Having been favouring Moore this year as my local patch I was starting to get a bit guilty about not having been around Woolston for a few weeks and was planning to go soon. Well an afternoon WhatsApp was all that was needed to make me change plans for my afternoon stroll [to Halfway House at lower tide at Moore] and at 3:25 pm wandered in from West via the Manchester Ship Canal (MSC) track at Donaldson Engineering to go to the new #4 bed and within 20 minutes searching the target bird was found. Temmnick's Stint meandering about on a spit off the new Islets viewed from the western path around the bed. Cheshire lifer!
Thanks to Dan for the original message and both Dave's I saw on the way into the bed for more refined directions.
Wader species for the day included Green Sandpiper, Ringed and Little Ringed Plover, Lapwing, Oystercatcher and Snipe. No Dunlin though whilst watching the Stint at ca. 4 - 4:15 pm (or at all).
Pied Wagtail, Greylag and Canada Geese, Black-headed and Lesser-black Backed Gulls. Teal, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Mallard, Coot, Moorhen, Great Crested Grebe and Shovler on the pool.
Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Robin, Blackbird, Reed Warbler all provided a musical backdrop whilst scanning the bed. Single Linnets and Greenfinch (?) seen on the dryer parts of the bed.
Looks a lovely developing site, great testimony to the hard work put in by the Woolston Eyes Conservation Group and others.
Edit - Expanded MSc acronym to Manchester Ship Canal (attempt at penance for a bad habit developed after spending over 30 years in an industry excelling in TLA - Three Letter Acronyms).
-- Edited by Andy Slee on Thursday 28th of April 2022 09:00:47 PM
malcolm roach said
Sun Jan 9 12:30 PM, 2022
Feeding station 19 bramblings probably more greenfinch chaffinch Reed buntings nuthatch 1pr great spotted woodpeckers 1pr bullfinch sparrowhawk 2 jays 9 greylag geese and all the usual wildfowl other birds seen wren goldfinch grey heron pheasant redwing song thrush robin dunnock great/blue/long tailed tits
John Williams said
Wed Jan 5 6:00 PM, 2022
11.30-14.30
No.3 Bed
Tower Hide area : 4 Bramblings on the ground below alders. 4 Siskins and 3 Lesser Redpolls feeding amongst the alder cones.
J. Morgan Hide area : Bramblings feeding around both sets of feeders, at one point 12 were seen feeding together below a feeder.
1m Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Buzzard, 4f Bullfinches and 1 Grey Heron. Numerous Reed Buntings visiting the feeders too.
Teal and Shovelers appeared reasonably abundant, but all seemed to be tucked up close to the reedbed, perhaps the Marsh Harrier
which I sadly just missed made the ducks nervous. A single Shelduck and 3 Tufted Ducks were on the water too.
River Mersey (Above the weir/Bottom of Weir Lane) : 122 Tufted Ducks, 1m Pochard, 1 Shelduck, 4 Cormorants and 6 Gadwall.
Sadly no Goldeneyes were seen on the river there today.
#4 bed. 1 Cettis Warbler singing. Teal, Shovler, Tufted Duck, Mallard and Gadwall Present with Canada Geese, Black-backed Gulls, one Great Black-backed Gull and three Herring Gulls. Male and female Goosander flew in. Grey Heron skulking at the North side of the bed.
#3bed. Treecreeper (reserve first for me) at the Sybil Hogg hide. Surprisingly small Sparrowhawk flew out a bush in front of me across the fields where seed is grown for finches. Greenfinch, Bullfinch, Goldfinch, Chaffinch abundant all over the shrub around the bed. two more Cettis calling.
Lots of gulls flocks (5 - 60 birds) were flying west down the Ship Canal. I counted 52 flocks in an hour. Predominantly Black-Headed; of the three groups of Herring, one Group had two very large silver winged gulls in, wingspan 1/3rd greater than the rest of the Herring Gulls - Argentatus spp?
-- Edited by Andy Slee on Thursday 16th of December 2021 11:33:09 PM
-- Edited by Andy Slee on Thursday 16th of December 2021 11:33:42 PM
1f Marsh Harrier, 3 Buzzards, 2 singing Chiffchaffs, 3 Common Whitethroats (2 catching insects on hogweed umbellifers),
1 juvenile Black necked Grebe, 4 adult and 2 juvenile Little Grebes, 2 broods of Pochards, 3 broods of Tufted Ducks,
a pair of Shelducks with 11 ducklings in their care and 1 Grey Heron.
A Reed Warbler showed very well in front of the South Bank screen. The harrier was mobbed by a pair of crows, however she turned on
her attackers and very nearly caught one of the corvids, who then opted to have fun elsewhere.
Only 1 pair of Black headed Gulls remain in the colony, and they are still brooding a couple of tiny youngsters.
Chris Harper said
Thu Apr 8 4:52 PM, 2021
13:00-15:00
13 Black Necked Grebe (21 reported), 3 Cettis Warbler, 4 Willow Warbler, 12 Pochard, 4 Blackcap, 3 Shoveler, Raven, 6 Teal, 3 Little Grebe, 4+ Common Buzzard, 2 Great Black Backed Gull, 5 Reed Bunting, 10 Chiffchaff, 8 Swallow, 30 Sand Martin, Lapwing, Stock Dove, Kestrel
Hides and toilet open on number 3 bed.
Tony Koziol said
Mon Apr 5 5:36 PM, 2021
08.00/10.30 cold with NNW wind blowing through.
