Hi John, Was up at Etherow a few days ago, and saw the Warden. Apparently the Egyptian Goose is no more and had to be put down last month. It was 20 years plus old and way past it's time but had a serious bout of pneumonia. It is being kept in the freezer at Marple vet's waiting for a proper burial somewhere on the park. I am told that there are 2 E Geese up on the Keg Pools but have not confirmed . Regards David
Thanks for this info Dave,
I've just looked down this thread and I saw an Egyptian Goose on 23rd December. It was on the river opposite Keg Pool. Hopefully this one survived, it looked OK at the time and was very noisy.
Cheers, John
Dave Pollard said
Tue Jan 4 7:01 PM, 2011
Hi John, Was up at Etherow a few days ago, and saw the Warden. Apparently the Egyptian Goose is no more and had to be put down last month. It was 20 years plus old and way past it's time but had a serious bout of pneumonia. It is being kept in the freezer at Marple vet's waiting for a proper burial somewhere on the park. I am told that there are 2 E Geese up on the Keg Pools but have not confirmed . Regards David
John Rayner said
Tue Jan 4 2:51 PM, 2011
Jan 4th (9.30 - 12.00)
I put seed down around Sunny Corner and gave it an hour but no Willow Tit. Loads of Great, Blue and Coal Tits, 3 Nuthatches, 1 Treecreeper, 2 Jays and a Tawny Owl heard.
On the river 3 Teal and a drake Goosander. Overall a total of 32 Mandarin Ducks. No sign of the Egyptian Goose but I'm sure it's around somewhere.
Cheers, John
Geoff Walton said
Mon Jan 3 10:11 PM, 2011
Hi dave, Our "lead Birder" spotted a Willow Tit on the way up to Sunny Corner last Friday.
5 Goldcrest-wow.
Cheers
Geoff
Scott Reid said
Mon Jan 3 9:13 PM, 2011
Had a lovely walk in the sunshine with the girlfriend and the dog this afternoon. The usual stuff on and around the mill ponds. 3 goosander on the river (2m, 1f). Up in the forest past the weir were 5+ goldcrest, 1 treecreeper (a good spot by my girlfriend) and the usual blue, coal and great tits. All in all, lots of people and not many birds (except for the ones that like bread!)
Ian McKerchar said
Mon Jan 3 9:07 PM, 2011
The balance of probability weighs massively in favour of Willow Tit I'm afraid Dave. Marsh Tit hasn't been reliably recorded in the county for quite a few years now.
Check out the identification article on Worcester Birding website which is one of the better ones on the internet.
Dave Sanderson said
Mon Jan 3 8:00 PM, 2011
Monday 3 January
At Sunny Corner we had either a Marsh or Willow Tit this lunchtime - clear views but I am not sufficiently familiar with these birds to confirm the ID either way. Any views? Plenty of nuthatches, and great, blue and coal tits and treecreeper mostly coming to the well-stocked feeders. I pair goosander on the river. Nice party of 12 long tailed tits at the hide. 1 GS woodpecker also, plus plenty of the commoner stuff.
Geoff Walton said
Fri Dec 31 2:44 PM, 2010
We had a nice walk 10-12.30 am Both lakes were 95% frozen and also a lot of the canal. Two or three sets of hybrids on the lake, plus the usual stuff. A couple of manderin on the large large lake, and sparrows as usual by the club house.
Behind the pump house,;_ Manderin Goosander Tufties Teal Swans
Walk to Keg incl Sunny Corner Gt.SW Ls.SW Great Tits Blue Tits Coal Tits Bullfinch Nuthatches Siskin Chaffinches Goldcrest Treecreepers A croaking raven heard but not seen Robins
John Rayner said
Thu Dec 23 1:51 PM, 2010
Dec 23rd 8.45 - 10.45.
Mandarins - only 12 seen 1 male Goosander Uncounted Mallard Uncounted Canada Geese but well into triple figures of these. 6 Moorhen c20 Coot 1 Egyptian Goose 2 Mute Swans 5 Tufted Duck
Small birds appear to be suffering here. No Long-tailed Tits (again) 2 Coal Tits and only a scattering of Blue/Great Tits. Only 2 Greenfinches and 4 Goldfinches seen.
