I'd suggest that someone nearby has a pond and he has an eye on the ornamental fish.....

Hi

Not quite longford park but barely half a mile away.

I am occasionally visited by a Heron who stands on a roof behind my house. There seems no purpose. He stays for 20 minutes or so being repeatedly mobbed by a crow or two and less bold gangs of magpies. Anybody any suggestions what this behaviuour might be about?

Regards

Gervase

a long walk this afternoon from 2.30pm started here...

1 treecreeper
1 sparrowhawk
1 nuthatch
8 mistle thrushes
2 stock doves
blue/great & long tailed tits
goldfinches & chaffinches
plus all usual birds around.

10.45-12.00pm

nice flock off redwings in the tall trees near cottages 100+ making a lot off noise,and several singing which was nice to hear.

1 nuthatch
2 goldcrests
3 siskins
4 mistle thrushes
plus lots off usual birds around the park.

forgot that we also saw a Stock Dove on our walk through the park.

Another cut through the park on my way to the Mersey Valley - only this time I turned back at Turn Moss (see my other posts today for why).

Redwings 40+
Magpie (a number of small groups of 4-6)
Common Gull 8
Treecreeper
Long-tailed Tit (8)
Mistle Thrush (2)
Blue Tit (several 2s)
Blackbird
Wood Pigeon
Greenfinch
Robin
Carrion Crow (8)

Another cut through the park on my way to the water parks (43 species for the whole walk not bad as an alternative to doing some work).

Small flock of Redwing (c. 12) flying from the Edge Lane side towards the middle of the park.
5 Mistle Thrushes on the bowling green
6 Common Gull on the old pitch and putt course
2 very noisy Nuthatches in the big trees near what was the main house. They were there last week too.
1 Coal Tit - I was pleased to see it as the local population seems to have plunged

Nothing else of note

Took a quick look at the park on my way to the Mersey Valley:

25 Redwing (the most reliable place to see them on my local patch at the moment)
Great Tit
Long-tailed Tit
Blackbird
Black-headed Gull
Blue Tit
Magpie
Wood Pigeon
Mistle Thrush
Robin
Common Gull (the most numerous Gull there today)
Carrion Crow
Starling

A large flock of Redwings (40+) in the park today feeding with a few Mistle Thrushes and the odd Blackbird (on the playing field bit). There was a smaller flock of around 12 Redwings near the flower garden. Also saw a flock of 7 or 8 Long-tailed Tits - not unusual but always nice.

11.15-1.00pm
1 great spotted woodpecker
2 treecreepers
1 goldcrest
2 jays
8 mistle thrushes
2 greenfinches
13 goldfinches
4 chaffinches
8 common gulls
50+ starlings
crows, magpies, blackbirds, robins, wrens
good flocks off long tailed tits inc blue/great & coal tits.

12-2pm
2 blackcaps
1 swallow (over)
1 great spotted woodpecker
8 nuthatches
2 goldcrests
4 jays
1 song thrush
plus plenty off the usuals...
blue/great/coal & long tailed tits
mistle thrushes/blackbirds/starlings/house sparrows
chaffinches/goldfinches/wood pigeons
jackdaws/crows/magpies
b h gulls/common gulls

also one very tame wood pigeon almost eating out off my hand.
a pleasant couple off hours in the lovely sunshine.

Probably feeding on a flying ant hatch

As I read the new posts from bottom to top, replied to this before I saw Pete's in the other post

-- Edited by Mike Chorley on Wednesday 24th of August 2011 08:10:30 PM

-- Edited by Mike Chorley on Wednesday 24th of August 2011 08:10:49 PM

Saw a curious event on tuesday afternoon.

Not exactly in Longford park but over longford road near the park on the chorlton side.

300+ Gulls circling silently in the clear blue skies. They seemed to be doing something, maybe even feeding. Mostly BHs but a few Commons and larger 1st year species.

Anybody got any idea what this behaviour could have been? I watched them for a good 10 mins. It was quite a beautiful spectacle.

Cheers

Gervase

Hello

I recently moved from very close to the Ees to very close to Longford park (I'm actually near the scrubby bit in the east that is not actually the park). Thanks for the tips. I will try and get some early morning sessions in. May bump into you down there.

Cheers

Gervase

I've just dug out an old note-book : 200+ Brambling alongside the tennis courts on 20th November 1985 and c150 there the following day. I think they were found by the late Rick Burnett. Top listers John Gregory, Richard Walker and Graham Talbot used to share a house on Rye-Bank Rd, Chorlton in '85/86 backing onto the park but I don't know if they found anything there ?.