Lovely to see the Black-necked Grebes again with twelve being observed. One female Brambling the feeders. Lots of Willow Warbler, Blackcap and Chiffchaff.
Black- headed Gull in big numbers.
A few Sand Martin around and one Swallow through.
Our first visit in over two years a fabulous reserve.
Dave Steel said
Sat Mar 6 3:35 PM, 2021
Am Visit
2 Black-Necked Grebe...pair
1 Woodcock
1 Redshank
...and the Black-Headed Gull Breeding colony in full swing!
Martin Loftus said
Sun Feb 21 8:29 PM, 2021
David Spencer wrote:
One Red Kite was seen this morning. Initially it was seen flying south, low over No.2 bed and was thought to have flown south. However it reappeared circling high with two Buzzards over the SE corner of No.3 bed. Also present was one female/imm. Marsh Harrier (a different individual to the one seen on Saturday). Two adult Mediterranean Gulls were again seen in the Black-headed Gull colony.Of interest last weeks colour ringed 1st summer Mediterranean Gull(red PRY6) )was ringed in Poland as a nestling on 20th June 2015. Also last week, the adult summer Mediterranean Gull with a white darvic ring, E718, is a Dutch bird ringed as a nestling in June 2012. Since then it has been seen in Germany and Ireland; the last report was on 21st January2016 at Bray Harbour, Wicklow.
Cheers David (with D Bowman, B Lloyd and J Verdon)
-- Edited by David Spencer on Monday 25th of April 2016 02:41:00 PM
I've just been doing some digging around on the internet and it turns out this Mediterranean gull that has turned up at Elton Reservoir this week was first seen here in 2016 .
Highlights :- 1f Marsh Harrier, 1 Little Grebe and 1 Buzzard.
Shoveler, Teal and Gadwall numbers noticeably building up, with drake Shovelers now fully emerging from eclipse.
Waterfowl largely concentrated in the NW corner as conservation work is carried at Southern end of No 3 bed.
Stephen Wende said
Tue Aug 18 6:26 PM, 2020
Tuesday 18/08/20
Highlights include
8 Little Grebe
1 Kingfisher
1 Willow Tit on feeders right of Morgan hide
1 Sparrowhawk
28 Lapwing
1 Blackcap
2 Hobby as I walked back towards Weir Lane
Doc Brewster said
Mon Mar 23 9:56 PM, 2020
The following has been put out on Facebook by Woolston Eyes NR:
Keeping ourselves in line with national policy, we have now decided to close Woolston Eyes Nature Reserve until further notice. I will provide further updates, as and when the situation changes. Stay safe
John Williams said
Mon Mar 23 2:33 PM, 2020
09.30-13.00
No 3 Bed :
8 Black necked Grebes, 1 Sand Martin, 4 Great Crested Grebes, 2 Little Grebes, 2 Buzzards, 1 Sparrowhawk,
2 Black tailed Godwits and 4 Chiffchaffs.
30 Pochards and 100+ Tufted Ducks were on the Mersey around the weir pool.
Dave Steel said
Sat Mar 21 5:58 PM, 2020
am visit...highlights
6 Black-Necked Grebe
4 Cettis Warbler in song
2 Ringed Plover
1 Peregrine
1 Goosander
6 Chiffchaff in song
2 Sand Martin.
Dave Steel said
Thu Mar 19 7:52 PM, 2020
Number 3 Bed CBC/BBS with Dave Bowman am...Count included
14 Dunnock
22 Robin
9 Cetti's Warbler
10 Reed Bunting
16 Blackbird
8 Chiffchaff
1 Willow Tit.
Other Sightings of Note
4 Oystercatcher
9 Black-Necked Grebe
15 Mute Swan.
Dave Steel said
Sat Mar 14 1:52 PM, 2020
Am visit highlights
3 Black-Necked Grebe
1 Black-Tailed Godwit
2 Kingfisher
and a thriving Black-Headed Gull colony.
John Williams said
Tue Mar 10 9:43 PM, 2020
11.30-15.00
River Mersey below Weir Lane, including weir pool.
104 Tufted Ducks, 54 Pochards (Of which only 7 were female), 27 Lesser Black Backed Gulls (All resplendant adults with some vicious territorial
fighting taking place), 2 adult Herring Gulls, 4 Shelducks and 4 Cormorants. A flock of 30 House Sparrows were at the bottom of Weir Lane.
No 3 Bed
45 Pochard, 65 Tufted Ducks, 6 Great Crested Grebes, 1 Little Grebe, 2 Buzzards, 3 Lapwings and a group of 3 male Bullfinches.
Also an impressive number of Shoveler and Teal were also seen, and many more appeared to be hiding in the reedbed.
2 adult Lesser Black Backed Gulls seemed to have taken a liking to one of the rafts positioned for their smaller Black Headed cousins to nest on.
From adjoining rafts the Black Heads viewed the bigger gulls with a kind of mistrust, obviously giving them a wide berth, battle will commence
when nesting starts.
Dave Steel said
Thu Mar 5 3:38 PM, 2020
Common Bird Count on number one bed 0730-0915 with Dave Bowman
included...
