7 Goldeneye from Peel Park just now, I had imagined this might be a fair sighting but reading through this thread it is to be expected. Also 4 Tufted Duck, 4 Little Grebe all catching the sun nicely.
Stuart Marsden said
Tue Sep 24 12:57 PM, 2019
Early morning - 7-7.45 am - to Kersal wetlands - good to see 4 spp of duck on the wetland - 1 wigeon, 3 teal, 2 gadwall and several mallard. Also 2 kingfisher and 5 little grebe
Stuart Marsden said
Tue Aug 27 12:16 PM, 2019
Late post from visit to Kersal wetlands yesterday just after midday. Singles of Little egret, Green sandpiper, Kingfisher, gadwall and Kestrel on the wetlands. Also 5 Little grebe and 9 Grey heron, and 2 buzzards.
James Richardson said
Sun Aug 4 4:46 PM, 2019
Little egret on the wetland earlier, flew south down the Irwell where I caught up with it. It headed back towards the wetland after.
Simon Gough said
Tue Jul 23 7:27 PM, 2019
My first Kingfisher in the locality today, doing a loop of The Meadow at Salford Crescent at about 14.30. Also a few Sand Martin and a singing Blackcap, plus some smart Little Grebes on the river. My list for the park and the Meadow is now 45, but running out of common birds to see now!
James Richardson said
Thu Jul 4 10:02 AM, 2019
One oystercatcher on the Kersal wetland yesterday afternoon amongst the usuals
James Richardson said
Mon Jun 17 9:02 AM, 2019
There were over 20 swifts, dozens of sand martins, a few house martins and even some swallows over the Irwell and adjacent Peel Park/playing fields yesterday afternoon.
All feeding very low over the water/wildflowers and affording some great views.
James Richardson said
Sun May 12 8:55 AM, 2019
An excellent morning before the dog walkers arrived, from 06:20 til 08:20ish. Highlights: 1 common gull early but flew off 2 lapwing 1 chiffchaff 1 willow warbler 1 whitethroat 2 blackcap 2 kingfisher 1 greenfinch several sand martin & 12 swift & 5 swallow all feeding together over river and wetland 1 treecreeper 1 grey wagtail 5 stock dove 1 collared dove 3 goosander on river 1 mute swan on river
Stuart Marsden said
Sat Apr 6 12:42 PM, 2019
6.40 am for an hour with Ollie Metcalfe. Similar birds to James except 2 Little ringed plover, 1 lapwing, and, unusually, a single Rook - not sure if rooks are regular round these parts
James Richardson said
Sat Apr 6 10:35 AM, 2019
And one blackcap by Salford Uni at the southern end of 'the meadow'
-- Edited by James Richardson on Saturday 6th of April 2019 10:39:04 AM
James Richardson said
Sat Apr 6 10:24 AM, 2019
Visit this morning from about 08:30. Highlights - C30 sand martin, 1 little ringed plover, 2 sparrowhawk, 1 stock dove, 3 mute swan, 3 grey heron, 5 meadow pipit, 2 grey wagtail, 1 chiffchaff, 2 great spotted woodpecker, nuthatches calling, 2 goosander and kingfisher heard on river.
Steven Nelson said
Fri Apr 5 2:08 PM, 2019
1 Goosander (m) on R.Irwell at Salford Crescent at midday today.
Stuart Marsden said
Thu Apr 4 8:14 PM, 2019
1.30- 2.50pm today - 3 Little Ringed Plover, 3 gadwall, kingfisher, 25 sand martin, 2 stock dove, 4 meadow pipit. Looked like quite a lot of water on the wetland today - the plovers seemed at home.
James Richardson said
Sat Mar 30 4:42 PM, 2019
Cycle round from 15:30ish.
Highlights were 2 kingfisher on the river, seen fishing. Up to 15 sand martin feeding over the wetland, 1 buzzard and 1 sparrowhawk circling over.
One small wader was flushed briefly by a dog, couldn't get a positive i.d.
Several lesser black backed gulls, a few herring gulls, 2 black headed gulls, 2 mute swan.
Full list @ https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S54124273
Richard Pennell said
Wed Mar 20 6:46 PM, 2019
Two observations James:
1. The river has been in flood for several days now and the detritus you see is a reflection of the water reaching levels and areas it wouldn't normally. If you want another example of that then head down to Salford Quays and have a look at the Ship Canal where you can literally walk across large swathes of it at present
2. In terms of the plastic and indeed any other waste matter I think the topic of this type of pollution has been done to death. Plastic is an undesirable and in many cases (but not always) unrecyclable product created my modern man for our convenience. What frustrates me is that the debate never asks how that rubbish finds it way in to our watercourses in the first place. It's because sadly that same modern man can't be bothered to dispose of rubbish properly, i.e. put in a bin and not just litter the streets.
