It's all Gone Quiet...

...at the nature reserve at Bretton Lakes. The birds have given up singing (barring the odd Robin and Wren) signalling the end of another breeding season.

This was my first visit for over a month. I didn't expect to see much so I decided to pay a brief visit to the hide before moving on to the inlet where I saw the four young Kingfishers on my last visit.

As expected there was nothing much showing on the lake but there was one expeption, the Little Grebes have returned at last. They didn't come close though so I had to make do with this long distance shot.

Young Coot.

One of the resident Great Crested Grebes swam quite close to the hide.

And then it was off to watch the young Kingfishers. I took up position in what's becoming my usual spot and waited. I once heard a saying that, 'It takes the woods half an hour to forget you are there' - this turned out to be true last time as the Kingfishers arrived right on cue.

No such luck this time though. How dare they stand me up?

I was on the verge of moving on when something flew in low and landed not twenty feet away on one of the fallen trees.

It wasn't a Kingfisher but the even more elusive (for me at least) Grey Wagtail.

It stayed around for a few minutes and I thought that was that. But then a few minutes later it returned with what I at first thought must be it's partner. They both looked a bit scruffy and I put this down to the toils of rearing the young. But after I returned home and uploaded the pictures I changed my mind. I reckon they are juveniles. They did look a bit on the small side and the scruffy feathers could be 'cos they aren't fully grown yet? Their breast feathers should have more yellow? Either way I was well pleased by their appearance. They stayed for quite a while too!

I'm not sure what it has caught but it did swallow it after thinking about it for a few moments.

When I headed home, well chuffed with the Wagtails I was meandering over a field when a Hare sprung up right in front of me and legged it, heading over a hill on the horizon. I threw the tripod onto it's feet and managed to fire off a few shots just before it dissapeared over the brow.

Even though he's moving away at around 40 mph his eye seems to be looking back at me!

River Calder

I'm still without transport so I was unable to take advantage of the fine weather last weekend. I did have a look through last years photos to see if there was anything worth posting though. This may be of interest to anyone who knows the area where I live.

Anyone from Dewsbury, West Yorkshire who is of the same generation (or older) than myself would probably laugh out loud if you suggested that the River Calder and it's banks had become a bit of a nature reserve.

When I was growing up in the 60's and 70's the stretch of the river that runs through my home town was used as a playground by myself and plenty of other kids, but it was a distinctly unhealthy place to be. For over 100 years the local textile and chemical industries had been discharging their waste into the river. The result being that a river which was once home to large numbers of salmon and many other fish became a lifeless, dirty, smelly mess!

Not any more though. Due to anti-pollution laws and the demise of most of the local mills and factories that used to pour their waste into the river, the fish have returned. Otters have been seen along some stretches and the bird life that lives along it's banks now includes King Fishers, Grey Heron and Grey Wagtails to name but a few.

Last June I managed to get some photos of some of the birdlife. There was little cover so I couldn't get close enough for any really decent shots but here are a few examples of what I saw.

Long-Tailed Tit.

A scruffy looking Common Whitethroat. Too busy feeding the young to bother about appearances?

Grey Wagtail. This was taken on the weir next to Island View. I was so surprised to see this land in front of me that I almost forgot to take a picture!

Black Headed Gull flying above the same weir.

Yellowhammer - a pair were nesting alongside the Calder & and Hebble Navigation, a canal which runs parallel to the Calder for a short distance.

I'll be back at the start of the coming spring to see what the new breeding season brings.