14 Wren
19 Robin
11 Reed Bunting
25 Mallard
9 Greylag Geese
2 Little Grebe
6 Skylark
2 Shelduck
2 Gadwall
6 Stock Dove
5 Song Thrush
1 Willow Tit.
John Williams said
Wed Jan 15 6:19 PM, 2020
11.00-14.30
R.Mersey (Weir Pool & at the bottom of Weir Lane) : 70 Tufted Ducks, 2m Goldeneyes,
3m+3f Pochard, 1 Little Grebe, 1 Great Crested Grebe and 1 adult Herring Gull.
Old River : 11 Shovelers and 2 Little Grebes. Ship Canal : Single group of 58 Tufted Ducks.
No.3 Bed : 1f Marsh Harrier, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Buzzard, 1 Snipe, 1 Little Grebe and 1 Great Crested Grebe.
Raven heard only. The Sparrowhawk was mobbed by a pair of Carrion Crows near the Morgan hide, which
turned into quite a drama. I could not confirm if the hawk was a male or female due to bad light, but it was
noticeably smaller than the crows. However the corvids clearly chose the wrong raptor to intimidate, within
seconds the hawk manoeuvred into a position behind one of the crows and grabbed it's tail. The crow then
made a noise that I have not heard any corvid scream before, but it then managed to escape and make a
quick exit across the bed. The remaining crow then began a dogfight with the hawk, but clearly the raptor
had the edge and the corvid fortunately escaped to the safety of nearby tree. For a moment it really looked
like the Sparrowhawk would bring down a crow, the bullies may think it wise to give this raptor a wide berth
from now on.
John Williams said
Fri Jan 10 3:51 PM, 2020
11.00-14.00
R.Mersey (Weir Pool & at the bottom of Weir Lane) :
114 Tufted Ducks, 3m+2f Pochard, 2m Goldeneyes, 2 Little Grebes and 1 Great Crested Grebe.
An additional 38 Tufted Ducks were on the ship canal.
No.3 Bed : 1 Chiffchaff (By the footbridge), 1 Buzzard, 14 Shovelers and a flock of 9 Redwings.
A steady stream of Reed Buntings were amongst the garden birds visiting the new feeding station.
A female Marsh Harrier had been reported just before I arrived.
Dave Steel said
Thu Jan 9 9:49 PM, 2020
Some Highlights 0730-1215
11 Pochard
2 Raven
1 Goldeneye
1 Kingfisher
3 Snipe
45 Tufted Duck.
Dave Steel said
Sat Jan 4 10:02 PM, 2020
Some Highlights 0730-1230
1 Raven
200 Teal...some in Courtship Display
9 Shelduck...in Courtship Display
1 Kingfisher
3 Water Rail
2 Cetti's Warbler---call only
2 Grey Wagtail.
Dave Steel said
Thu Jan 2 6:51 PM, 2020
0730-1215
Highlights
8 Wigeon
2 Chiffchaff
170 Redwing
9 Pochard
2 Goldeneye
2 Willow Tit
170 Redwing.
John Williams said
Mon Dec 30 11:03 PM, 2019
10.00-14.00
No.3 Bed : 6 Lesser Redpolls with Goldfinches on alders near the Tower Hide.
1m Sparrowhawk shot passed the feeders in front of the Sybil Hogg hide.
1 Tree Sparrow sat on a bush overlooking the seeded meadow.
Also seen on the bed were 2 Buzzards, 1m +2f Pochards (1 female seen in pursuit of the male,
but he did'nt seem the least bit interested), 1m+1f Bulfinches and 2 Snipe.
Old River : 30 Shovelers, 2 Little Grebes, 4 Cormorants and lots of Teal.
Mersey Weir Pool & R.Mersey at the bottom of Weir Lane : 4m Goldeneyes, 1 Shelduck, 68 Tufted Ducks,
1+1f Pochard, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 2 Little Grebes and around 60 Black Headed Gulls.
John Williams said
Sat Dec 7 6:35 PM, 2019
10.30-14.00
In additon to Dave's records.
No.3 Bed : 2 Lesser Redpolls with Goldfinches on alders, 1 (Possibly 2) female Sparrowhawks,
2 Kestrels, 2m Great Spotted Woodpeckers in territorial dispute, 1 Goldcrest, 2 Fieldfares (Lots of Redwings
in small groups moving around the bed) and an impressive 16 Reed Buntings (4m together on the feeders
by the Sybel Hogg hide and 9m+3f in bushes by the meadow). A fox was also seen near the meadow which
may explain why 12 Reed Buntings sought the safety of the bushes.
Old River : A group of 55 Shoveler, 13 Gadwall, 4 Cormorants and 3 Grey Herons.
Mersey Weir Pool : 3 Little Grebes, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 1m Pochard, 38 Tufted Ducks, 1 Grey Wagtail,
1f Goldeneye, 1 Shelduck and an impressive 80 Black Headed Gulls.