Wrens, Blackbirds and Nuthatches seem to be doing OK.
Cheers, John
John Rayner said
Tue Dec 7 5:57 PM, 2010
7 December (13.30 - 15.15)
Male Goosander below weir Only 12 Mandarins (6m, 6f) Egyptian Goose on bird table at hide Tawny Owl
Cheers, John
Tony Mario said
Sat Dec 4 10:27 AM, 2010
Didn't get a really good look at it, it flew back down the path behind me and dropped over the river bank. Perhaps this will encourage more people to spend a little more time scanning the area rather than sitting in the hide watching the river roll past.
-- Edited by Tony Mario on Saturday 4th of December 2010 10:28:02 AM
Ian McKerchar said
Sat Dec 4 9:57 AM, 2010
It's uncommon once again Tony but not so rare as to be definitive for a Common Snipe to sit tight, especially in hard weather when they are really reluctant to fly. We have to actively flush our Snipe survey areas (and have special techniques for Jack Snipe) and a few can and will sit tight. At that range though I'd expect their smaller size and much more rounded wingtips to be apparent.
Tony Mario said
Sat Dec 4 9:44 AM, 2010
I know you dont like disscusions running on the sightings board, but another factor to consider is that the bird must have seen me coming along the long straight path to its postion for at least 75m but didn't move til I was only about 1.5-2m (made me jump!). I have never walked so close to Common in all my birding days.
Ian McKerchar said
Fri Dec 3 8:48 PM, 2010
And that is my only point Vic. Tony's sighting was indeed probably a Jack Snipe but nothing in it is absolutely definitive, nor excludes Common Snipe beyond all reasonable doubt. Should we as birders conclude and accept such sighting are confirmed off such an impression? Jack Snipe are, as you will well know, so much more than a short, silent flight and are highly distinctive on jizz alone in flight
vic chatterton said
Fri Dec 3 7:11 PM, 2010
I've monitored a site for both species for many years and have only ever seen 2 or 3 Common Snipe flush silently and fly a fairly short distance. In each case they were flushed from several yards away and landed 30 -50 yards away. As Ian says Common Snipe can sometimes flush silently so on its own is useless as an indicator of Jack, as is flying a short distance. However I can say that every snipe I've seen showing all the criteria of the following has been a Jack Snipe.
1 Flushing from almost underfoot 2 Silent 3 Flying a very short distance - almost all I have seen, less than 30 yards, and on the site I monitor often only 10-15 yards. 4 Very straight flight - to me, even when flying a short distance the flight of Common can be a little erratic. The site that I monitor is a very small site whilst I suspect that the sites Ian monitors are much larger. This may well be the reason why more of the Common Snipe he sees, alight a short distance away. At the site I record, a flight of more than 20 yards would put the Common Snipe into a fairly dry area of rough pasture. Which probably explains the fact that the vast majority that I see fly off into the distance. Another criteria that Ian mentions, namely the weather can of course cause birds to behave aberrantly. For arguments sake let us assume that the bird was a Common Snipe : the weather has been so extreme that the bird could have been more reluctant to fly a greater distance than usual, if it had found an unfrozen area in which to feed. Although it is a fairly small marsh area near the hide there are a couple of springs there that rarely freeze. On reflection on second thoughts I feel that it is very probably a Jack Snipe Tony saw - however particularly taking into account the weather, in all honesty a Common cannot be ruled out.
Ian McKerchar said
Fri Dec 3 8:00 AM, 2010
Muddy pool margins... also the favoured habitat of Common Snipe
Tony Mario said
Fri Dec 3 7:52 AM, 2010
I understand your comment of habitat counts for nothing during this weather. But qoting Collins, "Breeds in extensive waterlogged bogs. on passage and in winter, muddy pool margins etc" which fits the bill for the area behind the hide, an area much overlooked in my opinion perhaps the hide should be turned round to face the other way it may be more productive.
