwall with 10 chicks on the river underneath the old bridge.  A rarity in the BOG area.
Damian Pearson

Oats Royd, Queensbury
A male Yellowhammer, high above the Parkinson & Spencer wind turbine.
David Sutcliffe

Calverley (Shell Lane)
A singing Lesser Whitethroat
Keith Moir

Ilkley to Addingham - Mandarin, female Goosander with just one duckling, Grey Wagtail, Sand Martin colony,
Ben Rhydding Nature Reserve - 2 Kingfisher, 2 Garden Warbler, Willow Warblers & Blackcaps, Common Sandpiper
Chuck Butler

Stockbridge - singing Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler, 2 Reed Warbler, Reed Bunting, 8 Canada Geese with 30 goslings.
Shaun Radcliffe




From top to bottom:   Goosander (female) in Myrtle Park,  Long-tailed Tit,  Pied Flycatcher and Sand Martin colony in the Washburn Valley and juvenile Goosanders at rest in Myrtle Park.       
Photos and Report by Phil Matthews
Glovershaw
morning - Most of the very active Meadow Pipits seen, were carrying food.  Two Common Whitethroats were singing around their territory, one by the 'gallops' and the other at the cabins.   Over 10 Willow Warblers, a Red Kite and a Kestrel.
Paul King
evening - Common Whitethroat with food, House Martin, Swifts, two Red Kites, a Kestrel and a Hobby hunting over the moor.
Phil Matthews

Greengates - Carr Beck West Wood
A juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker            photo: Sarah Bloomfield


Monday 25 May 2020

Monday 25th May 2020

Stockbridge Nature Reserve



Top to bottom:  Reed Warbler, Sedge Warbler and Grey Heron              photos: Keith Allen

Otley Wetland Nature Reserve
On the Reserve a pair of Common Terns, two pairs of Great Crested Grebes and other breeding birds included Willow Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Reed Warbler, Garden Warbler, Long-tailed Tits and Reed Buntings.
Brian Vickers

Utley to Silsden - along the river and in the fields on the northern bank
There are two active Sand Martin colonies, one of 20+ birds and the other of eight.  At another part of the river, with a lot of Sand Martin action, there was no sign of a colony.  35 Sand Martins in total and 44 different species birds along the stretch, these included a Common Sandpiper, six Curlew, three Oystercatchers, three Lapwings, four Lesser Redpoll, five Reed Buntings, four Grey Wagtails, 14 Swallows and a pair of Kingfishers.  The warblers included nine Blackcaps and a Garden Warbler.   The canal at Low Wood was swarming with tadpoles and a Roe Deer was running along the Golf Course road.
Josh Selfe

Shipley Glen

Two pairs of Great Spotted Woodpeckers are continuing to feed at their nest holes.  A Green Woodpecker flew over the Glen and a pair of adult Nuthatch were feeding their fledged young in the oak trees. Earlier in the day a juvenile Oystercatcher flew over Brackenhall.
Paul King

Sunday 24 May 2020

Sunday 24 May 2020

Stockbridge walk - 2 Sedge Warbler, single Reed Warbler, Blackcap, Willow Warbler, family of LTT, Cormorant flyover.
Shaun Radcliffe

Hewenden Reservoir
Common Whitethroat
Norr Hill, Wilsden
Four breeding Lapwings, several Skylarks and a Curlew.
Thomas Simcock

Saturday 23rd May 2020

Strid Wood, Wharfedale
A  good range of birds including a Wood Warbler near the Strid, breeding Pied Flycatchers and a Redstart by the aquaduct.  Along the river, a couple of Redshank, four Oystercatchers, Grey Wagtails with juveniles, a Sand Martin colony and Mandarin Ducks.  All this, in addition to hirundines over the river and Willow Warblers and Chiffchaff in full song.
Steve Meredith






Pied Flycatcher (male), juvenile Grey Wagtail, female Pied Wagtail, Red Kite and a male Redstart.
Report and photos: Steve Meredith

Keighley Golf Course
Spotted Flycatcher remains in the area.
Josh Selfe

Manningham Park, Bradford
An update on the seven Coot nests on Manningham Park Lake.  Today I’ve logged two sets of chicks, being six in all.   All the other 5 nests continue to be occupied with the parent birds incubating eggs.  The four moorhen chicks are still present with no sign of either the ducklings or goslings as noted 2 weeks ago.