6 Tufted Ducks were on the ship canal.
Dave Steel said
Fri Dec 6 3:11 PM, 2019
Visit with Team Friday 1000-1315...Highlights
90 Shoveler
35 Lapwing
150 Teal
1 Kingfisher
1 Great Black-Backed Gull
1 Marsh Harrier (Immature) which gave good views on several occasions as it flew over the reedbeds of No3 bed.
Dave Steel said
Sat Nov 16 2:06 PM, 2019
Visible Migration watch from the eastern edge of the Reserve..with Dave Bowman..Les Jones..Dave Spencer..Alan Warford..Helen Allen...0630-1200...Highlights
610 Fieldfare
170 Redwing
1 Woodcock
3 Tawny Owl
2 Goldeneye
194 Pink-Footed Geese
9 Siskin
8 Lesser Redpoll
29 Teal
950 Lapwing.
Dave Steel said
Thu Oct 31 4:40 PM, 2019
Visible Migration Watch from Eastern Edge of Reserve with Dave Bowman 0645-1200
Highlights
1 Peregrine
1 Merlin
3 Golden Plover
1 Hawfinch
2027 Redwing
531 Fieldfare
130 Pink-Footed Geese
5 Lesser Redpoll
5 Siskin
6 Brambling
1 Woodcock
2 Tawny Owl
38 Blackbird
1 Raven
1 Dunlin.
John Williams said
Tue Oct 29 5:01 PM, 2019
09.30-13.00
2 Bearded Tits flew across the open area in front of the F.Linley around 11am,
what was probably the same 2 were seen moments later in front of the Morgan hide.
Pretty quiet otherwise. A Buzzard perched overlooking the NE corner of the bed really
upset large numbers of Teal and Shoveler, they barely settled throughout my stay.
Also seen on No 3 Bed : 2m Pochards, 1 Shelduck, 1 Little Grebe, 4 Wigeon, 4 Lapwings
and 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker.
A single Great Crested Grebe was on the ship canal, whilst 45 Tufted Ducks were on the Mersey
above the weir.
Alan Warford said
Tue Oct 29 9:28 AM, 2019
3 Bearded Tits seen this morning by Dan Owen opposite Morgan hide on No3 bed.
This follows on from the 2 Male Bearded Tits trapped and ringed on Sunday by Kieran Foster.
Grit trays will be made and deployed this week.
Hopefully they will stay for while.
-- Edited by Alan Warford on Tuesday 29th of October 2019 09:31:14 AM
-- Edited by Alan Warford on Tuesday 29th of October 2019 09:31:59 AM
No 3 Bed: 1 juvenile Black Necked Grebe, 3 Little Grebes, 1 Great Crested Grebe with a striped youngster in tow,
1 Buzzard, a group of 8 juvenile Pochards, 3 Sand Martins, a flock of 28 Lapwings heading NW, 1 adult Great Blacked Backed Gull,
1 Water Rail, 3 Chiffchaffs, 1 Willow Warbler and 1m Blackcap (Seen and also heard singing).
Around a dozen Swifts were flying above the pool throughout my stay.
Huge numbers of moulting Gadwall, and a few eclipse Shovelers. A raft of 36 Coots some showing real aggression to their own
kind and the passive eclipse ducks.
A noticeable abundance of eclipse Mallard and Gadwall across the pool, plus a few Shovelers and a single Wigeon.
7 Cormorants were seen flying SE, soon followed by a group of 15 Lapwings going in the opposite direction.
4 Lapwings were the only waders on the scrapes. 2 Black Necked and 2 Little Grebes were on the pool.
A male Great Spotted Woodpecker and a pair (M+F) of Bullfinches were on the feeders.
A single Buzzard was the only raptor seen. All the Black Headed Gulls families have now left.
Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Reed Bunting and Common Whitethroat were still heard singing.
2f Marsh Harriers, 1f Garganey, 2 Buzzards, 2 Wigeon (M+F) and 6 Little Grebes.
At least 4 families of Black Necked Grebes seen staying close to the reeds along the Northern edge of the bed,
1 pair had a couple of youngsters, another pair were also feeding 2 young but also appeared to have a tiny chick
riding on the back of one of the adults. The 2 other families just had 1 chick each.
At one point an adult Lesser Black Backed Gull managed to catch what was either a tiny Moorhen or Coot chick. There was
then a scuffle with 3 other LBB Gulls, before the bird that caught the little prize managed to swallow it in a single gulp.
The commotion attracted an adult Shelduck which attempted the drive the big gulls away, but to no avail.
The Shelduck and it's mate were trying to protect their brood of 8 "Blackbird" sized ducklings. Thankfully the big gulls
showed little interest in the Shelduck brood though. At least 3 Pochard broods were seen too, with 1 of the anxious mothers
having a family of 9 tiny ducklings to watch over.
1m+1f Garganey, 2 Black Necked Grebes, 6 Great Crested Grebes, 20m+3f Pochards, 1m+1f Wigeon, 60+ Gadwall,
3 Buzzards, 1 Shelduck, 1m Bullfinch, 2 Great Spotted Woodpeckers and 4 adult Lesser Black Backed Gulls.
A Coot and a Moorhen family each had a brood of 4 tiny youngsters which they both kept around the scrape. The Coots
dropped their guard for a while though and let a tiny chick swim out alone towards the centre of the pool. One of the
Lesser Black Backs clearly saw an unexpected opportunity, but instead of taking the prize it just indulged in a territorial
squabble with it's 3 chums. The tiny youngster was very fortunate and was soon ushered back to the family by a very
anxious parent.
Having been favouring Moore this year as my local patch I was starting to get a bit guilty about not having been around Woolston for a few weeks and was planning to go soon. Well an afternoon WhatsApp was all that was needed to make me change plans for my afternoon stroll [to Halfway House at lower tide at Moore] and at 3:25 pm wandered in from West via the Manchester Ship Canal (MSC) track at Donaldson Engineering to go to the new #4 bed and within 20 minutes searching the target bird was found. Temmnick's Stint meandering about on a spit off the new Islets viewed from the western path around the bed. Cheshire lifer!
Thanks to Dan for the original message and both Dave's I saw on the way into the bed for more refined directions.