James Richardson said
Wed Mar 20 6:05 PM, 2019
Currently cycling at kersal wetland.
1 sand Martin
1 chiffchaff singing
2 grey wagtails singing
1 kingfisher heard only
5 mute swans
1 grey heron
1 great spotted woodpecker heard
Plus usuals
The river Irwell is disgusting. The amount of plastic in the surrounding vegetation is unacceptable.
James Richardson said
Wed Mar 20 5:22 PM, 2019
Currently cycling at kersal wetland.
1 sand Martin
1 chiffchaff singing
2 grey wagtails singing
1 kingfisher heard only
5 mute swans
1 grey heron
1 great spotted woodpecker heard
Plus usuals
The river Irwell is disgusting. The amount of plastic in the surrounding vegetation is unacceptable.
Alex Lees said
Fri Feb 15 9:34 AM, 2019
Stuart Marsden wrote:
Yes, it means Eurasian teal - ebird is a US platform, I'm sure I can change the settings somehow.
Unfortunately the default view for folks who aren't logged into eBird is US names not displaying subspecies identities, so species names are prioritized by US common names - e.g. Mew Gull (Common Gull), White Wagtail (Pied Wagtail) etc - see comments here: https://manchesterbirding.activeboard.com/t64547516/help-with-manchester-urban-green-space-bird-surveys/?page=1#comment-65314596 if you have an account you can choose to display common names or scientific names as you see fit.
Stuart Marsden said
Tue Feb 12 9:22 AM, 2019
Yes, it means Eurasian teal - ebird is a US platform, I'm sure I can change the settings somehow. Security is OK at the moment, quite a few dog walkers around, happy enough. I imagine Spring will bring out the black-trackied ones.
John Watson said
Tue Feb 12 7:18 AM, 2019
I suspect "2 Green-Winged Teal" means "2 Eurasian Teal" ?
And how's security looking in that area - scallies not found it yet ?
Stuart Marsden said
Mon Feb 11 7:04 PM, 2019
Note that this is a list of birds I saw there on 1st Feb - full list on https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S52260335
My last visit, with Anna Reuleaux, was yesterday (10th) where I saw pretty much what Shannon saw - full list https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S52558168 plus a migrant skylark sat on the bund
First visit to Castle Irwell Wetlands this morning; wetlands and river:
3 greenfinch 2 meadow pipit 5 pied wagtail 1 grey wagtail heard 4 redwing 1 great spotted woodpecker 1 little grebe 4 goldeneye 5 goosander over 4 mute swan 4 grey heron 140+ black-headed gull 7+ common gull 7+ lesser black-backed gull 14+ herring gull 1 great black-backed gull 1 or 2 cormorant
James Richardson said
Sat Jan 5 3:13 PM, 2019
I was cycling around the new wetland this afternoon as such I didn't have the right equipment to study al the gulls properly but there was one great black-backed gull amongst the black headed gulls, and one first winter herring type gull with a clearly very pale head and small beady black eye.
My first thought was Caspian gull but this would need verification if anyone's heading there with bins/a scope.
Alex Lees said
Fri Dec 14 12:52 PM, 2018
14 Goldeneye on the Irwell by Salford Wetland today w/ Ollie Metcalf, also 5 Lapwing and a Common Snipe there, full list: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50651478
Peter Johnson said
Sun Nov 18 4:37 PM, 2018
6 Little Grebe and a Kingfisher this afternoon at Close Park.
Adrian Dancy said
Sat Oct 20 6:43 PM, 2018
2 Little Egrets at The Cliff. Sorry for the number of edits...I had problems uploading. There should now be 3 images.
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 06:47:54 PM
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 06:55:09 PM
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 06:56:14 PM
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 06:57:00 PM
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 07:01:32 PM
At least 3 little grebes on the Castle Irwell basin yesterday, also one stock dove.
Female goosander on the Irwell opposite Peel Park.
