Birds of many Feathers

Birds of many feathers flock together in the hills and dales around Hebden Bridge                                                                                                                                   

 

Whether you’re a serious birdwatcher or simply enjoy observing garden birds, there’s a wealth of birdlife in the hills and dales around Hebden Bridge. Because of its hilltop location, Elmet Farmhouse is the perfect place for birdwatching. Surrounded by meadows, with woods and rivers in the valley below and open moorland on the uplands above, there’s an unusually diverse array of species in close proximity.

From golden plovers, lapwings and curlews up on ‘the tops’, to kestrels, swallows and pheasants in the fields, to woodpeckers, tawny owls and treecreepers in the woods and herons, dippers and grey wagtails by the river, there’s great scope for bird-watching in the Upper Calder Valley. These photos record some of the birds we’ve encountered locally in the last few years.

Blue Tit

Barn Owl

Black-headed Gull

Blackbird

Buzzard

Canada Goose

Chaffinch

Chiffchaff

Coal Tit

Curlew

Dipper

Dunnock

Fieldfare

Gadwall Duck

Goldcrest

Golden Plover

Goldfinch

Goosander

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Great Tit

Green Woodpecker

Greenfinch

Grey Heron

Grey Wagtail

Greylag Goose

Guinea Fowl

Herring Gull

House Sparrow

Jackdaw

Jay

Kestrel

Lapwing

Linnet

Little Owl

Long-Tailed Tit

Mallard Ducks

Meadow Pipit

Mistle Thrush

Northern Wheatear

Oystercatcher

Parakeet

Peacock

Pheasant

Pied Wagtail

Raven

Red Grouse

Redpoll

Redshank

Redwing

Reed Bunting

Ring Ouzel

         

Robin

Rook

Sandpiper

Short-Eared Owl

Siskin

Skylark

Snipe

Song Thrush

Starling

Swallow

Tawny Owl

Treecreeper

Tufted Duck

Willow Warbler

Wren

For up to date news about sightings by keen local birdwatchers, visit Calderdale Birds

© Photos copyright Lesley Jackson and Ian Fishwick

Brimham Rocks

Rocking out at Brimham

The weird and wonderful rock formations at Brimham Rocks are one of the geological marvels of Yorkshire. Sculpted by the elements over hundreds of millions of years, they loom up out of the heather moorland high up above Nidderdale near Pateley Bridge.

Defying gravity, these monumental sandstone forms were once thought to man-made, so curious and unlikely are their shapes. But their extraordinary sculptural forms are an entirely natural phenomenon, the result of abrasion and erosion by wind, rain and ice.

Dotted in clusters over 400 acres, it takes several hours to see all rocks – and longer if you want to climb up on top or explore their nooks and crannies. Each rock is different in character and they completely change in shape when viewed from different angles.

A firm favourite with children, a challenge for climbers and a delight for naturalists, Brimham Rocks is managed by the National Trust and provides a great day out from Elmet Farmhouse. Geologists will be in seventh heaven and artists and photographers will be inspired.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/brimham-rocks

Text and photographs copyright Lesley Jackson