Ian McKerchar said
Thu Dec 2 11:48 PM, 2010
Ok, I'll bite and throw a little spanner in the works! I regularly monitor both Snipe and Jack Snipe at a couple of county sites (one of which held the highest density in the UK for the latter a few years ago) and Snipe can, albeit fairly uncommonly, fly off only short distances before dropping back in and are often scilent when flushed. So, such actions as exhibited by the Etherow Snipe certainly don't preclude a Common. As for choice of habitat, particularly in our current weather conditions, it counts for exactly nothing in my opinion.
Could well have been a Jack Snipe but that's all without something more substantial, for me anyway.
Phil Panton said
Thu Dec 2 7:59 PM, 2010
Certainly not heard of any records of Jack Snipe, but it is a known site for Woodcock, so a JS is a strong possibility.
Tony Mario said
Thu Dec 2 5:47 PM, 2010
Thanks for the reply, I too am pretty sure it was a Jack Snipe, I was interested if anyone else had seen one round there the area behind the hide is, as I say, perfect breeding territory.
vic chatterton said
Thu Dec 2 5:34 PM, 2010
I've been a regular at Etherow CP for 30 years and have never recorded Jack Snipe and have seen very few Common Snipe ( I did once see a Dunlin perch on ice at the edge of the river). None of the regular birders I know have recorded them there as far as I know. From your description despite a brief view I would say you have without doubt recorded a Jack Snipe.
Tony Mario said
Thu Dec 2 10:45 AM, 2010
Tony Mario wrote:
Does anyone have a record of Jack Snipe here?
I take it the deafening silence is a no then. Perhaps I asked the wrong question so .... Have Jack Snipe been recorded at Etherow Country Park ?
Tony Mario said
Tue Nov 30 5:28 PM, 2010
Does anyone have a record of Jack Snipe here? Pretty sure I flushed one from the side of the boardwalk up to the hide this aftenoon. It didn't flush til I was on top of it, silent short flight and the habitat is perfect, but all too fast for positive ID. Also today, 2 Buzzard 2 Raven 12 Lesser Redpoll 1 Little Grebe 2 Goosander c6 Teal Egyptian Goose stood feedding on bird table Sparrowhawk being chased thru woods by Crow plus all the usual cast.
Roger Baker 3 said
Sat Nov 27 1:28 PM, 2010
Sat Nov 27th 08.00hrs - 10.00hrs
In addition to the Peregrine & Lapwings.
1 GS Woodpecker 3 Nuthatch. 4 Redwing.
Nice to meet John Rayner, William Binns & his better half down there.
Roger
John Rayner said
Sat Nov 27 1:00 PM, 2010
Peregrine NW over St Paul's Church and a flock of c30 Lapwing high East
Cheers, John
vic chatterton said
Wed Nov 10 6:38 PM, 2010
2 Egyptian Geese - usual one near cafe and 1 on Keg. 1 Goosander (m) on Keg 9 Tufted Duck - only 1 male 32 Mandarin 1 Buzzard 1 Raven flocks of 11 and c15 Siskin 10 Redwings
Visited yesterday between 1300-1500hrs... All usual residents on main lodge and backwater ,plus a few new very domesticated fowl !!! Approx 200 bh gulls on main lake. Altogether on site ,I counted 31 male ,and 22 female Mandarins. At the CWT hide ,3m and 3f tufties, 11 cormorants in tree upsteam, a few wild mallards ,and a brief fly-past by kingfisher ... Then , after feeling sorry for a very forlorn - looking nuthatch on the 'empty' bird-table near the hide, I crumbled my final piece of duck-bread up ,onto the table .... Within 5 mins of this , 3 nuthatches , 2 great-tits, 5 blue-tits, 1 coal-tit ,a chaffinch ,robin, and finally a jay , had visited the table !!! ...So the moral of my rather long - winded story is - If you do visit Etherow CP , I think the birds would appreciate some more "suitable food" ...as the tables around the site all seem a bit bare recently !! Cheers Chris
Nik Grounds said
Mon Oct 11 6:44 PM, 2010
11/10/10 14:40 - 16:40
c100 Black Headed Gulls c25 Mandarins 1 Cormorant 5 Long-Tailed Tits 2 Blue Tits 3 Moorhens 1 Song Thrush 1 Greater Spotted Woodpecker 1 Dipper @ Weir c20 House Sparrows 1 Dunnock 2 Magpies 1 Egyptian Goose
Plenty of very vocal Nuthatches (c7), an Egyptian Goose feeding with Canadas in the field by hide approach and a party of 23 Mandarin roosting opposite the hide (10m, 9f, 4juv) were ther highlights.