Wader species for the day included Green Sandpiper, Ringed and Little Ringed Plover, Lapwing, Oystercatcher and Snipe. No Dunlin though whilst watching the Stint at ca. 4 - 4:15 pm (or at all).
Pied Wagtail, Greylag and Canada Geese, Black-headed and Lesser-black Backed Gulls. Teal, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Mallard, Coot, Moorhen, Great Crested Grebe and Shovler on the pool.
Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Robin, Blackbird, Reed Warbler all provided a musical backdrop whilst scanning the bed. Single Linnets and Greenfinch (?) seen on the dryer parts of the bed.
Looks a lovely developing site, great testimony to the hard work put in by the Woolston Eyes Conservation Group and others.
Edit - Expanded MSc acronym to Manchester Ship Canal (attempt at penance for a bad habit developed after spending over 30 years in an industry excelling in TLA - Three Letter Acronyms).
-- Edited by Andy Slee on Thursday 28th of April 2022 09:00:47 PM
Feeding station 19 bramblings probably more greenfinch chaffinch Reed buntings nuthatch 1pr great spotted woodpeckers 1pr bullfinch sparrowhawk 2 jays 9 greylag geese and all the usual wildfowl other birds seen wren goldfinch grey heron pheasant redwing song thrush robin dunnock great/blue/long tailed tits
No.3 Bed
Tower Hide area : 4 Bramblings on the ground below alders. 4 Siskins and 3 Lesser Redpolls feeding amongst the alder cones.
J. Morgan Hide area : Bramblings feeding around both sets of feeders, at one point 12 were seen feeding together below a feeder.
1m Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Buzzard, 4f Bullfinches and 1 Grey Heron. Numerous Reed Buntings visiting the feeders too.
Teal and Shovelers appeared reasonably abundant, but all seemed to be tucked up close to the reedbed, perhaps the Marsh Harrier
which I sadly just missed made the ducks nervous. A single Shelduck and 3 Tufted Ducks were on the water too.
River Mersey (Above the weir/Bottom of Weir Lane) : 122 Tufted Ducks, 1m Pochard, 1 Shelduck, 4 Cormorants and 6 Gadwall.
Sadly no Goldeneyes were seen on the river there today.
3 hour visit today 05/01/22
32 species seen including:-
1 Marsh Harrier - red wing tag.
10+ Brambling
2 Bullfinch
2 Jay
1 GS Woodpecker
16/12 two hr visit.
#4 bed. 1 Cettis Warbler singing. Teal, Shovler, Tufted Duck, Mallard and Gadwall Present with Canada Geese, Black-backed Gulls, one Great Black-backed Gull and three Herring Gulls. Male and female Goosander flew in. Grey Heron skulking at the North side of the bed.
#3bed. Treecreeper (reserve first for me) at the Sybil Hogg hide. Surprisingly small Sparrowhawk flew out a bush in front of me across the fields where seed is grown for finches. Greenfinch, Bullfinch, Goldfinch, Chaffinch abundant all over the shrub around the bed. two more Cettis calling.
Lots of gulls flocks (5 - 60 birds) were flying west down the Ship Canal. I counted 52 flocks in an hour. Predominantly Black-Headed; of the three groups of Herring, one Group had two very large silver winged gulls in, wingspan 1/3rd greater than the rest of the Herring Gulls - Argentatus spp?
-- Edited by Andy Slee on Thursday 16th of December 2021 11:33:09 PM
-- Edited by Andy Slee on Thursday 16th of December 2021 11:33:42 PM
13:15 - 15:10
1 Nuthatch, 1 Goldcrest, 3-4 Siskin, 1 Bullfinch, 1 Buzzard, 1 GS Woodpecker, 2 Jay, 3 Stock Dove, 1 Snipe, 2 Jay
Teal 70+ Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Shelduck, Shoveler and Mallard in much smaller numbers
No 3 Bed :
1 Chiffchaff, 1f Brambling, 1m Pintail, 2 Grey Herons, 3 Buzzards, 6 Jays, 1m Great Spotted Woodpecker, 2 Gadwall,
1m Pochard and a flock of 6 Linnets.
Mersey on and around the weir pool : 94 Tufted Ducks, 2m Goldeneyes and 1 Little Grebe.
1 House Martin, 2 Little Grebes, 1f Goldeneye and a flock of 68 Greylag Geese.
Coal Tits were making frequent visits to the feeders, together with a pair of male Reed Buntings.
Really impressive numbers of Teal and Shoveler, but only 7 Gadwall and 2 Tufted Ducks were seen.
Despite the low water level no waders were noted, neither were any raptors, or herons.
1 Hobby, 1 Water Rail, 4 Green Sandpipers, 1 Snipe, 3 Chiffchaffs, 6 Little Grebes, 6 Grey Herons, 4 Lapwings,
and 2 Wigeon(M+F).
15.00-18.00
No3 Bed :
1f Marsh Harrier, 3 Buzzards, 2 singing Chiffchaffs, 3 Common Whitethroats (2 catching insects on hogweed umbellifers),
1 juvenile Black necked Grebe, 4 adult and 2 juvenile Little Grebes, 2 broods of Pochards, 3 broods of Tufted Ducks,
a pair of Shelducks with 11 ducklings in their care and 1 Grey Heron.
A Reed Warbler showed very well in front of the South Bank screen. The harrier was mobbed by a pair of crows, however she turned on
her attackers and very nearly caught one of the corvids, who then opted to have fun elsewhere.
