Early this morning on t'moor in a bitterly cold wind:

At least 2 pairs of Golden Plover + a flock of 5 circling round. Plenty of Red Grouse displaying and a flyover Raven.

The big shock was a Dunlin. Shouldn't be back here until mid-April

Lots of golden plover on 'the moor' today, calling and singing, also red grouse, kestrel and a peregrine over.

Chris Jepson-Brown

Saddleworth Moor this morning in definitely wintry conditions (-1C and an eye-watering wind)

4 Golden Plover (all in GM this time) some calling and one actually singing!
about 20 Red Grouse

3 Canada Geese, 2 Crows and 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls flew over.

No Rough-legged Buzzards.

This aft, in quite wintry conditions, not a lot, but:
buzzard, near Upperwood House
and a walk up onto Hollin Brown Knoll yielded two ravens and lots of red grouse.

Chris Jepson-Brown

Juv rough legged buzzard hunting alongside the A635 above Crowthers farm near dovestones at 12.10pm

That could well be the same as mine Mark, coming from the right direction, ie from the transmitter area.
Ken

Juvenile Rough-legged Buzzard seen briefly at 1505hrs on Saddleworth Moor above Dovestones Reservoir with 2 Common Buzzard before heading back towards Holme Moss. Drove back along the A635 into West Yorkshire and picked up a Rough-legged Buzzard high up over the mast on Holme Moss.

Thanks Ian/Mark,
went up at 15.30 when I saw this post, saw it straight away from the road, cruising from Wessenden , near Upperwood house , SE 030064, managed to pull in and use bins - trending towards Diggle area, Broadstone trig point. Interesting, I saw a pair around 25 years ago at Broadstone.....some wait for another there, eh?
Got some fairly silhouettey grab shots.
Cheers
Ken

Juvenile Rough-legged Buzzard flew over onto Saddleworth Moor in Greater Manchester at 1:50 today. Two juvenile birds are on nearby Holme Moss within Derbyshire and it was one of these birds which flew off into GM and is currently being looked for.

Info thanks to Mark Rigby

Saddleworth Moor this morning in thick fog.

Only birds seen were Red Grouse, but plenty of Golden Plover proclaiming territories (though mostly on Yorks side of the Pennine Way) mainly calling but some already singing.

Oystercatcher on Dovestone res today. Same as last year early on, using the pontoons.
Cheers
Ken
Oh, forgot, weds pm, 4 Golden Plover on Wessenden, white moss/pennine way north area.............

-- Edited by Ken Gartside on Sunday 15th of February 2015 09:22:46 AM

Thanks David, that's on my BBS route, I'll keep an eye out.
Cheers
Ken

Monday 9th February 2015, 7.45pm

Wool Road, Dobcross

Female Tawny Owl calling opposite The Navigation Inn

35 Red Grouse on Saddleworth moor yesterday in the snow - two close flocks of 19 and 16, roosting/feeding together.
White moss car park area.
Never seen as many at once, but this part isn't shot over............
Brambling easily seen at Binn Green, 4 to 6, plus all the usual in feeding frenzy with the cold weather.
No Short-eared Owls, again, Chris!
Cheers
Ken

-- Edited by Ken G on Thursday 5th of February 2015 10:55:24 AM

-- Edited by Ken G on Thursday 5th of February 2015 10:14:11 PM

1.30 pm today. Redwing in the back garden of one of the houses on the road leading to the Pool and Leisure Centre in Uppermill.

Two rather magnificent short-eared owls, on 'the moor', where the Cotton Famine Road crosses Featherbed Moss, this aft'. Also, numerous red grouse. Conditions were tundra-like.

Chris Jepson-Brown

First walk on Saddleworth Moor this year. Sprinkling of snow overnight and a bitterly-cold wind.

Half a dozen Red Grouse and a hunting Peregrine the only birds on the tops. On the drive up there I had to brake sharply as 4 Red-legged Partridges strolled across the road by Upperwood House. Kestrel hovering nearby. Usual Pheasants everywhere in vicinity of Binn Green.