Little Grebe on Keg Pool (per John Ireland)
Cheers, John
-- Edited by John Rayner on Saturday 2nd of October 2010 02:16:18 PM
Geoff Walton said
Tue Aug 31 8:03 AM, 2010
7-8pm Mon
I have never seen so few birds on the water. a handful of mallard, 3 Coote, 3 White geese, and that was about it. No grebe, No Mandarin. The only redeeming feature was a Dipper just down from the weir.
vic chatterton said
Tue Aug 10 6:42 PM, 2010
Kingfisher (and fox) from the hide. (F) Tufted Duck on Keg Lake with 4 young. Biggest surprise was a (f) Shoveler on the large pond at the back of the hide (ie the pond on the left of the road going to the farm).This is only the second one I've recorded at Etherow CP in 30 years. The bird was present at 4.30pm but not seen at 5pm on returning from hide. Could still be present in the marginal vegetation.
Sadly the best scrub area and the last nesting area for Garden Warblers which was destroyed by the wardens is now choked with Himalayan Balsam - another fine piece of conservation work by the wardens
Andy Bissitt said
Wed Aug 4 9:10 PM, 2010
Can I just extend this topic to include Compstall as a whole (as it is often better than Etherow CP anyway).
A couple of hours out this p.m. had a nice couple of highlights. Firstly, a Green Woodpecker was heard calling, and this subsequently flew out of Redbrow Wood and across onto Lower Watermeetings Farm where it landed on a fence post!
Near the end of my tramp round, I stopped on the track to Brabyns Park to look across the Etherow valley where a hobby flew from behind me, across Compstall ETW, and away towards the telephone mast behind Cherry Tree estate, Romiley. The start of another autumn run of local sightings?
Also not bad for butterflies - see Manchester wildlife site.
Anthony Dixon said
Sun Aug 1 12:34 PM, 2010
2 Ravens were the highlight of a quiet morning.
Anthony
Chris Harper said
Mon Jul 26 11:51 AM, 2010
At least one Common Crossbill this morning from Ernocroft Wood, on the lower trail. Many roving flocks too .6 Treecreepers, Chiff Chaff, 2 Nuthatch, 3 GS Woodpecker, many yopung Coal tit,2 Goldcrest 2 Stock Doves, 2 Tufted Duck, 4 Jay. 27 Mandarins, 2 Kingfishers, and Shoveler still. Main lake GC Grebe and Egyptian Goose. Sparrowhawk over with prey.
Worth the constant mizzle! Chris H
Anthony Dixon said
Mon Jul 19 8:27 PM, 2010
Had a rather hopeful look around for the Egrets this evening and had no luck
Anthony
Chris Harper said
Mon Jul 19 11:49 AM, 2010
2 Little Egrets this morning on main lake, until flushed by a Common Buzzard at 9.15. Flew towards Marple Bridge. Also female Shoveler on CWT pond, 36 Mandarins, 2 GS Woodpeckers, Egyptian Goose, Sparrowhawk, 7 Jays and 3 Chiff Chaff Chris H
Anthony Dixon said
Wed Jul 14 6:23 AM, 2010
I noticed on Sunday that one or two of the young Mandarin on the backwater seemed very used to human contact which I thought was pretty unusual.
I think there has been a lot more people feeding the birds at Etherow this year, every since that harsh winter and as a result some birds are getting bolder.
The Mandarin at the back of the pump house seem their usual selves still...They will take bread as ever, but they don't hang about after!
