horrocks flash evening 25/06/08
1 litle ringed plover
1 ringed plover
3 oystercatchers
a very busy gull/tern colony

bryn marsh
went to watch the starling roost 8.30 to 9.16 quite impressive now, the pylon was getting full with every perch full and the trees in the middle of the marsh had turned starling brown/ black ,anticipating a bit of a swirling display i was a bit dissapointed when every last one of them took to the air and 'did one' towards horrocks and didn,t look back (judith estimated 4k from overhead counts the other day) i,d reckon more like 5 or 6 i,m going to try and count them from the photos:

int starlings lovely geoff

Bittern on the19th.
I know its not good news that a Bittern had to be put down( can't broken wings be cured?) but what was it doing there on the 19th June( obviously not enjoying the weather), is this not the breeding season?. Better stop now or I'll get into trouble with young Warfy
Cheers Ian
edit...................
Perhaps it was the pies that everyones always on aboutthat it was there for

-- Edited by Ian Campbell at 22:45, 2008-06-25

Sadly a Bittern hit the wires above Pearson's Flash on 19th June, and sustained a badly broke wing. A local person found it and it was taken to RSPCA Stapeley Grange wildlife hospital, where it had to be put to sleep.

Cetti's - apparently they stop singing in July and August.It did survive the fun day, next to its preferred haunt, on 7th June but to the best of my knowledge has not been heard or seen since 9th. Maybe it has moved to yet another part of the flashes complex - there is plenty of choice!

-- Edited by Judith Smith at 21:20, 2008-06-26

25/6/08 early a.m.

2 Common Sandpipers on Scotmans and a single on Horrocks,
Grasshopper Warbler & Willow Tit at Moss Bridge,
Gadwall still with 7 chicks on Horrocks, also a Kingfisher up and down the canal.

Checked the Cetti`s Warblers territory twice but neither sight nor sound of it.

Two broods of Tufted Ducks today at Horrocks Flash

19/06/08 19.00 horrocks till dark
gulls and terns all busy as normal

2 little ringed plover
2 ringed plover
3 oyster catchers
2 drake pochard
1 pied wagtail
1 snipe (bit of star this time of year)

cheers geoff

17/6/08 mid-morning, Horrocks Flash.

Gadwall with 7 chicks on Horrocks front pool,
Ringed Plover,
2 Oystercatchers,
2 Curlews over W @ 10:55
drake Pochard,
pair of Shoveler.

horrocks flash front pool,no surprises gulls and tern chicks doing well ,it,s easy to get complancent when there on your doorstep but it,s a proper treat to watch the comings and goings and constant bickering on the islands.

cheers geoff

Three broods of Pochard ducklings on Pearson's Flash tonight, one containing 2 ducklings of another, unmentionable species. Also another lone Pochard duckling, but this may have become detached from one of the other broods.

horrocks flash 08/06/08 evening

all the usual with 1 little ring plover 3 lbb gulls 1 herring/yellow leg?? funny light effects and not enough 'gulling' stops me calling that one.Ive sorted the communal terns out,seems i was wrong there are two nests very close together one with 3 chicks all the same size and the other has a single much larger chick who is certainly piling on the ounces as it loafs around.

cheers geoff

horrocks flash 07/06/08 evening till dark
2 ringed plover
2 lapwing
4 great crested
lots of bh gullls and comon terns sitting, 2 tern nests with with three or four chicks between them,lots of movment betwen both nests looks a bit communal very confusing to sort out who,s who but very nice to watch lots of little wing flapping and begging.

cheers geoff

Lesser whitethroat (I think) last wednesday , forgot to mention it. along the railway line next to horrocks.

small brown bird with white outer tail feathers? i tried to find it again but it was hiding in the undergrowth.

31/5/08 Early a.m.

Cetti`s Warbler on view between Moss Bridge and the metal foot-bridge,

2 Cuckoos on Ince Moss landfill,
Ringed Plover on Horrocks,
Pochard w/3 chicks on Bryn Marsh.

According to a regular dog-walker he saw the Cattle Egret ("white heron with a yellow beak") yesterday perched along the canal opp. Horrocks.

horrocks flash 30/05/08 evening

3 oystercatcher
2 ringed plover
1 grey heron (juv)
1 pied wag with 1 juv
200+ starlings headed for the roost a bryn marsh
7 mistle thrush (family?) over
1 kingfisher
1 very small tern chick begging in the nest (first one this year )
on the way home,blackcap,chiffchaff generally birds in profusion.

and yes ian we do

cheers geoff

Yes we are lucky Ian, but I wish we had some of your wader habitat !

