This week’s photos are two of my favourite Pennine flowers, Jacobs Ladder and Bog Asphodel. The later evokes reflections of Summer in the high Pennines and the former the beauty of the Yorkshire Dales. They are two of the few flowers in the forth coming Pennine Birds DVD, both are included in their respective habitats.

Whilst I have had reports of Redwings and Fieldfares coming over the high tops from the East I have still not seen either locally, making it one of the latest Autumns ever. Two Cormorants were seen locally the other day and have already generated many comments from the fishing community.

A Redpoll was singing in a birch tree just over the back of our garden yesterday but as far as I know never made it into the garden so unfortunately it does not appear on the garden bird list!

This Grey Squirrel has been taking conkers away from our garden. Pauline originally placed them in the rockery for ornamental purposes and couldn’t believe it when one hour later all twenty conkers had disappeared. More were placed out and this time we watched in anticipation for the arrival of the thief. Instead of the boy next door it turned out to be a Grey Squirrel! No matter what the size of the conker it was examined, then taken away, presumably for burial in the woods.

On Hopwood a good view of a Green Woodpecker was had and there were movements of Siskin, Redpoll and Grey Wagtails during the week. The wind direction recently has meant that no Redwings or Fieldfares have been seen so far this Autumn.

During the week in the garden the Collared Doves have peaked at a new record figure of twenty two. Four Long Tailed Tits fed on one day, the first visit for many months.

The two photos show how difficult it is to photograph an Owl taking off without using an electronic beam to trigger off the shutter. Apparently there is a half second delay from the brain telling you to press the shutter and the actual flash going off. In that half second the Owl has flown about a foot which means you end up with a great shot of its talons as in the photo! You have to pre – empt its take off when firing the shutter and eventually you get it right and the shot you were after comes off.

This week it has been bad weather and lots of time working on the new Pennine DVD so not much birding. In the garden two different Sparrowhawks have been regulars. The Nuthatches come occasionally and on the third we had a record seven Chaffinches together – not a very high figure for this common bird but we have never had many Chaffinches in this area.

This photo shows a Comma Butterfly on some blackberries just after the sun had melted the first frosts of Autumn on the 25th

It seems to have been a butterfly week with up to five Speckled Woods on Hopwood on several days and a Red Admiral in our garden.

On Hopwood more Skylarks have been heading South. Bullfinches are enjoying the Autumnal fruits with a party of five feeding on some blackberry bushes.

In the garden the Nuthatches have only returned once during the week. Collared Doves have again topped twenty and the immaculate male Sparrowhawk is back plus at least one immature bird.

Not one but two Nuthatches fed in the garden together on the eighteenth – only the second ever visit to the garden in forty two years! It remains to be seen whether they re-appear tomorrow.

On Hopwood on the seventeenth, in warm sunshine there were Skylarks calling as they flew South over the Golf Course. There were considerable numbers of Coal Tits, some Goldcrests, Reed Buntings and a Sparrowhawk. Two Buzzards were also present. The warmth and sunshine had also brought out five Speckled Wood and two Small Tortoiseshell butterflies which was good to see after a very poor Summer for butterflies.

This is one Red Grouse that has survived the glorious twelfth. The heather has been so purple this year that I couldn’t resist a trip to the Northern Dales this week to obtain a last clip of video before I start work scripting the new Pennine DVD. There were grouse everywhere and it was obvious that they have had a good breeding season with dry, warm weather in the crucial April/May period.

On a recent trip into Rochdale and Oldham we saw from the car two Sparrowhawks, two Buzzards, one Peregrine and one Kestrel not a bad total for a fifteen minute round trip.

The Swallow roost has now broken with only fifty birds present on the second of September, down from up to five thousand the day before. In the garden a female Sparrow Hawk has appeared and made a kill today flying off with its prey before I could come to the rescue!