Only 1 pair of Black headed Gulls remain in the colony, and they are still brooding a couple of tiny youngsters.
13:00-15:00
13 Black Necked Grebe (21 reported), 3 Cettis Warbler, 4 Willow Warbler, 12 Pochard, 4 Blackcap, 3 Shoveler, Raven, 6 Teal, 3 Little Grebe, 4+ Common Buzzard, 2 Great Black Backed Gull, 5 Reed Bunting, 10 Chiffchaff, 8 Swallow, 30 Sand Martin, Lapwing, Stock Dove, Kestrel
Hides and toilet open on number 3 bed.
08.00/10.30 cold with NNW wind blowing through.
Lovely to see the Black-necked Grebes again with twelve being observed. One female Brambling the feeders. Lots of Willow Warbler, Blackcap and Chiffchaff.
Black- headed Gull in big numbers.
A few Sand Martin around and one Swallow through.
Our first visit in over two years a fabulous reserve.
Am Visit
2 Black-Necked Grebe...pair
1 Woodcock
1 Redshank
...and the Black-Headed Gull Breeding colony in full swing!
I've just been doing some digging around on the internet and it turns out this Mediterranean gull that has turned up at Elton Reservoir this week was first seen here in 2016 .
Managed to get the ring number today PRY6 ..
Saturday 13th Feb
1 Marsh Harrier
1 Sparrowhawk
1 Kestrel
2 GS Woodpecker
2 Bullfinch
15 Redwing
1 Goldcrest
32 Species seen, most lagoons at least 90% frozen
*The site is still open for local birders, with Covid protocols in place.
No3 Bed was completely frozen over, as was the old river below the footbridge.
No3 Bed : 1f Marsh Harrier and 1 Buzzard (Aggressively mobbed by an adult Lesser Black Backed Gull).
Feeding Stations : 6 Bullfinches, 1 Song Thrush, 1m Great Spotted Woodpecker and 1 Willow Tit.
4 Robins often fed amiably together below the feeders, with not the slightest sign of aggression, except to
any male Chaffinches that appeared. Singles of Pied Wagtail and Reed Bunting were the old birds seen on the ice.
River Mersey Weir Pool area : 2m Goldeneyes, 2 Shelducks, 1 Little Grebe, 25 Tufted Ducks, 8 Gadwall and 8 Shoveler.
A skein of 80 Greylag Geese circled No3 Bed, before heading off towards the East.
Large numbers of duck were scattered along the ship canal.
Highlights :- 1f Marsh Harrier, 1 Little Grebe and 1 Buzzard.
Shoveler, Teal and Gadwall numbers noticeably building up, with drake Shovelers now fully emerging from eclipse.
Waterfowl largely concentrated in the NW corner as conservation work is carried at Southern end of No 3 bed.
Tuesday 18/08/20
Highlights include
8 Little Grebe
1 Kingfisher
1 Willow Tit on feeders right of Morgan hide
1 Sparrowhawk
28 Lapwing
1 Blackcap
2 Hobby as I walked back towards Weir Lane
The following has been put out on Facebook by Woolston Eyes NR:
Keeping ourselves in line with national policy, we have now decided to close Woolston Eyes Nature Reserve until further notice. I will provide further updates, as and when the situation changes.
Stay safe
No 3 Bed :
8 Black necked Grebes, 1 Sand Martin, 4 Great Crested Grebes, 2 Little Grebes, 2 Buzzards, 1 Sparrowhawk,
2 Black tailed Godwits and 4 Chiffchaffs.
30 Pochards and 100+ Tufted Ducks were on the Mersey around the weir pool.
am visit...highlights
6 Black-Necked Grebe
4 Cettis Warbler in song
2 Ringed Plover
1 Peregrine
1 Goosander
6 Chiffchaff in song
2 Sand Martin.
Number 3 Bed CBC/BBS with Dave Bowman am...Count included
14 Dunnock
22 Robin
9 Cetti's Warbler
10 Reed Bunting
16 Blackbird
8 Chiffchaff
1 Willow Tit.
Other Sightings of Note
4 Oystercatcher
9 Black-Necked Grebe
15 Mute Swan.
Am visit highlights
3 Black-Necked Grebe
1 Black-Tailed Godwit
2 Kingfisher
and a thriving Black-Headed Gull colony.
River Mersey below Weir Lane, including weir pool.
104 Tufted Ducks, 54 Pochards (Of which only 7 were female), 27 Lesser Black Backed Gulls (All resplendant adults with some vicious territorial
fighting taking place), 2 adult Herring Gulls, 4 Shelducks and 4 Cormorants. A flock of 30 House Sparrows were at the bottom of Weir Lane.
No 3 Bed
45 Pochard, 65 Tufted Ducks, 6 Great Crested Grebes, 1 Little Grebe, 2 Buzzards, 3 Lapwings and a group of 3 male Bullfinches.
Also an impressive number of Shoveler and Teal were also seen, and many more appeared to be hiding in the reedbed.
2 adult Lesser Black Backed Gulls seemed to have taken a liking to one of the rafts positioned for their smaller Black Headed cousins to nest on.
From adjoining rafts the Black Heads viewed the bigger gulls with a kind of mistrust, obviously giving them a wide berth, battle will commence
when nesting starts.
Common Bird Count on number one bed 0730-0915 with Dave Bowman
included...
