2.30-3.30pm

2 LR plover
2 ringed plover
3 dunlin
oystercatcher with 2 well grown young
moorhen with her one remaining chick

Lots of mud now exposed as the water level continues to fall.

7.30-8.30pm

10 tufted (8 males)
8 GC grebe
3 heron
3 LR plover
oystercatcher feeding 1 well grown chick
flock of 150+ starlings
kestrel
plus usual

Sunday, 1st June (6:20pm)

Ringed plover
2 Little Ringed Plover
3 Common Tern

Info thanks to Phil Rhodes

Thank's Melanie.

Hi Peter l saw this once on a programme with Gordon Buchanan (Wildlife Cameraman),where a viewer had watched them doing this on The Isle Of Mull,so Gordon went up there and filmed them.l was off to Mull on holiday that year,the areas with rocks and water were littered with shattered mussel shells,l watched and all the crows had adapted this behaviour...so l guess the short version of my answer would be.....yes!!

Went fishing on Rumworth yesterday and watched a crow for a good 15 minutes as it picked up an object (I think it was a swan mussel but can't be sure) in it's claws, flew to a height of about 20 feet and dropped it. It did this at least 12 times until finally I heard a crack as the object hit a stone, (the bank is mainly dried mud with stones scattered about) this must have done the trick as it then landed, and (I assume) ate whatever it was and flew away.
Is this common behaviour?

26/5/08 early am

Dunlin 1
Redshank 1
Ringed Plover 2
LRP 3
Oystercatcher 4
Common Tern 4
Reed Warblers 2+ singing
Tufted Duck 6
Little Grebe 1
Stock Dove 2
Linnet - 2 family parties.

-- Edited by Simon Warford at 18:03, 2008-05-26

2.30-4.00pm

2 LRP and 1 RP feeding together on the newly exposed mud as the water level is falling fast.
oystercatcher wading out to locate swan mussels then bringing them on land and opening them.
pied wagtail.
common tern
mallard still with 7 young
moorhen now seems to be down to 2 chicks but they are well grown.
plenty house martins, swifts and swallows.

24/5/08 mid pm

Redshank 1
LRP 2
Oystercatcher 4 adults plus 2 young
Common Tern 4
Tufted Duck 4
Little grebe 1

5.00-6.00pm

2 LRP
mallard with 7 well grown young
4 tufted
moorhen with young but keeping them well hidden, I only spotted one.
2 heron
oystercatchers but didn't spot any young ones although did see one yesterday.
remains of one canada which was sitting, but seems to have been eaten by a fox.
plenty swifts, swallows and house martins
kestrel

18/5/08 pm

2 L R Plover
1 Ringed Plover
2 Common Sandpiper
Oystercatcher with at least 2 young
2 Sedge Warblers
Good numbers of Swallow, House Martin and Swift.

Plus usual.

Dean.

16/5/08 pm

Little Ringed Plover 3
Common Sand 1
Common Tern 1 - they dont seem to be settling here at all this spring.
Grasshopper Warbler 1 reeling in the marsh
Tufted Duck 3 pair.
Stock Dove 2
Otherwise v quiet

13/5/ evening.

1 L R Plover
loads of Swallows, landing on the islands.
Oystercatcher no longer sitting, no sign of any young though. Could have been hiding on the other side of the islands.
4 Tufted
6 Gt Cstd Grebe

Crackin close encounter with a Fox.

Dean.

Late pm, water level dropping.

1 Common Tern
Whitethroat
2 L r Plover
Kestrel

plus usual.

9.30-10.20am

LRP
moorhen with 5 tiny chicks
4 oystercatchers
2 pair tufted still not showing signs of breeding
4 heron
6+ male mallard
1 cormorant
plus usual

9/5/08 1.30- 3.30pm

Lesser Whitethroat, crackin view in hedgerow leading down to water, before it flew off over the lodge.
Whitethroat
Reed Warbler
Sedge Warbler
Raven
2 L R Plover
3 Heron
6 at least Gt Ctd Grebe
2 Little Grebe
4 oystercatcher


Dean.

Yep you're right Ian, Steve Almond Sorry Steve

Steve Arnold or Steve Almond? If you mean one of Rummies regular watchers then it'll be Almond

7/5/08 7-9pm with Steve Arnold.

1 Ringed Plover
2 Little Ringed Plover
2 Common Sandpiper
2 Raven
40-50 Jackdaw
6 Oystercatcher


Dean.

5/5/2008 late pm

2 Female Whinchats showing well 5pm on top of bullrushes in marsh. Twitched by Pete Lane just after finishing his round of golf.
plus usual.

2- 5pm today in the sunshine

2 L R Plover
2 Common Sanpiper
1 Sedge Warbler
female Sparrowhawk
Kestrel
Raven attacking a wood pigeon
2 Common Tern
1 Little Grebe
6 Tufted Duck
6 Great Crested Grebe
2 Cormorant
Swifts
Swallows
Reed Bunting
L B B Gull

Dean.

This evening 7-8.30pm

3 Dunlin
1 Common Sandpiper
4 Oystercatchers
2 Common Tern, they didn't come in till about 8.15
2 Cormorant
4 Lapwing

Dean.