Anthony
Andy Bissitt said
Tue Jul 13 9:30 PM, 2010
I was doing a Bird Atlas count here yesterday (I'm afraid I can only do the late summer ones is poor weather, otherwise I get distracted by butterflies and dragonflies), and was stood by the 'canal' counting ducks and stuff. They obviously thought 'here's some nutter out in the rain with food' and came swarming out from cover. This was fair enough, but some behaviour was new to me, mostly because I'd thought they were only 'semi' tame. Six or seven of the mandarins climbed out of the water, up the bank and stood around literally at my feet!! Has anyone else seen this before? Anyway suffice it to say they looked even more cute at point blank range than they normally do. I hope though that they are not all going to become like the geese and other odd assortment of the cafe area.
Anthony Dixon said
Sun Jul 11 5:59 PM, 2010
Greater and Lesser Spotted Woodpecker from the hide this morning. Kingfisher flew past also.
Anthony
John Rayner said
Thu Jun 17 4:44 PM, 2010
I was delighted to find a female Redstart in the same area where the male was singing earlier this year,
Cheers, John
Adam Jones said
Sat Jun 12 5:22 PM, 2010
Saturday 12th June 6.30-8.30
Grey Heron 1 Pied Wagtail 4 (2 juvenile) Grey Wagtail 2 Dipper 2 Tree Creeper 1 GSW 4 Nutchatch 4 Blackcap 2 Bullfinch 3 Tufted Duck 2 Egyptian Goose 1 Cormorant (in flight) 1 Great Crested Grebe 2 Many of the usual geese and tits. Plenty of noise coming from the Song Thrushes too.
All in all a very productive morning.
Chris Harper said
Sun Jun 6 8:44 PM, 2010
10 Mandarin, straggly eclipse males included. One pair had 8 young on the canal between main lake and weir Egyptian Goose, Nuthatch, 3 Chiff Chaff, Blackcap, 2 Great crested Grebes, Buzzard, Tufted Duck other highlights. Chris H
Anthony Dixon said
Sat Jun 5 5:35 PM, 2010
Sounds like a Domestic/Farmyard Duck that one Adam there are a few of them scattered about Etherow.
Anthony
Adam Jones said
Sat Jun 5 4:56 PM, 2010
Saturday 5th June 7.00-8.30am
A quietish morning.
A Dipper by the weir, accompanied shortly afterwards by a Grey Wagtail. 1 Jay 1 Grey Heron on the Pond Several Greylag geese, among others.
I also have an unidentified white duck if anybody can help me out? Afraid I am not the best with wildfowl.
It is all white, slightly smaller than a Mallard with quite a small head and a bright orange beek. It was on the river this morning moving in towards the bank and the shelter of the over hanging trees. Any suggestions welcome.
Thanks Adam
John Rayner said
Sat Jun 5 2:23 PM, 2010
A mix of hirundines with 4 Swallows, 2 Sand Martins and 2 House Martins near visitor centre.
Elsewhere quiet with a few Goldcrest, Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps singing. 1 Grey Wagtail at weir.
7 adult Mandarins (5f, 2m) included a pair with 5 ducklings near brick blockhouse (weir)
A frequent birder to the area told me he had counted a max of 34 Mandarin ducklings at Etherow but didn't say how many broods this involved.
Cheers, John
Andrew Johnson said
Sun May 23 5:21 PM, 2010
Went back last night Woodcock hunting - nothing! Did hear those slightly-suspicious calls again - from the stand of trees to the right of the path if you continue on up the main path before the turn off to the left. The irritating Egyptian Goose managed to keep interrupting the silence from all the way down near the farm.
Visit sunday morning - baby Mandarin Ducklings and older "Cootlings" galore (the former near the hide). Heron near the visitors' centre. Grey Wagtails (with young) and Dipper from the weir and also a Dipper flew along in front of the hide. One immature cormorant in its tree. A few Chiffchaffs, Goldcrests and Blackcaps. Willow warblers across the Etherow from the far end of Keg Pool. Plenty of Nuthatches (although few now calling) and a couple of GS Woodpeckers. Found neither Treecreeper, Redstart nor Kingfisher.