Zoe Barrett said
Sat Apr 7 4:20 PM, 2018
Todays highlights at Castle Irwell wetland
2 Little ringed plovers over
2 Lapwing
2 Oystercatchers
1 Lesser redpoll over
1 Willow warbler
1 Kingfisher
1 Little grebe
2 Goosander
57 Meadow pipits in grass - site record
Also singing chiffchaff, greenfinch, mistle and song thrushes
Zoe Barrett said
Sun Mar 25 10:08 AM, 2018
Around kersal dale / castle Irwell yesterday:
2 Kingfishers showing well
3 Chiffchaffs singing
1 Sparrowhawk
2 Stock doves
22 Meadow pipits
49 Lesser black-backed gulls
No waders yet ....
Steven Heywood said
Wed Mar 21 7:57 PM, 2018
No joy with the mandarin this afternoon but it was nice to see a dabchick and a grey wagtail under the bridge.
Five goldeneye (2 ducks with a drake and two single drakes) along the stretch between Broughton Bridge and Trinity Way. Also a rather nice male goosander sat on the river bank entirely unconcerned by the building work on the new flats.
Andy Hankinson said
Mon Mar 19 1:14 PM, 2018
It was right at Broughton Bridge, visible from the Bridge and the beginning of the path leading to Peel Park.
Zoe Barrett said
Sun Mar 18 7:48 PM, 2018
Todays WEBS count from Agecroft bridge to Hough Lane:
Sand martin 3 near Agecroft bridge Lapwing 7 - on littleton playing fields Skylark 2 - flying over Kestrel - near castle irwell Fieldfare, redwing and meadow pipits in small numbers on playing fields
-- Edited by Zoe Barrett on Sunday 18th of March 2018 07:53:21 PM
Zoe Barrett said
Sun Mar 18 7:24 PM, 2018
Nice one with the Mandarin sighting Andy - where did you see the bird exactly?
Andy Hankinson said
Sun Mar 18 3:32 PM, 2018
BTO WEBS Count this morning, Broughton Bridge around Wallness Crescent 8:20 - 9:30
Black Headed Gull - 63
Canada Goose - 35
Cormorant - 1
Goldeneye - 5 male / 3 female
Little Grebe - 4
Mallard - 7 male / 3 female / 4 hybrid
Mandarin Duck - 1 female - First I have ever recorded here
Moorhen - 1
Tufted Duck - 7 male / 2 female
-- Edited by Andy Hankinson on Sunday 18th of March 2018 03:42:33 PM
This morning on river towards Kersal dale:
1 Dunlin
1 Lapwing
3 Goosander
3 Teal
6 Goldeneye - males displaying and fighting
27 Fieldfare
Univeristy of Salford/Crescent area:
42 Tufted duck - numbers down this winter but highest count had this year
4 Meadow pipits - unusual to see feeding here
Also 5 Song thrushes and 7 redwing
Kestrel
Steve Suttill said
Tue Feb 6 1:29 PM, 2018
Pair of Little Grebes involved in some pre-nuptual display on the Irwell by the Old Pint Pot this morning.
Having moved work premises to Salford, I'll be posting from some new sites from now on. The last two places I've worked have both had Black Redstarts, so am hoping they move here - plenty of good habitat
John Sleaford said
Fri Feb 2 8:27 PM, 2018
Short walk behind Magnesium Elektron up to the old canal viaduct.
Four seperate Little Grebe
A pair of Goldeneye
Male Goosander flying upstream
Single Grey Wagtail.
Zoe Barrett said
Wed Jan 24 12:12 PM, 2018
Late post from Sunday's WEBS count from Cromwell bridge to Agecroft bridge (8.44 - 10.21)
Chiffchaff still present with long-tailed tit flock near Peel Park yesterday afternoon
Zoe Barrett said
Sun Dec 3 6:17 PM, 2017
Late post from yesterday afternoon between crescent and Boniface bridge:
Chiffchaff with tit flock making swoo noises which could be eastern/scandi race
4 Teal
4 Goosander
11 Goldeneye
16 Tufted duck
2 Treecreepers
2 Sparrowhawks
Stuart Pike said
Mon Oct 9 8:19 PM, 2017
Bullfinch (female) feeding on berries just upstream from Regent Road bridge this afternoon.
Kingfisher and 5 Gooseander in the same area during the past week.
Zoe Barrett said
Sun Oct 1 10:08 PM, 2017
1 little egret with 19 herons (yes 19!!) roosting on Castle Irwell wetland this afternoon. This is a site record for number of herons
Zoe Barrett said
Mon Sep 25 9:49 PM, 2017
1 Little egret seen on wetland this evening
Zoe Barrett said
Mon Sep 25 9:47 PM, 2017
2 ring-necked parakeets in Peel park late this afternoon.
