3.15pm 9/11/08
flying over Manchester Rd by Snipe retail park again
50+ circling flock lapwings,
60+ circling flock starlings
5 jackdaws flying across

11.15 9/11/08
25 lapwings flying over Snipe retail park, Manchester road, Ashton
Pond by mockridge garden centre
2 mute swans still there
2 pairs mallards

20 jackdaws on central reservations near moss/cineworld complex.
Rae

14.50
200+ starlings flew across Stockport Road

7.45am
(logged under pink footed geese sightings- 100 then another 50 about 5 mins later, high up heading SE)

10.20am Oxford Park, Ashton
2 grey wagtails
1 pied wagtail
3 blue tits
carrion crow
magpie
5 house sparrows
4 starlings
2 collard doves

11.00am West End
Kestrel (did loop the loop right infront of kids for no apparent reason other than it can!) then flew back up to mill

Rae

Sunday 5th Oct 08 11.10am
Small pond near Mockridge garden centre, on the Moss- pair mute swans

Tuesday 7th Oct 08 14.45
Kestrel flying across towards canal followed by flock 20+ starlings

Wednesday 8th Oct 08
9am 7-8 canada geese flying across Stocport Road
1pm 2 kestrels both calling very agitated & flying around mill for several minutes

Rae

Monday 29th Sept 08
15.15pm
Kestrel flying across to factory in West end, calling out- scattering 20+ pigeons

4 successfully fledged this year
Rae

Sunday 28th Sept 08
10.55am
Flock of 20 lapwings flew across Manchester Road near Moss/Snipe retail park
(told to stop counting birds & drive the car by kids- it's a straight road!)
Rae

Thankfully it was outside my survey area - much relief

Thanks Iain for sending the precise location by private message, avoiding the potential for my embarrassment!

Steve

The top (southern) end of Lane Head Road is in my Breeding Bird Survey square and I didn't get it on my late visit - don't tell me it was in my square - I don't want to know!!!

Steve

Iain Johnson wrote:

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There was a Gropper reeling last night off Lane Head Road (near Hartshead Pike) which appears to have been present since May!!

Also, Little Owl plus a peregrine went over on July 12th - sorry for late notice.

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If anyone wants to see Little Owls close up in Tameside drop me an email and I will let you know where they are. I presume they are breeding there.

-- Edited by Matt Potter at 10:55, 2008-07-28

There was a Gropper reeling last night off Lane Head Road (near Hartshead Pike) which appears to have been present since May!!

Also, Little Owl plus a peregrine went over on July 12th - sorry for late notice.

Saw a Common Buzzard sat in a dead tree in the Lilly Lanes area below Hartshead Pike on Sat 14/6/08

Saturday 14/6: ponds on the moss.

Mute Swans appear to have moved on (again). Canadas, Mallard and Moorhen all with young. Little Grebe present. Not as many Lapwing as usual.

15th June 08
11.00am
Pond by Mockridge garden centre (original garden centre on the Moss, passed new garden centre).
2 lapwings
Mallard family- 7/8 ducklings
2 canada geese (poss babies)
2 canada geese with babies
grey heron
probably more but driving car!
Rae

19th May 08
7.30pm
Sparrowhawk high overheaded, slowly circling & being mobbed by 2 crows, West End Ashton heading towards Manchester Rd
Rae

5th May 08, 3pm
Watched male kestrel attack a carrion crow sat on next door neighbour's chimney before flying off towards Hill's Biscuit factory (Smith St).
Now got around 6 swifts flying high above regularly

Rae

11.00am
flying over garden, west end Ashton
1 grey heron
& my first swifts of the year- 3 screaming away high up
I love watching swifts flying- they're amazing
Rae

Kids walked down canal today from Droylsden to Portland Basin- saw 1 family mallard duclkings & 1 family canada geese goslings in Audenshaw area, plus also saw greylag geese, goldfinch & longtailed tits. I saw grey wagtail too up on canal in Droylsden.
Rae

9.30 am Mon 21/4/08
Sparrowhawk flew over garden heading in direction of town centre, scaring all the pigeons (did a couple of lazy dives at them just to send them scattering).
Rae

I 'walked' into that one didn't I! Ah well.
As for the starlings.....we got hit bad when they redeveloped large chunks of the West End area by demolision/rebuild. It seems to be taking forever to get the garden birds back into the new build areas- all I can get in my garden are blue tits & last week we celebrated when a magpie came in our tree! They are sticking to the established gardens but it must be having some impact. We also had many old terraced houses 'group repaired'- new outer brickwork/roofs, 'plugging up' many places where sparrows nested.
Shall pay more attention to wording
Rae

You beat me to it, Rob!

Actually, if you check out Ashton (under Lyne) market place the Starlings there rarely fly but scuttle around under the stalls and around the bins like mice. They're tame as anything - if anyone wants good close-up photos of Starlings it's the place to go.

Rachael Hill wrote:

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4.30pm

Noticed throughout today that there's more starlings than usual- seen 20+ just walking back from park.
Rae

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Odd - you'd think it wouldbe easier for them to fly?

4.30pm
Usual pigeons, blue tits, sparrows
pair collared doves
Grey Heron flew over Stockport Road heading towards canal.
Goldfinch singing beautifully from a tree top
Noticed throughout today that there's more starlings than usual- seen 20+ just walking back from park.
Rae

there has been a pair of jays and a tawny owl in the cockbrook area of AUL this last week (SW of Stamford Park).

Tuesday 15th April 08
8.20am
My first swallows for the year:
6 swallows flying South East straight across Stockport Road & not hanging around! (Probably thinks it too nippy still this far up North )
Rae

Friday 4th March 08
8.45-9.15 am, Oxford Park, Stockport Rd
Quite quiet on the bird front:
Robin,
2 long tailed tits,
song thrush,
blackbird, 4 woodpigeons,
2 collard doves,
10 starlings
6 house sparrows
magpie
8 feral pigeons
and the pair of carrion crows are now sitting on the nest
Rae

Sunday 9.30am
Sparrowhawk flew across astro turf, Oxford Park, Stockport Rd, Ashton

Monday Oxford Park & area 8.30-9.15 am
pair carrion crows nesting in tree above kiddy play area
6 collard doves,
2 song thrushes
blackbird,
6 goldcrests
robin
house sparrows
great tit
wood pigeon
3 starlings
feral pigeons

pair of magpies nesting in fir tree next to Methodist church hall (Kelvin st/Hamilton st)
Rae

As I'm out & about here all the time thought I'd better share what I see from my doorstep........ 11.50am 3 sparrowhawks, Stockport Road/Grosvenor St,- one appeared to have entered the local pair's patch triggering alot of calling, and soaring from the male. Watched for over 5 minutes until the 'stranger' flew off, leaving the pair to circle for a while longer before circling towards the industrial estate/canal near St Peter's primary- been seen hanging around old mill near school (Oxford St). Pigeons didn't know what to do with all the fuss! Also, reports 2 kestrels nesting again in old shaft on Hill's biscuit factory (old mill building), ryecroft st/smith st. Rae