Kingfisher on Diggle duck pond at 1320

49 Mallard
Moorhen

Saturday 25th October 2014, 3.30pm

High Street, Uppermill

Dipper calling on River Tame, flew upstream under bridge
Grey Wagtail on river

Stroll along the county boundary on Saddleworth Moor this morning.

Dozens of Red Grouse, all very vocal.
Half a dozen Meadow Pipits
Male Kestrel hunting
Common Snipe flushed from pool by footpath.

Saturday 30th August 2014, 4.00pm

Male Merlin low over the A635 just over the county boundary

Saturday 23rd August 2014, 4.00pm

High Street, Uppermill

Dipper feeding in the Tame, practically under the bridge

-- Edited by David Walsh on Saturday 23rd of August 2014 08:34:54 PM

A completely knackering day up on t'moor.

My good lady dropped me off on the county border this morning to do a 3 hour breeding wader survey, which is nearly all just over the county border so I'll spare you the details. However a Golden Plover and its attendant Dunlin page did follow me back to the very edge of Greater Manchester

I then had to walk back home to Mossley . Walking across Little Moss there were a few more Golden Plover, Red Grouse, Skylark and Meadow Pipit. One of the latter flushed from my feet to reveal a nest with four eggs (new GPS activated to enable Nest Record Card to have accurate details!). Then the rain (and some hail) started!

Cutting back to the main road, a Dipper flew over my head - never seen one at this altitude before! And, as I passed Binn Green, a Cuckoo could be heard calling from the valley near Yeoman Hey and Dove Stone.

A hot bath and some Ibuprofen and I've just about recovered!

Two Grey Wagtails feeding three juveniles below the main bridge in Uppermill plus two very active Dippers

Wharmton Hill

16 Golden Plover flying around the surrounding fields

Ladcastle Road, Dobcross

4-5 Willow Warbler
5 Chiffchaff
Blackcap
2 Long-tailed Tit
5 Lesser Redpoll

First Dunlin of the year back on t'moor this morning

Also, usual Golden Plover, Curlew, Red Grouse & Meadow Pipits, plus Kestrel.

Early morning visit to t'moor yesterday. Lost in the clouds there was very little to see, though a Lapwing was an unusual visitor to the peat pools on the very top.

Marvellous to listen to the chorus of Curlew, Golden Plover, Meadow Pipit and Red Grouse without actually seeing any!

Much quieter this morning, but it was literally freezing with some small patches of snow in sheltered spots.

Raven - 2 by the roadside
Golden Plover - just the one pair on the county boundary
Curlew - 1
Red Grouse - only 3 seen
Meadow Pipit - 2
Skylark - 1

Even colder on the moor this morning - and very misty.

6 Golden Plover in the county (and a couple more in Yorks) mostly paired up and behaving territorially. Calling and even a bit of singing

Red Grouse everywhere making plenty of noise.

Male Reed Bunting on the county border - a first for me up here.

Wouldn't normally be up on the moorland plateau at this time of year, but volunteers blocking drains up by Chew Resr last Monday reported 35-40 Golden Plovers.

Took a look at White Moss & Featherbed Moss, north of the Holmfirth road, after lunch today and spooked 5 Golden Plover on the Yorkshire side of the path. They conveniently flew into Greater Manchester briefly before settling back in Yorks.

Only other birds present were Red Grouse. Not surprising: 2 degrees C (without accounting for the wind chill) and some small patches of snow. Moor is the wettest I've ever seen it. If the volunteers block any more drains they'll need to raise the footpath by six inches!

Dipper singing on river from main bridge in uppermill this morning

5.30 this evening, seen on my way home from work

Barn Owl hunting within the central island on the M62.
(2 Owls in 2 days a Tawny Owl in Boothstown yesterday evening, like waiting for a bus wait for ages then 2 turn up.

Hi all, thought you may be interested to know.

Adult Red Kite visited for a few hours this afternoon, over tame valley Delph.

