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Burnley Hurstwood.
Saturday 22 June 2019. 10:00 - 15:45.
Weather Overcast becoming warm and sunny.
Party of 5.
It was overcast as we set off along the “Burnley way”, where we were greeted with a “Have you seen anything good yet?” “Not much so far!” came the reply, “as we’ve only just left the car park!”. He smiled and as we engaged with him about the splendour of the 16th century Hurstwood Hall and it’s surrounding buildings, he produced a picture of a Silver Pheasant seen from his nearby garden, it would be good to see one of those we thought as we headed off through the courtyard and continued on our way. Lady luck wasn’t with us though as we only heard a pheasant calling further along the path.
Winding our way through the wood, Chaffinch, Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs were still singing their song. When we reached the moorland clearing a Heron crossed the skyline with Skylark and Meadow Pipit surrounding us. Heading up the path we surprised a family party of half a dozen Mistle Thrush out of a copse, we went on to see several more along the way. Not bad for a bird now on the red list. Heading through a flowered meadow there were Painted Lady and Orange Tipped butterfly on the wing. Thistles a metre high stood out amongst Tormentil and Hedge bedstraw and which gave a base colour throughout and lining most of the pathway when we got through the meadow. As we travelled towards Shedden Clough there was a brilliant wall of colour given by masses of rhododendron bushes of various colours which were frequented by Redpoll, Robin and Blackbird. We enjoyed our lunch in view of the rhododendrons whilst sitting by Cant Clough beck.
Leaving the view behind us we tracked on up to Cant Clough Reservoir seeing a Sparrowhawk speeding high across the Reservoir swooping on feeding corvids who gave chase once they’d got their wits about them but she was far too quick and agile to be caught flying up above them in the blink of an eye. A common sandpiper managed to avoid detection until we reached the far side of the Reservoir given away by its call with a pied wagtail feeding its young. The path along the Reservoir also gave us several Small Heath butterflies after a little scrutinising.
With Hurstwood Reservoir before us, we saw a flock of Goosander on the water before they dispersed to the far end out of the way of the many walkers taking advantage of the glorious afternoon sunshine.
Looking over the wall of the Reservoir there was ‘fox and cubs’ one of several hawkweeds giving a wave of colour to the grey concrete shoreline.
Saturday 22 June 2019. 10:00 - 15:45.
Weather Overcast becoming warm and sunny.
Party of 5.
It was overcast as we set off along the “Burnley way”, where we were greeted with a “Have you seen anything good yet?” “Not much so far!” came the reply, “as we’ve only just left the car park!”. He smiled and as we engaged with him about the splendour of the 16th century Hurstwood Hall and it’s surrounding buildings, he produced a picture of a Silver Pheasant seen from his nearby garden, it would be good to see one of those we thought as we headed off through the courtyard and continued on our way. Lady luck wasn’t with us though as we only heard a pheasant calling further along the path.
Winding our way through the wood, Chaffinch, Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs were still singing their song. When we reached the moorland clearing a Heron crossed the skyline with Skylark and Meadow Pipit surrounding us. Heading up the path we surprised a family party of half a dozen Mistle Thrush out of a copse, we went on to see several more along the way. Not bad for a bird now on the red list. Heading through a flowered meadow there were Painted Lady and Orange Tipped butterfly on the wing. Thistles a metre high stood out amongst Tormentil and Hedge bedstraw and which gave a base colour throughout and lining most of the pathway when we got through the meadow. As we travelled towards Shedden Clough there was a brilliant wall of colour given by masses of rhododendron bushes of various colours which were frequented by Redpoll, Robin and Blackbird. We enjoyed our lunch in view of the rhododendrons whilst sitting by Cant Clough beck.
Leaving the view behind us we tracked on up to Cant Clough Reservoir seeing a Sparrowhawk speeding high across the Reservoir swooping on feeding corvids who gave chase once they’d got their wits about them but she was far too quick and agile to be caught flying up above them in the blink of an eye. A common sandpiper managed to avoid detection until we reached the far side of the Reservoir given away by its call with a pied wagtail feeding its young. The path along the Reservoir also gave us several Small Heath butterflies after a little scrutinising.
With Hurstwood Reservoir before us, we saw a flock of Goosander on the water before they dispersed to the far end out of the way of the many walkers taking advantage of the glorious afternoon sunshine.
Looking over the wall of the Reservoir there was ‘fox and cubs’ one of several hawkweeds giving a wave of colour to the grey concrete shoreline.
| Canada Goose 80+ C Greylag Goose 4 H Goosander 7f Juv H Pheasant h Grey Heron Kestrel m Sparrowhawk f Oystercatcher 4+ C Com Sandpiper 1 C Curlew Lapwing Swallow Black Hd Gull Lesser Black Backed Gull Wood pigeon Carrion Crow Jackdaw Magpie Rook Blue Tit h Redpoll | Chiffchaff h Wren h Blackbird Song Thrush h Mistle Thrush 6+ Starling 20+ Robin Dunnock House Sparrow Grey Wagtail Pied Wagtail Meadow Pipit Chaffinch h Goldfinch h Reed Bunting m H Peacock Green Veined White Gatekeeper Painted Lady Orange Tip C=Cant Clough Resr H=Hurstwood Resr |