James Richardson said
Sat Sep 2 3:38 PM, 2017
Adult yellow legged gull on the bank next to peel park earlier.
Adrian Dancy said
Mon Jul 24 8:56 AM, 2017
13 juvenile goosander near The Cliff yesterday.
Peter Johnson said
Sun Jul 2 5:41 PM, 2017
After earlier reporting a female Goosander with 5 young (on Bury Water Treatment Works thread) I have just come across another female with 6 young at the bottom of Milltown Street, Radcliffe on the Irwell. All 6 young were repeatedly diving but I think they might need a bit more practise as I didn't see any come up with fish.
-- Edited by Peter Johnson on Sunday 2nd of July 2017 05:45:09 PM
Andy Hankinson said
Sat May 13 12:05 PM, 2017
River Irwell Wallness Crescent - Beginning at Blackfriars road into Peel Park hough bridge.
12 Goosander - 6 male / 6 female
4 - Swift
7 - Sand Martins
4 - Swallows (I think) could have sworn I saw a distinct flash of red
Early morning - 7-7.45 am - to Kersal wetlands - good to see 4 spp of duck on the wetland - 1 wigeon, 3 teal, 2 gadwall and several mallard. Also 2 kingfisher and 5 little grebe
Late post from visit to Kersal wetlands yesterday just after midday. Singles of Little egret, Green sandpiper, Kingfisher, gadwall and Kestrel on the wetlands. Also 5 Little grebe and 9 Grey heron, and 2 buzzards.
All feeding very low over the water/wildflowers and affording some great views.
An excellent morning before the dog walkers arrived, from 06:20 til 08:20ish. Highlights:
1 common gull early but flew off
2 lapwing
1 chiffchaff
1 willow warbler
1 whitethroat
2 blackcap
2 kingfisher
1 greenfinch
several sand martin &
12 swift &
5 swallow all feeding together over river and wetland
1 treecreeper
1 grey wagtail
5 stock dove
1 collared dove
3 goosander on river
1 mute swan on river
6.40 am for an hour with Ollie Metcalfe. Similar birds to James except 2 Little ringed plover, 1 lapwing, and, unusually, a single Rook - not sure if rooks are regular round these parts
-- Edited by James Richardson on Saturday 6th of April 2019 10:39:04 AM
1.30- 2.50pm today - 3 Little Ringed Plover, 3 gadwall, kingfisher, 25 sand martin, 2 stock dove, 4 meadow pipit. Looked like quite a lot of water on the wetland today - the plovers seemed at home.
Highlights were 2 kingfisher on the river, seen fishing. Up to 15 sand martin feeding over the wetland, 1 buzzard and 1 sparrowhawk circling over.
One small wader was flushed briefly by a dog, couldn't get a positive i.d.
Several lesser black backed gulls, a few herring gulls, 2 black headed gulls, 2 mute swan.
Early visit today 7-8.20am - 1 green sandpiper (wetlands then river), 1 oystercatcher (flew off), 7 sand martins, 1 skylark, 4 meadow pipit, 1 chiffchaff, 1 goosander, 8 coot, 1 kingfisher, 1 stock dove.
Full list @ https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S54124273
Two observations James:
1. The river has been in flood for several days now and the detritus you see is a reflection of the water reaching levels and areas it wouldn't normally. If you want another example of that then head down to Salford Quays and have a look at the Ship Canal where you can literally walk across large swathes of it at present
2. In terms of the plastic and indeed any other waste matter I think the topic of this type of pollution has been done to death. Plastic is an undesirable and in many cases (but not always) unrecyclable product created my modern man for our convenience. What frustrates me is that the debate never asks how that rubbish finds it way in to our watercourses in the first place. It's because sadly that same modern man can't be bothered to dispose of rubbish properly, i.e. put in a bin and not just litter the streets.
Unfortunately the default view for folks who aren't logged into eBird is US names not displaying subspecies identities, so species names are prioritized by US common names - e.g. Mew Gull (Common Gull), White Wagtail (Pied Wagtail) etc - see comments here: https://manchesterbirding.activeboard.com/t64547516/help-with-manchester-urban-green-space-bird-surveys/?page=1#comment-65314596 if you have an account you can choose to display common names or scientific names as you see fit.
Yes, it means Eurasian teal - ebird is a US platform, I'm sure I can change the settings somehow. Security is OK at the moment, quite a few dog walkers around, happy enough. I imagine Spring will bring out the black-trackied ones.
And how's security looking in that area - scallies not found it yet ?