As if to tease a few bird watchers – a bright red pigeon has caused a bit of a flutter on our local on-line NextDoor site recent days. The bird was captured on camera amongst a flock of feral pigeons in Manningham Park and an account posted on May 19th. The most recent sighting was yesterday by a neighbour when she saw it at Manningham Mills.  There’s been much speculation as to whether it’s been dyed for a wedding or other celebration – with someone saying they’d come across a fad in Holland for dying pigeons the colours of the rainbow.  

Not very humane treatment for an avian creature. It’d be interesting to know if it pitches up anywhere else in Bradford.
Joy Leach

Friday 22 May 2020

Friday 22nd May 2020

Fly Flatts (Warley Moor Reservoir)
Breeding Redshank now with four chicks.
Brian Sumner              see Brian's Blog for more information

Burley in Wharfedale, Friday 22nd May

Male Lesser Whitethroat singing, and briefly seen on Great Pasture Lane near Greenholme Mills. Probably same bird as I reported for 18th May, as only about 100m distant from where heard on that occasion.
A female Great Spotted Woodpecker visits her nest hole           
photo: Mike Bloomfield

A male Mandarin Duck on the River Wharfe at Ben Rhydding Gravel Pits Nature Reserve   
photo: Mike Bloomfield

Willow Warbler                        photo: Keith Allen
A breeding Curlew at Upper Barden                   photo: Keith Allen




Thursday 21 May 2020

Thursday 21st May 2020

Nan Scar Clough, Oxenhope
The Wood warbler seen earlier in the week, remains at Nan Scar.
Steve Parkes

Pennithorn, Baildon
Many Reed Buntings in song, seven males counted on the Sconce side of the hill, whilst a Cuckoo was heard towards Sconce Lane.  A pair of Linnets, a singing Common Whitethroat and a couple of Meadow Pipits were noted carrying food to their nest sites.
Paul King

Stainburn Forest
9pm  -  A single Nightjar was churring in a large clearing of forest.
Also - Up to four Woodcocks, a distant Tawny Owl in flight, three Great Spotted Woodpeckers and two Tree Pipits flushed off the deck.
John Armstrong

Wednesday 20 May 2020

Wednesday 20th May 2020

Ravens
A family of six (adults and juveniles) seen heading across Hawksworth heading towards Baildon at 6.30am.
Roger Wilkinson

Hazlewood, Storiths
Birds seen in the area include a Raven, a newly arrived Spotted Flycatcher, a Redstart, Cuckoo, a Little Owl and a breeding pair of Stock Dove.




top to bottom: Raven, Green Woodpecker, Grey Wagtail, Little Owl and male Mandarin

Other activity in the Storiths area included breeding Canada Geese and a Red Grouse chick.
Report and images from Roger Nelson

Shipley Glen
Adult birds still feeding at two Great Spotted Woodpecker nest sites.  A post-breeding flock of Long-tailed Tits, a pair of Stock Doves, a couple of Jays, two pairs of Blackcap and on the Glen Road a Common Whitethroat.
Paul King

Ravenroyd, Bingley - watched a Treecreeper darting out to catch flies.
Shaun Radcliffe

Keighley to Silsden
A single Bar-headed Goose has been seen between these locations during the past two weeks.
Josh Selfe

Haworth
A breeding pair of Common Whitethroat seen carrying food.
Howard Creber

Baildon
Two Swifts over the garden, four to five seen last week.  Family of Long-tailed Tits fledged and then predated.

Bierley, Bradford
Red Kite over this urban area.
Steve Parkes