Chris Harper said
Sat May 22 4:02 PM, 2010
Mandarin brood from CWT hide this afternoon. Egyptian Goose there too. Lapwing in ploughed field at top. A few Swallows, House Martins, Blackcaps and Chiff Chaffs Nice broods of Coot, Moorhen, Mallard and Greylag for the kids Pair of GC Grebe Chris H
Andrew Johnson said
Fri May 21 11:31 PM, 2010
Thanks for the info on the species I asked about. I had a late evening walk around the Keg tonight and ended up sitting on the Woodcock Bench from 9:15 until 10:30. Plenty of bats but no roding woodcock :( I did though hear a couple of what may have been woodcock calls but that ID is far from certain. The two individual calls came from up in the trees quite close to me and then the originators flew off in the direction of the furthest end of the Keg but I could barely even make out the movement of them, never mind get any idea of size or shape as it was just so dark by then! Apart from something sizeable trotting through the bluebells up in the trees behind me and a badger back near my car, that was it apart from a distant tawny owl! The redstarts kept quiet too
I've just looked down this thread and I saw an Egyptian Goose on 23rd December. It was on the river opposite Keg Pool. Hopefully this one survived, it looked OK at the time and was very noisy.
Cheers, John
I put seed down around Sunny Corner and gave it an hour but no Willow Tit. Loads of Great, Blue and Coal Tits, 3 Nuthatches, 1 Treecreeper, 2 Jays and a Tawny Owl heard.
On the river 3 Teal and a drake Goosander. Overall a total of 32 Mandarin Ducks. No sign of the Egyptian Goose but I'm sure it's around somewhere.
Cheers, John
Our "lead Birder" spotted a Willow Tit on the way up to Sunny Corner last Friday.
5 Goldcrest-wow.
Cheers
Geoff
The usual stuff on and around the mill ponds.
3 goosander on the river (2m, 1f).
Up in the forest past the weir were 5+ goldcrest, 1 treecreeper (a good spot by my girlfriend) and the usual blue, coal and great tits.
All in all, lots of people and not many birds (except for the ones that like bread!)
Check out the identification article on Worcester Birding website which is one of the better ones on the internet.
At Sunny Corner we had either a Marsh or Willow Tit this lunchtime - clear views but I am not sufficiently familiar with these birds to confirm the ID either way. Any views? Plenty of nuthatches, and great, blue and coal tits and treecreeper mostly coming to the well-stocked feeders. I pair goosander on the river. Nice party of 12 long tailed tits at the hide. 1 GS woodpecker also, plus plenty of the commoner stuff.
Behind the pump house,;_
Manderin
Goosander
Tufties
Teal
Swans
Walk to Keg incl Sunny Corner
Gt.SW
Ls.SW
Great Tits
Blue Tits
Coal Tits
Bullfinch
Nuthatches
Siskin
Chaffinches
Goldcrest
Treecreepers
A croaking raven heard but not seen
Robins
Mandarins - only 12 seen
1 male Goosander
Uncounted Mallard
Uncounted Canada Geese but well into triple figures of these.
6 Moorhen
c20 Coot
1 Egyptian Goose
2 Mute Swans
5 Tufted Duck
Small birds appear to be suffering here. No Long-tailed Tits (again) 2 Coal Tits and only a scattering of Blue/Great Tits. Only 2 Greenfinches and 4 Goldfinches seen.
Wrens, Blackbirds and Nuthatches seem to be doing OK.
Cheers, John
Male Goosander below weir
Only 12 Mandarins (6m, 6f)
Egyptian Goose on bird table at hide
Tawny Owl
Cheers, John
-- Edited by Tony Mario on Saturday 4th of December 2010 10:28:02 AM
As Ian says Common Snipe can sometimes flush silently so on its own is useless as an indicator of Jack, as is flying a short distance.
However I can say that every snipe I've seen showing all the criteria of the following has been a Jack Snipe.
1 Flushing from almost underfoot
2 Silent
3 Flying a very short distance - almost all I have seen, less than 30 yards, and on the site I monitor often only 10-15 yards.