Note that this is a list of birds I saw there on 1st Feb - full list on https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S52260335
My last visit, with Anna Reuleaux, was yesterday (10th) where I saw pretty much what Shannon saw - full list https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S52558168 plus a migrant skylark sat on the bund
Originally posted today by Stuart Marsden:
This morning on the wetlands & river
Jack Snipe 1, reed bunting 9 together, gadwall 2, meadow pipit 11, pink-footed goose 1 feeding with 155 Canada geese, tufted duck 11, goldeneye 10, teal 2, little grebe 2, GBB gull 2, siskin 3
3 greenfinch
2 meadow pipit
5 pied wagtail
1 grey wagtail heard
4 redwing
1 great spotted woodpecker
1 little grebe
4 goldeneye
5 goosander over
4 mute swan
4 grey heron
140+ black-headed gull
7+ common gull
7+ lesser black-backed gull
14+ herring gull
1 great black-backed gull
1 or 2 cormorant
My first thought was Caspian gull but this would need verification if anyone's heading there with bins/a scope.
14 Goldeneye on the Irwell by Salford Wetland today w/ Ollie Metcalf, also 5 Lapwing and a Common Snipe there, full list: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50651478
6 Little Grebe and a Kingfisher this afternoon at Close Park.
2 Little Egrets at The Cliff. Sorry for the number of edits...I had problems uploading. There should now be 3 images.
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 06:47:54 PM
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 06:55:09 PM
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 06:56:14 PM
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 06:57:00 PM
-- Edited by Adrian Dancy on Saturday 20th of October 2018 07:01:32 PM
Female goosander on the Irwell opposite Peel Park.
No joy with the mandarin this afternoon but it was nice to see a dabchick and a grey wagtail under the bridge.
Five goldeneye (2 ducks with a drake and two single drakes) along the stretch between Broughton Bridge and Trinity Way. Also a rather nice male goosander sat on the river bank entirely unconcerned by the building work on the new flats.
It was right at Broughton Bridge, visible from the Bridge and the beginning of the path leading to Peel Park.
Black-headed gull 258
Canada goose 58
Common gull 1
Goosander 3
Goldeneye 26
Great crested grebe 1
Grey heron 1
Grey wagtail 6
Herring gull 1
Lapwing 1
Mallard 49
Moorhen 4
Mute swan 1
Pied wagtail 3
Teal 2
Tufted duck 2
Incidental records of note:
Sand martin 3 near Agecroft bridge
Lapwing 7 - on littleton playing fields
Skylark 2 - flying over
Kestrel - near castle irwell
Fieldfare, redwing and meadow pipits in small numbers on playing fields
-- Edited by Zoe Barrett on Sunday 18th of March 2018 07:53:21 PM
BTO WEBS Count this morning, Broughton Bridge around Wallness Crescent 8:20 - 9:30
Black Headed Gull - 63
Canada Goose - 35
Cormorant - 1
Goldeneye - 5 male / 3 female
Little Grebe - 4
Mallard - 7 male / 3 female / 4 hybrid
Mandarin Duck - 1 female - First I have ever recorded here
Moorhen - 1
Tufted Duck - 7 male / 2 female
-- Edited by Andy Hankinson on Sunday 18th of March 2018 03:42:33 PM
Having moved work premises to Salford, I'll be posting from some new sites from now on. The last two places I've worked have both had Black Redstarts, so am hoping they move here - plenty of good habitat
Black headed gull 33
Canada goose 191
Common gull 2
Cormorant 2
Dipper 1
Goldeneye 48
Goosander 3
Grey heron 1
Grey wagtail 2
Little grebe 1
Mallard 30
Moorhen 6
Teal 7
Tufted duck 5
Kingfisher and 5 Gooseander in the same area during the past week.
After earlier reporting a female Goosander with 5 young (on Bury Water Treatment Works thread) I have just come across another female with 6 young at the bottom of Milltown Street, Radcliffe on the Irwell. All 6 young were repeatedly diving but I think they might need a bit more practise as I didn't see any come up with fish.
-- Edited by Peter Johnson on Sunday 2nd of July 2017 05:45:09 PM
River Irwell Wallness Crescent - Beginning at Blackfriars road into Peel Park hough bridge.
12 Goosander - 6 male / 6 female
4 - Swift
7 - Sand Martins
4 - Swallows (I think) could have sworn I saw a distinct flash of red
1 - Juvenile Cormorant
3 - Grey Wagtail
2 Heron
1 - Moorhen
2 - Mute Swans
22 - Mallards - 20 male / 2 female