14 Wren
19 Robin
11 Reed Bunting
25 Mallard
9 Greylag Geese
2 Little Grebe
6 Skylark
2 Shelduck
2 Gadwall
6 Stock Dove
5 Song Thrush
1 Willow Tit.
R.Mersey (Weir Pool & at the bottom of Weir Lane) : 70 Tufted Ducks, 2m Goldeneyes,
3m+3f Pochard, 1 Little Grebe, 1 Great Crested Grebe and 1 adult Herring Gull.
Old River : 11 Shovelers and 2 Little Grebes. Ship Canal : Single group of 58 Tufted Ducks.
No.3 Bed : 1f Marsh Harrier, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Buzzard, 1 Snipe, 1 Little Grebe and 1 Great Crested Grebe.
Raven heard only. The Sparrowhawk was mobbed by a pair of Carrion Crows near the Morgan hide, which
turned into quite a drama. I could not confirm if the hawk was a male or female due to bad light, but it was
noticeably smaller than the crows. However the corvids clearly chose the wrong raptor to intimidate, within
seconds the hawk manoeuvred into a position behind one of the crows and grabbed it's tail. The crow then
made a noise that I have not heard any corvid scream before, but it then managed to escape and make a
quick exit across the bed. The remaining crow then began a dogfight with the hawk, but clearly the raptor
had the edge and the corvid fortunately escaped to the safety of nearby tree. For a moment it really looked
like the Sparrowhawk would bring down a crow, the bullies may think it wise to give this raptor a wide berth
from now on.
R.Mersey (Weir Pool & at the bottom of Weir Lane) :
114 Tufted Ducks, 3m+2f Pochard, 2m Goldeneyes, 2 Little Grebes and 1 Great Crested Grebe.
An additional 38 Tufted Ducks were on the ship canal.
No.3 Bed : 1 Chiffchaff (By the footbridge), 1 Buzzard, 14 Shovelers and a flock of 9 Redwings.
A steady stream of Reed Buntings were amongst the garden birds visiting the new feeding station.
A female Marsh Harrier had been reported just before I arrived.
Some Highlights 0730-1215
11 Pochard
2 Raven
1 Goldeneye
1 Kingfisher
3 Snipe
45 Tufted Duck.
Some Highlights 0730-1230
1 Raven
200 Teal...some in Courtship Display
9 Shelduck...in Courtship Display
1 Kingfisher
3 Water Rail
2 Cetti's Warbler---call only
2 Grey Wagtail.
0730-1215
Highlights
8 Wigeon
2 Chiffchaff
170 Redwing
9 Pochard
2 Goldeneye
2 Willow Tit
170 Redwing.
No.3 Bed : 6 Lesser Redpolls with Goldfinches on alders near the Tower Hide.
1m Sparrowhawk shot passed the feeders in front of the Sybil Hogg hide.
1 Tree Sparrow sat on a bush overlooking the seeded meadow.
Also seen on the bed were 2 Buzzards, 1m +2f Pochards (1 female seen in pursuit of the male,
but he did'nt seem the least bit interested), 1m+1f Bulfinches and 2 Snipe.
Old River : 30 Shovelers, 2 Little Grebes, 4 Cormorants and lots of Teal.
Mersey Weir Pool & R.Mersey at the bottom of Weir Lane : 4m Goldeneyes, 1 Shelduck, 68 Tufted Ducks,
1+1f Pochard, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 2 Little Grebes and around 60 Black Headed Gulls.
In additon to Dave's records.
No.3 Bed : 2 Lesser Redpolls with Goldfinches on alders, 1 (Possibly 2) female Sparrowhawks,
2 Kestrels, 2m Great Spotted Woodpeckers in territorial dispute, 1 Goldcrest, 2 Fieldfares (Lots of Redwings
in small groups moving around the bed) and an impressive 16 Reed Buntings (4m together on the feeders
by the Sybel Hogg hide and 9m+3f in bushes by the meadow). A fox was also seen near the meadow which
may explain why 12 Reed Buntings sought the safety of the bushes.
Old River : A group of 55 Shoveler, 13 Gadwall, 4 Cormorants and 3 Grey Herons.
Mersey Weir Pool : 3 Little Grebes, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 1m Pochard, 38 Tufted Ducks, 1 Grey Wagtail,
1f Goldeneye, 1 Shelduck and an impressive 80 Black Headed Gulls.
6 Tufted Ducks were on the ship canal.
Visit with Team Friday 1000-1315...Highlights
90 Shoveler
35 Lapwing
150 Teal
1 Kingfisher
1 Great Black-Backed Gull
1 Marsh Harrier (Immature) which gave good views on several occasions as it flew over the reedbeds of No3 bed.
Visible Migration watch from the eastern edge of the Reserve..with Dave Bowman..Les Jones..Dave Spencer..Alan Warford..Helen Allen...0630-1200...Highlights
610 Fieldfare
170 Redwing
1 Woodcock
3 Tawny Owl
2 Goldeneye
194 Pink-Footed Geese
9 Siskin
8 Lesser Redpoll
29 Teal
950 Lapwing.
Visible Migration Watch from Eastern Edge of Reserve with Dave Bowman 0645-1200
Highlights
1 Peregrine
1 Merlin
3 Golden Plover
1 Hawfinch
2027 Redwing
531 Fieldfare
130 Pink-Footed Geese
5 Lesser Redpoll
5 Siskin
6 Brambling
1 Woodcock
2 Tawny Owl
38 Blackbird
1 Raven
1 Dunlin.
2 Bearded Tits flew across the open area in front of the F.Linley around 11am,
what was probably the same 2 were seen moments later in front of the Morgan hide.
