Goodbye Pinkfoots? (1 Viewer)

Hi All,

I've just seen a couple of big skeins flying over going northwest. I've never seen them here before. I expect they are making their first moves to get back to Iceland. Sad to see them go. They are a delight to see in the winter months. I was wondering if other people were seeing big movements also. No pic I'm afraid. I was up a ladder fixing the gutter after last weeks gales. Typical!

Funnily enough Roy I've just posted (Slimbridge thread) about hearing geese overhead during the night so it certainly looks as if they are heading north doesn't it?
Shame you were up a ladder at the time and missed a pic opportunity....as you say typical!!:-O

Hi Roy

Yes Pinkfeet, love to them in their full glory

Saw plenty flocks/Pinkfeet/Greylag in Scotland. Worlds apart to Bedford.

Need to be in the right place at he right time comes to mind here. :t:

Hi Roy
You beat me to it! I was going to report seeing 2 large skeins which I saw this morning . They must have been the same that you saw,* they were flying east to west over my house at about 9am. I was upstairs and heard what I thought were dogs yapping and then the penny dropped - very vocal geese.

They must have been following their traditional route but I wonder where they came from.

(* For anyone who doesn't realise it, Leeds and Bradford are pretty close as the goose flies ).

Hi Ruth. That was a coincidence wasn't it. Your post hadn't reached my pooter then. You must be directly under their flight path. I wouldn't have heard mine unless I'd been outside, so maybe I did have a bit of luck after all.
Hi Peewit. Yes there are lots of great geese sights to see in Scotland. I spent a lot of time there in autumn and geese were the main attraction. I can see you are a bit too far south to be on their traditional routes. Maybe a trip to Norfolk some time?
Hi Bea. I spotted mine around noon. It seems unlikely they took 3 hours from Leeds but it does look like the same migration route. Bradford Ornithological Group's web site http://bradbirds.blogspot.com/ (BOG!) lists a dozen sightings yesterday. A ringing summary I was looking at shows the main movements are along all 3 sides of a triangle joining S/E Scotland, The Wash, and Lancashire. The only other link shown was between Lancashire and Humberside. I know there was a colony on Read's Island in the estuary but I understand it is subject to errosion. I don't know if they are still there, but if they are then they could be our birds.

Just a coincidence then. I saw another large skein this morning flying in the same direction.

Thanks for the link - which is very interesting, also the information on the flight routes.