Stamford Park Lake - female Pochard with 4 young, Grey Wagtail, 7 Mallard ducklings, 3 Canada goslings........great weather for ducks.........

Stamford Park Lake early am - female Pochard, 4 Grey Wagtails (2 adults, 2 juvs), 5 Canada Geese (3 juvs), Mallard brood of 9 ducklings

King George V Pool mid afternoon 31/05/08 - drake Pochard, drake Tufted Duck, 5 GC Grebe (3 juvs), singing Chiffchaff and Blackcap

-- Edited by James Walsh at 11:42, 2008-06-01

King George V Pool - 2 drake Pochard, 7 Tufted Duck (4 drakes), excellent views of Great Spotted Woodpecker, 5 Great Crested Grebe (3 juvs), 2 Mallard broods (2 and 10), Grey Wagtail, singing Blackcap

Stamford Park Lake - pair of Canada Geese with 3 goslings

Big ouch indeed!

or part of the Red Footed influx maybe Rob ...... ouch!

Fluffed another raptor tonight - came home from work about 5:40 to see a falcon sp hawking very high above the garden - by the time i'd got bins it had gone.

Have had Hobby before overhead so I presume this was one of the north Cheshire birds wandering.

Had a buzzard sp over garden this morning - getting quite used to Common's now but this one looked large, long tailed and large headed.

By the time I got bins on it it was against the sun so it'll go down as a near miss, but I'll always wonder.............

King George V Pool - 2 drake Pochard, 5 Tufted (3 drakes), 5 Great Crested Grebe (2 adults, 3 chicks), Chiffchaff, Grey Wagtail

..and thanks to Mike'stext picked up the same bird over Timperley village looking settled so probably an early returning bird rather than passing through - good early date for "the garden".

Swift over this afternoon.

Cheers Sid.
I popped around this evening and there it was on the golf course being very friendly with alien brothers; 2 Canada Geese. I saw the 2 geese on my last visit and completely missed the Mandarin!
1 Chiffchaff was blasting his song out from the adjacent housing estate and 3 Pochards are still on the pool.
Thanks. Henry.

Henry

The Mandarin is still around - this morning he was on the golf course adjacent to King Georges with the two Canadas he usually knocks around with. He doesn't always stay on the water and often goes walkabout so you need to look in all areas aroun the pool. Sometimes he nips over to Stamford Park.

I heard the Mandarin drake is still around the Altrincham area but i've dipped twice recently.
Other stuff on King George V Pool this evening included 3 Pochards (2 drk, 1f), 3 Tufted Ducks (2 drk, 1f) and 2 fine Great Crested Grebes.
Thanks. Henry.

-- Edited by Henry Cook at 17:11, 2008-04-02

Singing chiffchaff this afternoon on Timperley Nature Reserve by Bridgewater Canal (Greater Manchester's smallest reserve).

2 drake Pochard & pair GC Grebe on King George V Pool

drake Pochard on King George V Pool last week, also Grey Wagtail on brook

(also drake Mandarin was still on Stamford Park Lake last month)

The snow has brought the birds into Green Drive - 3 male blackcaps in neighbour's garden, 8 lesser redpoll and 3 siskins in ours.

Cheers Steve - I check that Lapwing roost every now and again and haven't had GP there before - 'tis but a short flight to our house as the plover flies!

Today at Broadheath Retail, noticed

23 Golden Plover
54 Lapwings


Taking flight from Mothercare roof..

Regards Steve

Grey Wagtail and a nice flock of c25 Golden Plover south over the garden this morning.

Just for the record my sister is getting around 8 Redpoll (and the odd Siskin) on their suburban garden niger feeder, and across the road a neighbour has two wintering Blackcap.

drk Mandarin still on Stamford Park Lake

c9 Common Swifts over Timperley 16/08/07

King George V Pool - Kingfisher showing well on posts and islands around 9:30am, GS Woodpecker, Nuthatch, GC Grebe

nearby on Stamford - moulting drk Mandarin

King George V Pool - Kingfisher @ 8:30am, 1 GC Grebe, 5 Canada goslings, 7 Mallard ducklings, GS Woodpecker

Common Swifts last seen in Timperley 3rd Aug & Altrincham 4th Aug

-- Edited by EcoBirdRacer at 10:55, 2007-08-07

ecl drk Mandarin & 1 GC Grebe on King George V Pool but no sign again of juv Pochard today

Jay & Song Thrush in Pickering Lodge Park (Jay has been going in local gardens as well), also Sparrowhawk and c10 Common Swifts (some look to be breeding) in the area

2 male Blackcaps & singing Chiffchaff between Bridge Grove & Brookfield Avenue @ sj 776894

Rob - was it just the drake you saw yesterday, or the pair ?

Saw the Pochard yesterday - have to say it looks un-ringed and about as wary as it could be on a pond the size of a large jacuzzi!

17/05/07 mid morning

King George V Pool - drake Pochard, drake Tufted Duck, Canada goslings

Stamford - pair of Tufted Duck

11/05/07

Stamford Park Lake - pair of Pochard, pair of Tufted Duck, pair of Canada Geese & 6 goslings

King George V Pool - drake Mandarin, 2 pairs of Tufted Duck, GC Grebe, GS Woodpecker

Stamford Park Lake - pair of Pochard (also see Altrincham Pochard phenomena post), pair of Tufted Duck, GS Woodpecker, pair of Canada Geese with 6 goslings

King George V Pool - drake Mandarin, 3 Tufted Duck (2m, 1f), GC Grebe, singing Chiffchaff

I often used to have them there Rob, also a pair frequently on the timperly tram station roof whilst waiting for a tram into school in the mornings!

2 Grey Wagtail on Timperley Brook last week , near to Navi Road station.

Monday 30/04 am

King George V Pool - Mandarin (full winged m), 2 Pochard (m,f), 2 Tufted Duck (m,f), 1 Great Crested Grebe, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Nuthatch

Golf Course - singing male Common Whitethroat, Chiffchaff

Timperley Brook - singing Goldcrest

-- Edited by EcoBirdRacer at 09:32, 2007-04-30

King George V Pool - 5 Pochard (2m, 3f), 2 Tufted Duck (1m, 1f), GC Grebe,
19 Canada Geese, Great Spotted Woodpecker, 2 Nuthatch. It is close season,
so there is no fishing at this site 1st April - 16th May. Second year
running I've checked this site in Spring and second year running there has
been a small Pochard flock....... also on Timperley Golf Course: singing Chiffchaff, GS Woodpecker, Greenfinch, and yesterday Grey Wagtail on Timperley Brook