Pretty quiet otherwise. A Buzzard perched overlooking the NE corner of the bed really
upset large numbers of Teal and Shoveler, they barely settled throughout my stay.
Also seen on No 3 Bed : 2m Pochards, 1 Shelduck, 1 Little Grebe, 4 Wigeon, 4 Lapwings
and 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker.
A single Great Crested Grebe was on the ship canal, whilst 45 Tufted Ducks were on the Mersey
above the weir.
3 Bearded Tits seen this morning by Dan Owen opposite Morgan hide on No3 bed.
This follows on from the 2 Male Bearded Tits trapped and ringed on Sunday by Kieran Foster.
Grit trays will be made and deployed this week.
Hopefully they will stay for while.
-- Edited by Alan Warford on Tuesday 29th of October 2019 09:31:14 AM
-- Edited by Alan Warford on Tuesday 29th of October 2019 09:31:59 AM
N03 Bed 0730-1145 Rain Throughout
Highlights...
18 Greylag Geese
2 Kingfisher
1 Water Rail
1 Cetti's Warbler (call only)
40 + Shoveler
200 Lapwing
1 Grey Wagtail
4 Little Grebe
1 Shelduck
50 Grennfinch.
No.3 Bed :
2 Buzzards, 8 Linnets (With a large flock of mixed Greenfinchs and Chaffinchs around the seeded meadow),
3 Little Grebes, 9 Cormorants (5 by the old river and 4 catching sticklebacks on No 3), 8 Jays,
a single group of 15 Long Tailed Tits, a flock of 66 Lapwings flying East and 2 Grey Herons.
Gadwall, Shoveler and Teal appear plentiful again.
The Mersey was in flood and the current moving very quickly, which may account for a complete
lack of any diving ducks on the river or around the weirpool, only a single Mute Swan tolerated it.
There was a lack of waterfowl on the ship canal as well as the current was really racing here too.
No 3 Bed :
3 Grey Wagtails, 1f Sparrowhawk, 1 Buzzard, 1 Snipe, 1 Black tailed Godwit,
1 Water Rail, 3 Cormorants, 1 Little Grebe and 4 Jays.
A Black Tern had been seen before I arrived.
1 Green Sandpiper (Total of 3 were reported this morning), 1 Common Sandpiper,
9 Black tailed Godwits, 2 Jays, 1 Kingfisher, 2 Willow Warblers, 2 Little Grebes,
1 juvenile Shelduck and 100+ very noisy Greylag Geese.
2 Green Sandpipers, 10 Cormorants (A group of 9 were fishing for Sticklebacks together, and catching
mouthfuls on each dive), 1 Swift, 1 juvenile Sparrowhawk, 1 Buzzard, 1 Water Rail, 3 Little Grebes
and 1 juvenile Shelduck. Also, a Reed Warbler was showing really well below the Tower Hide, the
bird flitted around the top of the reeds and was seen to eat several orange insects that looked like soldier beetles.
3 Chiffchaffs were calling, and seen together in a willow bush.
1 Green Sandpiper, 1 Little Grebe, 6 Cormorants and 1 Kestrel.
15 juvenile +3 adult Lesser Black backed Gulls appeared to be a post-breeding
flock of local birds. With just one full grown unfledged Black Headed Gull youngster
remaining from this years broods, there appears to be no easy pickings left for the big
gulls now, just a few small Moorhen chicks look vulnerable.
The water level has been lowered and the bed now looks ideal for passing waders.
No.3 Bed
1 adult + 1 Juvenile Black Necked Grebes, 6 Little Grebes, 1 Green Sandpiper,
1 Black tailed Godwit, 1 Buzzard and 10 Lapwings.
3 adult Great Crested Grebes were on the ship canal opposite the car park.
No.3 Bed :
3prs + 2 single adult Black Necked Grebes, with at least 1 tiny youngster riding on it's parents back. Also 1 Little and 2 Great Crested Grebes.
1m+1f Wigeon, 1 Cormorant, 7 Bullfinches and 2 Common Whitethroats.
7 Pochards, with 1 female having a single small duckling. An adult Mute Swan had 6 half grown cygnets in tow, but no sign of the other parent bird.
Gadwall appear especially plentiful, last year I heard numerous birders express concern about a decline in numbers of these ducks, but they
appear to have made a recovery. 5 moulting male Shovelers were amongst the lethargic drake Mallards.
Swallows and the occasional Swift frantically skimmed the surface of the pool during the heavy rain.
No.3 Bed :
2 Black Tailed Godwits, 7 Black Necked Grebes, 4 Great Crested Grebes, 10m+3f Pochards, 6 Lapwings, 1f Sparrowhawk, 1 Little Grebe
and 2 Buzzards. There was a trickle of House Martins, Swallows and Swifts passing through.
River Mersey & Weir Pool :
25 adult Lesser Black Backed and 1 adult Great Black Backed Gulls. 37 Tufted Ducks, 2 Great Crested Grebes, 2 Cormorants and 1 Shelduck.
4 House Sparrows, 2m Blackcaps, 1m Bullfinch and 2 Common Whitethroats were by the footpath along the edge of No.2 Bed.
2 Buzzards soared high above Weir Lane, and 23 Tufted Ducks were on the ship canal.