Visited 2 till 3 p.m. today, 1st time for ages. Lots present and was very impressed, we generally have to work much harder for our birds at Elton !! Only disappointment was not seeing, or hearing the Cetti still, can't have everything I suppose.
I hope the local patchers here realise how lucky they are.
Cheers Ian

30/05 8-9am quick amble round the area to the left of the hawkley entrance

cettis heard and seen in flight right by entrance (first time ive seen it)
family of chiff chaff, jay, also by entrance
great views of two very young dabchick with parent on the small pond
large family of great tits
blackcap, whitethroat, possible garden warbler heard

horrocks flash 29/05/08 evening

1 little ring plover
1 male pochard
3 ringed plover
12 swift
3 oystercatchers
3 grey heron
a host of gulls and terns

cheers geoffand at least one blackcap on the walk back (another heard only thanks to my mp3 thingy)


-- Edited by Geoff Hargreaves at 21:41, 2008-05-29

crikey those swifts get a bit too close for comfort sometimes dont they? they'll take someone's eye out one of these days.

horrocks 26/05/08 evening
3 pochard
1 teal
3 oystercatchers
2 ringed plover
50+swift
37 crows
all gulls, terns as usual
cheers geoff

26/5/08 Early a.m.

Cetti`s Warbler to the left of the entrance gate at Hawkley.

2 Buzzards over Bryn Marsh,
Little Ringed Plover on Horrocks Flash,
Garden Warbler along towpath opp. Bryn Marsh.

The Cattle Egret was in the field opposite Horrocks Flash with the cows about 1pm - saw a photo of it from a new birder (Jack) who had seen it from the railway path.

The usual Tern and Gull activity on Horrocks this morning. Some of the terns are as usual on perilously low islets. Other than that 1 each of Ringed and Little Ringed Plover and a coupleof loafing drake Pochard

22/5/08 (06:15 - 10:00)

As well as Gary`s sightings (must`ve just missed you pal ) saw the following ;

CETTI`S seen very well, left of screen @ Hawkley Reedbed

Cuckoo perched on pylon @ Bryn Marsh,

2 Little Ringed Plover, single Ringed Plover, 2 Oycs, & Kingfisher on Horrock`s Flash

cattle egret roosting on horrocks this morning watched the egret prening and generally doing very little but a welcome lifer tick for meit flew over the canal to be wioth its friends at 9.30.
2 ringed plover,common terns,bhgulls,4 pochard,34 canadas,6 greylags,4 great crested grebe.
strange never heard any sedges this morning.
first dragon and damsel flies for me this morning heres wishing for a hobby.

Cetti's Warbler singing loudly this afternoon on the path to the screen from the main path, and the Cattle Egret on Horrocks Flash tonight at 2015hrs.

Finally saw the Cattle Egret at my fourth attempt, yesterday (Monday) from 8:00pm onwards on Horrocks' Flash. Seemed settled for the evening - just occasional preening and the odd wing stretch during the half-hour I spent watching it.
(Nice to meet up with Geoff and friends at the flashes a week or so ago, too).
Cheers, Ken

19/5/08 (06:30 - 09:30)

CETTI`S WARBLER showing well, just to the left of the entrance gate near Hawkley School.

Common Sandpiper on Scotman`s,
2 Ringed Plover & 2 Stock Doves on Horrock`s Flash, plus usual numbers of Common Terns (c20) & Greylags.
6 Bullfinch along towpath opp. Bryn Marsh.

horrocks flash 18/05/08
having spent all day in the fields,just outside of the flashes boundry the cattle egret has returned to roost on the front pool of horrocks ,i can,t say for certain but i,m sure i heard it giggle as i walked up the towpath.

cheers geoff

nice morning on the flashes with jimmy meadows and rob thorpe doing,our team event so no list or details available,but a hobby flew over scotmans, high and fast don,t think it was hanging around,and wasn,t seen again during the six and half hours it takes to walk round every one of themroll on next year

cheers geoff

The Cetti's still singing its little head off and showing briefly on and off,(you can hear it from the roadside)and the Cattle Egret in the 2nd field up from the canal with the cows.

horrocks flash 15/05/08 evening cattle egret flew over from fields at 20.30 and settled into top right hand corner of front pool ,lost to view after ten minutes of top class county birding

wigan flashes rock, geoff

Cattle Egret showing amongst the cattle at same location 14.40
Cetti's very vocal, though elusive and mobile
1 Redpoll at Horrocks

15/5/08 (05:30-08:45)

1st Summer MED GULL on Horrock`s Flash 07:10 - 07:40 then flew West. It had an elongated yellow ring on its left leg and a small metal/white ring on its right. Unfortunately couldn`t read the letters/numbers.

superb views again of the CETTI`S to the (Edit) left of the screen at Hawkley Reedbed.