Paul Wilkins wrote:

---

Although I've not managed to get the PF either I think it is worth noting that Longford Park seems to be much more promising than you might think at first. I usually just nip through on my way to the Mersey Valley but even so as well as the things you guys are listing as recent spots and my LSW I have (in the last three months) seen Tree Creeper, both Winter andboth resident Thrushes, Heron, Stock Dove, Greater Spotted Woodpecker and much more. A week ago there were three Sparrowhawks wheeling overhead, very high but making a fair bit of noise. One of the three kept taking a poke at the second while the third looked on. My guess was that I was watching two males disputing the right to approach a female but I don't really know.

Anyway, my point is that perhaps the park is worth closer attention than it has been getting.

paul

---

hi paul, yes this park is worth paying closser attention. after finding the pf,& yourself the lsw,and pete with his gropper there is lot more to this park than you think. the gardens do have plenty off goldcrests,treecreepers,coal tits and buzzing with lots others. also had nuthatches,gsw & sparrowhwaks,buzzards overhead. it really is good,i did have 50+ waxwings on the 20th march.

hope to bump into you at some point,steve.

Although I've not managed to get the PF either I think it is worth noting that Longford Park seems to be much more promising than you might think at first. I usually just nip through on my way to the Mersey Valley but even so as well as the things you guys are listing as recent spots and my LSW I have (in the last three months) seen Tree Creeper, both Winter andboth resident Thrushes, Heron, Stock Dove, Greater Spotted Woodpecker and much more. A week ago there were three Sparrowhawks wheeling overhead, very high but making a fair bit of noise. One of the three kept taking a poke at the second while the third looked on. My guess was that I was watching two males disputing the right to approach a female but I don't really know.

Anyway, my point is that perhaps the park is worth closer attention than it has been getting.

paul

cheers iain went back today for another wonder round,no luck. bumped into pete hines and showed him where it was exactly,no luck for him too. did carry on looking after pete and i split up,but still no luck. went to look in the scrubby area adjacent to longford rd for the gropper that pete heard,did not hear or see anything.
other birds off note...
blackcaps,willow warblers,nuthatch,swallow
starling,blackbirds,robins,wrens,wood pigeons,
collard doves,magpies,greenfinch,goldfinch,
chaffinch,sparrowhawk, mistle thrush,blue/great/long tailed & coal tits.

Gropper reeling in the scrubby open area adjacent to the park by Longford Rd 2.40pm

No sign of the PF (Steve searching also)

Steve - well spotted on the ring!

Pete - the PF was in the trees immediately behind the cottages located in the centre of the park, as Steve mentions between the cottage gardens and the pitch and putt course.

I had a stroke of luck yesterday bumping into Steve halfway across the pitch and putt course whilst trying to work out where the PF was as its quite a big park.

A great find Steve - well done mate.

Blimy I'd just walked though there after dropping the car off for MOT in Old Trafford. I'll take my bins when I walk back !

silly me has forgot too mention where it was exactly, it was in the oak trees on the footpath in between the gardens and pitch and putt just before the cottages.

went to find the lesser spotted woodpecker in longford park,but no joy. but did manage to find a pied flycatcher never thought i would see one off them on my local patch,absolutely amazing. it is always nice to have someone else to confirm that you are not seeing things, and i had the pleasure off meeting iain johnson(great to meet you sure we will bump into each other again). after finding it again me & iain observed it for a while,i tried to get pics but not joy when you are looking up at birds. we then went to look at where the lsw was originally seen,but no luck. other birds seen...
blue/great/long tailed/coal tits
chaffinch,greenfinch,goldfinch,
wren,robin,blackbird,mistle thrush,
crow,magpie,starling,wood pigeon,
collared dove,song thrush,nuthatch,
treecreeper,sparrowhawk and willow warbler.
also blackcaps (heard only)
after leaving iain i did go back to see if the pied flycatcher was still there and it was,so i observed it for another half hour before heading home for my tea at 6.30pm.
iain it did have a metal ring on its right leg.

No Paul, the opposite seems true I'm afraid. I've not personally heard of this report from Sale WP other than an anonymous report from the sightings board there apparently, which no one knows anything about!

One LSW very active and calling in the taller trees Wednesday afternoon. First one I've seen round here (in 20 years) but I heard that one had been spotted recently near Sale Water Park. Are they on the increase locally?

-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Thursday 14th of April 2011 08:31:44 PM