4 Very straight flight - to me, even when flying a short distance the flight of Common can be a little erratic.
The site that I monitor is a very small site whilst I suspect that the sites Ian monitors are much larger. This may well be the reason why more of the Common Snipe he sees, alight a short distance away. At the site I record, a flight of more than 20 yards would put the Common Snipe into a fairly dry area of rough pasture. Which probably explains the fact that the vast majority that I see fly off into the distance.
Another criteria that Ian mentions, namely the weather can of course cause birds to behave aberrantly. For arguments sake let us assume that the bird was a Common Snipe : the weather has been so extreme that the bird could have been more reluctant to fly a greater distance than usual, if it had found an unfrozen area in which to feed. Although it is a fairly small marsh area near the hide there are a couple of springs there that rarely freeze.
On reflection on second thoughts I feel that it is very probably a Jack Snipe Tony saw - however particularly taking into account the weather, in all honesty a Common cannot be ruled out.
Could well have been a Jack Snipe but that's all without something more substantial, for me anyway.
From your description despite a brief view I would say you have without doubt recorded a Jack Snipe.
I take it the deafening silence is a no then. Perhaps I asked the wrong question so .... Have Jack Snipe been recorded at Etherow Country Park ?
Also today,
2 Buzzard
2 Raven
12 Lesser Redpoll
1 Little Grebe
2 Goosander
c6 Teal
Egyptian Goose stood feedding on bird table
Sparrowhawk being chased thru woods by Crow
plus all the usual cast.
In addition to the Peregrine & Lapwings.
1 GS Woodpecker
3 Nuthatch.
4 Redwing.
Nice to meet John Rayner, William Binns & his better half down there.
Roger
Cheers, John
1 Goosander (m) on Keg
9 Tufted Duck - only 1 male
32 Mandarin
1 Buzzard
1 Raven
flocks of 11 and c15 Siskin
10 Redwings
2 Egyptian Geese (1 Lodge Pool, 1 Hide)
1 Kingfisher (Hide)
Cheers, John
c100 Black Headed Gulls
c25 Mandarins
1 Cormorant
5 Long-Tailed Tits
2 Blue Tits
3 Moorhens
1 Song Thrush
1 Greater Spotted Woodpecker
1 Dipper @ Weir
c20 House Sparrows
1 Dunnock
2 Magpies
1 Egyptian Goose
@ Keg Pool
2 Mute Swans
1 female Goosander
1 Egyptian Goose
5 Mandarins
1 Little Grebe
5 Coots
2 Moorhens
Plenty of very vocal Nuthatches (c7), an Egyptian Goose feeding with Canadas in the field by hide approach and a party of 23 Mandarin roosting opposite the hide (10m, 9f, 4juv) were ther highlights.
Little Grebe on Keg Pool (per John Ireland)
Cheers, John
-- Edited by John Rayner on Saturday 2nd of October 2010 02:16:18 PM
I have never seen so few birds on the water. a handful of mallard, 3 Coote, 3 White geese, and that was about it. No grebe, No Mandarin. The only redeeming feature was a Dipper just down from the weir.
(F) Tufted Duck on Keg Lake with 4 young.
Biggest surprise was a (f) Shoveler on the large pond at the back of the hide (ie the pond on the left of the road going to the farm).This is only the second one I've recorded at Etherow CP in 30 years. The bird was present at 4.30pm but not seen at 5pm on returning from hide. Could still be present in the marginal vegetation.
Sadly the best scrub area and the last nesting area for Garden Warblers which was destroyed by the wardens is now choked with Himalayan Balsam - another fine piece of conservation work by the wardens
A couple of hours out this p.m. had a nice couple of highlights. Firstly, a Green Woodpecker was heard calling, and this subsequently flew out of Redbrow Wood and across onto Lower Watermeetings Farm where it landed on a fence post!
Near the end of my tramp round, I stopped on the track to Brabyns Park to look across the Etherow valley where a hobby flew from behind me, across Compstall ETW, and away towards the telephone mast behind Cherry Tree estate, Romiley. The start of another autumn run of local sightings?