Today 10.00 to 11.30 with Phil Rhodes

2 Dunlin
2 Little ring plover
4 Oystercatcher
2 Common tern
19 Swift
3 Sedge warbler
1 Wheatear

Thanks Pete. I'd only been there about 10 mins when the heavens opened. Spent the next hour sheltering in the trees

Cheers Dean.

Hi Dean, the Dunlin were on the Islands, but not staying in one place for long, most of the time they were on the shoreline, scurrying about.

Pete/Steve Where abouts were the Dunlin? I went yesterday afternoon and didn't find any. Although it did chuck it down while i was there so visibility wasn't great.

Cheers Dean.

also a mallard with 7 very small ducklings.

Today with Pete Lane 09.45 to 11.00

3 Dunlin
1 Common sandpiper
4 Oystercatcher
2 Common tern
7 Swift
50 Swallow
20 Sand martin
10 House martin
1 Wheatear

Today with Phil Rhodes 11.00 to 13.30

7 Dunlin
2 Little ring plover
1 Common Sandpiper
4 Oystercatcher
1 Sedge warbler
3 Wheatear
3 Swift
100 Swallow
20 Sand martin
3 Common tern

10.30-11.00am

Be warned!!! The farmer has been muck spredding the last couple of days, you need a strong stomach to go near!

only one cormorant (probably driven away by the smell!)
4 oystercatchers (a fishing friend told me he found one dead this week)
plus all the usual.

2.30-3.30pm

3 common tern

the oystercatcher no longer sitting, no sign of it or any young but it did sit for about 20 days so worth keeping a watch. The other pair now settling down.

20/4/2008 late pm

Common Tern 2
Common Sand 1
Oystercatcher 4
Cormorant 11
Stock Dove 4 with woodpigeons
plenty of hirrundines incl 3 House Martins.

Me and warfy senior

-- Edited by Simon Warford at 20:44, 2008-04-20

Walked round this morning, leaving mud hut at 10.

8 Oystercatcher
1 Common sandpiper
50 sand martin
20 Swallow
1 house martin
2 Linnet
2 Jay


Also monday pm with Phil Rhodes & Pete Lane
1 Curlew
3 Common sandpiper
4 Oystercatcher
40 Sand martin
10 Swallow
1 House martin

Yesterday dropped or rather waded in after visit to Burnt Edge. Interesting patch. Nothing to add on birds seen though missed sandpipers and Sand Martins much reduced from the morning's report - 1st Swallows of the year for me though.

There should be a sign there:

Welcome to Rumworth Lodge. Twinned with Passchendaele

10.00 to 12.15 With Phil Rhodes

3 Wheatear
7 Oystercatcher
2 Common sandpiper
70 Sand martin
20 Swallow
1 House martin
1 White wagtail
3 Jay

1.00-1.30pm

Still 15 cormorants (should they not be gone by now????)
4 oystercatchers (one pair still showing no signs of breeding)
5 tufted
15+ sand martins

cold and miserable!

Both Green and Common Sandpiper present today at 10:20.

Info thanks to Phil Rhodes

Thursday 9.40 to 12.40

1 Willow warbler
6 Oystercatcher
10 Sand martin
25 Swallow
2 Common sandpiper
1 Little ring plover

The binman said "There was a b----y great buzzard right over your house, while you were talking to your next door weighbour" I said yes there was one over yesterday as well!!! Little did I know his "buzzard" was an osprey and I missed it!!!!!!!!

surely the binman never saw it carrying off one of Pete's fish from his garden pond??

Someone ask Pete what the binman said to him at around 10.38am

-- Edited by Steve Almond at 21:08, 2008-04-09

Time of Osprey was 10.38 precisely.

Do we have a time for this Osprey - is it the same as passed over east 3km S of J26 of M6, reported on Birdguides? That was also flying E (most fly N so perhaps same?)

9/4/08

OSPREY over Rummy this morning, flying East over Ladybridge estate..........................(right over your houses Steve & Pete !)

Info thanks to Phil Rhodes

Today 10 to 11.45

7 Oystercatcher
1 Little ring plover
1 Green sandpiper
20 Swallow
15 Sand martin
1 Buzzard
4 Reed bunting

Sunday 2.00-3.30 in addition to Steve's sightings:-

2 teal
2 pied wagtail
2 grey wagtail

today 11.00-11.30 with Steve Almond

2 goldeneye
14 cormorants
7 GCGrebe
5 tufted
reed bunting
plus usual

Today with Phil Rhodes 10 to 12.15

1 Chiffchaff
15 Sand martin
2 Swallow
4 Oystercatcher
1 Wheatear
1 Snipe
2 Goldeneye

Hi Steve, this could be the barn owl that i spotted on 31/12/07 at about 5 am on syndale way between the m61 and the a6 westhoughton. ps just a thought.

Walked round today 9.00 to 11.30 with Pete Lane

11 Tufted
30 Sand martin
4 Oystercatcher
1 Curlew
1 Skylark
3 Reed bunting
1 Chiffchaff

Had a chat with farmer Stan Terry who reports seeing a Barn Owl on Lock Lane near his farm on 23/3 at 8pm. It was sat on a post near his muckheap and is the first he has seen on the farm.

Pete, according to The Birdwatchers' Handbook (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye & Pimm, OUP 1994) the incubation period is 24-27 days, predominantly by the female.