It came in from over High Moor, headed up Tame Valley Delph, Back over Heights toward Castleshaw, it then came back over the valley several times, harassed by crows,it gave as good as it got, back up toward heights, then over toward high moor again, only to come back over our land up the valley again, finally about 5.30 back up toward Castleshaw.

I am not a birder, just a keen enthusiast, who keeps some sheep on the tame valley, did try to get video on my phone but each time it came back over it was a little too high for my phone.
We were in awe, as it is the first time ever we have seen a kite, rang my friend who is a birder to confirm sighting.
Absolutely made up.

Uppermill.

A nice plump Dipper heard singing, and then seen, from the bridge at Kenworthy Road.
It's a bit off my patch, but as I'll be working here for a few weeks, hopefully I'll get
a few more views.

Tawny Owl calling in the centre of Uppermill last night at 10:30 ish

50 House Martins passing over Swan Meadow Delph - 12 noon.
3 Grey Wagtails on River Tame in Delph (1 juvenile)

Spotted Fly catcher in garden at Delph at 9.30am.

Two singing Dippers along the river in Uppermill this morning - one next to the park and another next to the playing fields towards Greenfield. Also two juvenile Grey Wagtails and a Lesser Redpoll flew over.

Delph - Kingfisher on River Tame in village at 10am.
Buzzard circled over St Chads Church Uppermill at 1500hrs.

Even quieter this morning on the moors.

No Golden Plovers at all and just a couple of juvenile Dunlin. All in all, it seems to have been a good breeding season for most species up on the tops. Plenty of Red Grouse with big families (until mid August anyway!).

All rather quiet on the moors this weekend - apart from the whining of mossies in my ears!

Most of the waders have left already (a sign of a successful breeding season?) but this was compensated for by the sight of a Short-eared Owl hunting over some Greater Manchester moorland. In all my years of bog-trotting I've regularly seen these owls in West Yorks but this was a county first for me!

Steve

Saturday 29th June Midday

Garden Warbler at Dobcross same area as last year
2 Calling Chiffchaff
Good numbers of young Willow Warblers being feed by adults
Family paties of Wrens, Blue Tits, Great Tits and Robins



-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Sunday 30th of June 2013 09:30:24 AM

Late news

Mon 6th May

Buzzard ,Hobby and Swift at back of Wharmton Hill. 40 Golden Plover flying over.

Tues 7th May
Tawny Owl - vocal in Delph. Grasshopper Warbler reeling at midnight and following morning at 5.45am. Also heard Thurs 8th May in morning.

Heights, Delph 5th May

Hobby seen flying past Heights Church at 1800 flying south - towards Dovestones

Saturday 14.00 hours

Ladcastle road

1 Chiffchaff calling
Willow Warbler several calling

First Dunlin back on the moor this afternoon

Peat restoration team seem to have finished their work just in time.

Saddleworth Moor. This morning early. Only snow left in the deepest gullies; moor wet (rather than frozen solid) for the first time this year; very strong SE wind suppressing all bird activity.

Only 3 Golden Plover - rest presumably hunkering down out of the wind.
3 Meadow Pipit.
No audible or visible Red Grouse.

Peat restoration team arrived, so I decamped to Rimmon Clough which was a bit more sheltered: more Meadow Pipits, Golden Plover and Red Grouse heard, 2 Raven, Mountain Hare.

Saddleworth Moor. Yesterday morning early. Little snow left.

c14 Golden Plover (6 in the county). Mostly paired up. More singing than last week - some display flights noted.
6 Meadow Pipit - also indulging in display flights.
Curlew heard only.
2 Raven flying low heading east.
Usual Red Grouse .

Bracing walk on the frozen tundra of Saddleworth Moor this morning 0745-0845. 2 degrees below (disregarding the wind chill!)

At least 8 Golden Plovers determined to establish their territory despite the weather. Mainly males - calling and some singing.
Just a couple of Red Grouse.
Only other bird was a fly-over Gt Black-backed Gull.

Plenty of Mountain Hare footprints in the snow but the only one seen was a roadside casualty.

-- Edited by Steve Suttill on Saturday 30th of March 2013 09:52:48 AM