The best of the rest were:-
Buzzard (as usual)
Kestrel (m & f)
Common Gull (1 on farm fields)
Stock Doves (2)
Grey Wagtails (3)
Bullfinch (h)
Also not bad for butterflies - see Manchester wildlife site.
Anthony
Many roving flocks too .6 Treecreepers, Chiff Chaff, 2 Nuthatch, 3 GS Woodpecker, many yopung Coal tit,2 Goldcrest
2 Stock Doves, 2 Tufted Duck, 4 Jay.
27 Mandarins, 2 Kingfishers, and Shoveler still.
Main lake GC Grebe and Egyptian Goose. Sparrowhawk over with prey.
Worth the constant mizzle!
Chris H
Anthony
Also female Shoveler on CWT pond, 36 Mandarins, 2 GS Woodpeckers, Egyptian Goose,
Sparrowhawk, 7 Jays and 3 Chiff Chaff
Chris H
I think there has been a lot more people feeding the birds at Etherow this year, every since that harsh winter and as a result some birds are getting bolder.
The Mandarin at the back of the pump house seem their usual selves still...They will take bread as ever, but they don't hang about after!
Anthony
Kingfisher flew past also.
Anthony
Cheers, John
Grey Heron 1
Pied Wagtail 4 (2 juvenile)
Grey Wagtail 2
Dipper 2
Tree Creeper 1
GSW 4
Nutchatch 4
Blackcap 2
Bullfinch 3
Tufted Duck 2
Egyptian Goose 1
Cormorant (in flight) 1
Great Crested Grebe 2
Many of the usual geese and tits. Plenty of noise coming from the Song Thrushes too.
All in all a very productive morning.
One pair had 8 young on the canal between main lake and weir
Egyptian Goose, Nuthatch, 3 Chiff Chaff, Blackcap, 2 Great crested Grebes,
Buzzard, Tufted Duck other highlights.
Chris H
Anthony
A quietish morning.
A Dipper by the weir, accompanied shortly afterwards by a Grey Wagtail.
1 Jay
1 Grey Heron on the Pond
Several Greylag geese, among others.
I also have an unidentified white duck if anybody can help me out? Afraid I am not the best with wildfowl.
It is all white, slightly smaller than a Mallard with quite a small head and a bright orange beek. It was on the river this morning moving in towards the bank and the shelter of the over hanging trees. Any suggestions welcome.
Thanks
Adam
Elsewhere quiet with a few Goldcrest, Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps singing. 1 Grey Wagtail at weir.
7 adult Mandarins (5f, 2m) included a pair with 5 ducklings near brick blockhouse (weir)
A frequent birder to the area told me he had counted a max of 34 Mandarin ducklings at Etherow but didn't say how many broods this involved.
Cheers, John
Visit sunday morning - baby Mandarin Ducklings and older "Cootlings" galore (the former near the hide). Heron near the visitors' centre. Grey Wagtails (with young) and Dipper from the weir and also a Dipper flew along in front of the hide. One immature cormorant in its tree. A few Chiffchaffs, Goldcrests and Blackcaps. Willow warblers across the Etherow from the far end of Keg Pool. Plenty of Nuthatches (although few now calling) and a couple of GS Woodpeckers. Found neither Treecreeper, Redstart nor Kingfisher.
Lapwing in ploughed field at top.
A few Swallows, House Martins, Blackcaps and Chiff Chaffs
Nice broods of Coot, Moorhen, Mallard and Greylag for the kids
Pair of GC Grebe
Chris H
I had a late evening walk around the Keg tonight and ended up sitting on the Woodcock Bench from 9:15 until 10:30. Plenty of bats but no roding woodcock :(
I did though hear a couple of what may have been woodcock calls but that ID is far from certain. The two individual calls came from up in the trees quite close to me and then the originators flew off in the direction of the furthest end of the Keg but I could barely even make out the movement of them, never mind get any idea of size or shape as it was just so dark by then!
Apart from something sizeable trotting through the bluebells up in the trees behind me and a badger back near my car, that was it apart from a distant tawny owl!
The redstarts kept quiet too
I've sent you a PM.
Cheers, John