Friday 3 October, 1.00 - 2.00 p.m.

Bright sunshine but a cold wind. C. 80 Canada geese, 30 immature house sparrows, 10 mallard, 12 teal, 10 moorhen, two dozen BHG coming and going, robin singing, several blackbirds, 6 woodpigeon, 3 crows, 10 magpies, pair of pied wagtails. No lapwings or starlings at all. Didn't see any snipe, swallows or heron.

2nd October.

Early afternoon.

Good numbers of Teal (26) and Snipe (7).

c70 Black-headed Gull, 2 Common Gull, 1 Kestrel, 2 Jay and 1 Meadow Pipit.

Very worryingly had a brief view of what almost certainly was a Mink in the water of the Rochdale Canal adjacent to this location.


Bill.

Tuesday 23 Sept, 1.00 - 1.30 p.m.

The usual large numbers of Canada Geese, Lapwings, starlings, with smaller numbers of gulls, moorhen, magpies, crows, house sparrows.Robins singing, A few woodpigeons, plus a couple of swallows. Mallard seem to have deserted the pools today - no heron or teal either. Two pied wagtails by the horses, one grey wagtail by the canal bridge.

Monday 15 Sept,Tuesday 16 Sept.

Large numbers of the usual species present on Monday c. 3.00 p.m.
100 lapwings
70 Starlings
70 Canada geese
50 BH Gulls
30 Mallard 5
Teal 8
8 moorhen
7 magpies
2 Crows
20 house sparrows
6 woodpigeon

Greatly reduced numbers on Tuesday, mid afternoon - c. 30 lapwing, 30 Canada geese.40 starlings, 6 mallard, 2 crows, 6 magpies, 2 woodpigeon, small number of gulls, 7 moorhen. No teal.



Driving away later past Hopwood playing fields, most of the gulls and starlings seemed to have decamped here c. 120 BHG, 75 starlings

-- Edited by Colin Buckley at 18:41, 2008-09-16

Brief visit to Higher Boarshaw at 12.45. Only viewed from canal, from where you can't see the largest pool - you have to go up the lane a couple of hundred yards to see that well, and this is where teal, waders, etc are most common, and with binocs only. Lots of Lapwings and starlings, plus the usual Canada geese, moorhen, mallard, magpies, crows, pied wagtails. Not many gulls. When I was there, no passage of swallows/martins, nor lapwings over Tesco warehouse.

-- Edited by Colin Buckley at 21:49, 2008-09-12

12th September - early afternoon.

Lapwing - 80+ on the ground and further 100+ in the air over the nearby Stakehill Industrial Estate.
Starling - 240+.
Teal - 10, possibly11 birds present today.
Snipe - 3.
Swallows - 35+ moving in a south-westerly direction low over the ponds. A handful of House Martins with them.
Meadow Pipits - 5.

Cheers,

Bill.

Wednesday 10 September, 1.30 p.m.

Nothing new. Far fewer gulls than before, ( though including (I think) an immature herring gull); rather more lapwings than recently, c.80. Numbers of mallard, Canada geese, starlings, magpies, moorhen, crows, swallows, wagtails have seemed pretty stable most days recently. There is usually a single heron.

Tuesday 9 September, 2.30 p.m.

As yesterday, minus the heron, but with three teal. The elderberries seem to have lost their attraction.

Monday 8 September, 3.00 p.m.

The usual suspects. Swallows and heron - missing yesterday - have returned. Lots of starlings and a good number of wood pigeons gorging themselves on elderberries.

Sunday 7 September, 2.00 p.m.

Much as yesterday, though no heron, nor any swallows.
Pair immature pied wagtails, plus feral white duck, paired up with a mallard

Saturday 6 Sept, 2.00 p.m.
Young Grey Heron
c. 90 Canada Geese
c. 50 Lapwing
c.30 Mallard
5 Moorhen
2 Pied Wagtail
5 Swallows
c. 30 B H Gulls
3 Crows
9 Magpies
c.20 juvenile House Sparrows
1 Mistle Thrush
c 40 starlings

-- Edited by Colin Buckley at 16:26, 2008-09-06

Thursday Sept 4th, noon.
Carrion Crow
c.120 Canada Geese
c. 50 starlings
c 50 Lapwings
Mute Swan
c. 30 Black Headed Gulls
c.30 Mallard
5 Moorhen
7 Magpies
3 Blue Tits
4 Pied Wagtails

Hi Bill,
Thanks for the info I do actually no the site in fact I run past it every week when I,m out training. I' ve never bird watched it though. A few years ago I did see a flock of Waxwings in the hedgerow near the bridge.

Thanks again Bill I'll try and pay it a visit soon as a bird watcher

Dave

Hi Dave,

The approx. OS grid ref of the site is SD885071. If you approach from the Slattocks roundabout at the Stakehill Industrial Estate and take the A664 towards Middleton - at the second set of traffic lights turn left into Stanycliffe Lane - follow this until the first mini-roundabout and go left off the roundabout up past Middleton Cemetery/Crematorium which is on your right and the road will eventually end before you reach the Rochdale Canal. You can park anywhere around here and just go over the small hump-backed bridge over the canal and the area in question is to your left.

I think the site is actually only 3 ponds set amongst a few fields - with horses and sheep being grazed here. The ponds are relatively undisturbed - I don't think anyone other than horse riders have access to the ponds - therefore they can only be viewed from the canal towpath or the path that runs up the southern side of the lodges. Potentially the site could be good but I would guess due to the location - is probably very underwatched. The muddy margins can be very good for Snipe in the winter. If you walk north along the canal towpath for a few hundred yards there is an small area to the east of the canal with one of the few areas of decent scrub found locally. In summer this can be good for several species of warbler and in winter can hold decent sized flocks of Redwing. A Willow Tit was found in this area a couple of winters ago.

Hope this is of some help.

Best wishes,

Bill.

Hi Bill,
is it possible to give more details on the location of the Boarshaw site .

I used to live and work in Middleton but dont know this one.

cheers Dave Phillips.

A few years back a few of us had 5 (or was it 6?) Black-tailed Godwits at this site - and during the autumn does get a few waders passing through.

Dave

Just to follow on with Bill`s excellent sighting of the Black Tailed Godwit, incidently a new Rochdale bird for me! Whilst waiting for the bird to appear I did a count of birds at the site as follows:-Grey Heron,Canada Goose 130, Teal 5,Mallard 85,Kestrel,Moorhen 8,Lapwing 70,Snipe 2,Black Tailed Godwit,Herring Gull(juv),Black Headed Gull 40,Wood Pigeon 6,Swallow 32,House Martin 12,Pied Wagtail 40, Dunnock,Blackbird 2, Magpie 8, Starling 45, House Sparrow 3,Goldfinch 6.
Good Birding,David Ousey.

1st September. A single Black-tailed Godwit. 5 Teal. Have visited here a few times recently hoping to find Yellow Wagtail amongst the good numbers of Pied Wagtails foraging around the feet of the horses and sheep here. No luck yet! Other recent records here:- 21/8 - c120 Canada Geese. 26/8 - c40 Goldfinch, c35 Lapwing, c20 Pied Wagtail. 27/8 - 1 Whitethroat. Cheers, Bill.