CATTLE EGRET present in cattle field opp Horrock`s @ 09:00 (per Dave Broome)

Lesser Whitethroat @ Moss Bridge,
2 Ringed Plovers, 2 Oycs, and a Snipe on Horrock`s,
2 Shelduck over Hawkley.

-- Edited by Ian Woosey at 10:54, 2008-05-15

Andy Makin had the Cattle Egret tonight, about 8pm, on the pool adjoining the canal. He's also seen it at that time on other evenings, if anyone has yet to see it.

I had a trek over the footpaths I described in my email yesterday. Found 16 Greylags, the hybrid, and the pinkfoot + a large flock of cattle including bulls (sign on stile warning of these) but no egret. However, that field does go a long way back and is undulating, and the egret could have been there but I wasn't going to get involved with the cattle!

Just had a couple of hours over Horrock's. No sign of the Egret and just the cetti's singing in the same area as Ian.

Did get a quick view of a Goldcrest just of the path between the metal bridge and the canal.

That's the fifth visit with no sign of the Cattle E. But me and the other half will keep trying.

13/5/08 (05:30-08:30)

The CETTI`S WARBLER was singing in the area between Moss Bridge and the metal bridge over the brook.

Cuckoo at Bryn Flash,
Ringed Plover on Horrock`s,
Gropper at Moss Bridge.

No sign of the Cattle Egret, though the herd of cattle is fully visible.

There was plenty of cattle in the field opposite Horrock's this afternoon, but i couldn't see the Egret... Also a strange looking Canada/Mutant goose on Horrock's that i havn't seen before. Nothing else of note, apart from three youths skillfully balancing on top of the viewing screen at Pearson's Flash

ringed birds,pleasantly surprised to capture a sedge warbler on my camera i noticed it has a ring on it,s right leg is this done on the flashes or has the bird 'adopted us' from elsewhere.

cheers geoff

belated report from sunday morning 11/05/08 hawkley reed bed cettis calling and showing well (at last brian you can'move on')for some.all quiet on scotmans with 2 great crested doing that mirror trick very nice to observe and 6 lbb gulls guzzling in the middle.Grasshopper warbler at moss bridge 'reeling' but refused to show despite having four or five birders willing it to,Despite a three pronged search, brian did horrocks I found my way to fields behind bamfurlong(as judith as described) and len(nice to meet you)covered the cow fields to no avail in the egret search all in all a very pleasant morning on the flashes

cheers geoff

There is a public footpath from Bryn Gates Lane (signposted Police Station from the A58 at Bamfurlong on a bend). You can drive down to some cottages opposite a small wood, and then on foot (as there is a gate across the road) through a farm, then down by the side of Park Brook Farm. This is a public footpath so don't be put off by any local opposition! Keep to the footpath and it gives a reasonable overview of the surrounding fields. At a point near the new lake, it turns right and continues parallel to the canal, and eventually brings you out on the A58 again just a little higher up than the turning onto Bryn Gates Lane. Some of the fields are rape, but some should have cattle in them by now.

Horrocks Flash - early am, 12/05

Cattle Egret showed briefly at 7.00ish at eastern end of Horrocks, before flying into cattle field across the canal with some geese and out of view. did not return within next 30 mins.

also present, usual terns, gulls, geese. 2 Oystercatchers, 1 LRP, 6 lapwing, 4 Pochard, PF Goose.

at last after more hours and visits than i care to remember finaly the cettis showed very well at about noon, watched it for 5 minutes on and off nr the metal bridge, no sign of cattle egret or grey plover today.

searched for cattle egret 2.00-4.30pm no signs of the bird
lots of other stuff about whitethrotes,willow warblers,skylarks,tits.
counted 25 commonterns on horrocks and a few more in the air.lots of canadas about with chicks arnt they cute

cattle egret still with cattle in field opposite horrocks this morning and cetti's still in hawkley reedbed showing well on and off

Info thanks to john raynor

horrocks flash grey plover still present 6.00

cheers geoff

Nice to meet and chat with you Craig, best view of Cetti's for me to date.
Cheers Keith.

At last - I've seen it - Cetti's showing fairly well in the willows on the right just before you go over the steel bridge coming from Hawkley School. Thanks to Keith Pilling who helped me dig it out. Nice to meet Declan too.

horrocks, evening till dark,cattle egret near top right hand corner till spooked by powered glider thingy,grey plover still present and now that i can see it properly it is a grey plover,thanks to rob ,ian w and judith helping me i.d it last night.also 1 teal and 1 pochard mooching around.

cheers geoff