I'm pretty certain that the Heron was killed by a fox which has been very active in the SSSI and the scrapes area for the last couple of months, it also caught a Canada goose two weeks ago from around the scrapes. I watched a fox stalk a Heron last month on the SSSI though it did not manage to catch it.

Jason Dulhanty wrote:

---

Rindle road area
11.50-14.30
Loads of Birders looking for Cuckoo, no luck I'm afraid
Buzzardsx2
Kestrel on the way in
Whimbrel field 67
Chaffinchx4
Willow warbler
Pied wagtail
Lovely pair of Treecreepers
Usual Tits
Mistle thrushx3
Song thrush
Lots of noisy Wrens
Carcass of Bird(poss Grey Heron) top end of the SSSI
Cheers Jay
Dont twitch and drive

---

Jason, Carcass was definitely a heron - it was there on Saturday when a little more recognisable. Not a bird I've seen predated very often, no clues what killed it as marking on quill bases an what bits had / hadn't been eaten was inconclusive

Fairly comprehensive coverage of Astley, Chat, Irlam and Little Woolden Mosses this afternoon produced a total of 87 Wheatear (the largest number in one field being 19 in the grassy section of no.67), 3 Yellow Wagtail, single White Wagtail and all the usual excellent birding.

Rindle road area
11.50-14.30
Loads of Birders looking for Cuckoo, no luck I'm afraid
Buzzardsx2
Kestrel on the way in
Whimbrel field 67
Chaffinchx4
Willow warbler
Pied wagtail
Lovely pair of Treecreepers
Usual Tits
Mistle thrushx3
Song thrush
Lots of noisy Wrens
Carcass of Bird(poss Grey Heron) top end of the SSSI
Cheers Jay
Dont twitch and drive

I'm glad you saw them Rick after you left the other very wet day, the sun came out and two Grey Partridge appeared in field 67. You were long gone by then but l felt bad as l knew it was your bogey bird. Best wishes...

A massive thank you to Martyn for putting me on to my first ever grey partridge! This has been a bogey bird for me for years and it's great to finally see one. It's ace getting lifers, no matter how embarrassingly common they are. Cheers.

09.30-12.00

Rindle Road

1 Mistle Thrush,1 Cuckoo (heard near cottages), 1 Lapwing plus1 Whimbrel on the field South of the cottages.

Rindle Wood

1 Cuckoo (probably the one calling near cottages) perched on the edge of the wood, then moved onto a fencepost before dropping down onto a newly ploughed field to search for grubs "thrush style".

Astley Moss

Just a few Meadow Pipits and Woodpigeon over the moss, plus a single Jay.

Scrapes Area

7 Willow Warblers,1 Chiffchaff, 2 Reed Buntings, 2 Common Whitethroats, 4 Mistle Thrushes and a single Grey Heron.

Bedford Moss

2 Linnets, 2 Reed Buntings, 1 Mistle Thrush, plus a Cuckoo calling near the railway.

Popped out for a quick visit this evening whilst the sun was shining - when I got there it had all but disappeared. Highights were:

• 9 Wheatear, 1 Swallow and 1 Mistle Thrush down Moss Lane
  
• 2 Whimbrels, 1 Kestrel, 1 Wheatear, 1 Yellowhammer, 1 Lapwing, 1 female pheasant and 1 Grey Partridge in Field 67
  
• 2 Grey Herons, 1 Carrion Crow and several Woodpigeons over
  
• 1 Brown Hare in grassy field behind field 67
  
• Nice to meet Jason Dulhanty, Rick Hall and A.N. Other down Rindle Road
  

P.S. No sight or sound of the Cuckoo(s) on this quick trip, and as I set off for home in my car it just started raining - perfect timing!

-- Edited by Martyn Jones on Monday 29th of April 2013 08:45:31 PM

11.00 - 13.00, Of note.

Moss road area.
Whitethroat
Mistle thrush x 3
Oystercatcher x 2
Grey Partridge

Rindle road F67,
Whimbrel
Mistle thrush
Yellowhammer x 3

Moss SSSI,
Chiffchaff x 3
Whitethroat
Meadow Pipit
Reed Bunting
Pied Wagtail
Buzzard x 2









-- Edited by Mark Burgess on Sunday 28th of April 2013 03:11:31 PM

9.15-10.00am Irlam Moss
Only time for a quick visit

2 Willow Tit- pair in Dixons Wood
1 Curlew
5 Lapwing
2 Pied Wagtail -pair
3 Meadow Pipit
1 Buzzard
2 Mallard
2 Canada Geese
1 House Martin
1 Swallow
1 Blackcap
4 Willow Warbler
2 LB-b Gulls
c40 BH Gulls

This morning 11.45 - 12.45

Whimbrel in field 67
11 Wheatear in adjacent field
1 Grey Partridge
2 Yellowhammer along feeding track

one very dead heron at the entrance to the SSSI

18.00-20.15 this evening.

Field 67
Whimbrel
Curlew
2 Oystercatchers
3 Wheatear
2 Grey partridge
7 Yellowhammers
9 Black headed gulls

The rest of Astley moss was very quiet except for 3 Buzzards and 3 pairs of Willow tits.

18.00-20.45 this evening on Astley moss.

Whinchat [m] seen in the far corner of field 69 while walking beside the potato fields.
Yellow wagtail flying over field 67 heading South
Blackcap and 2 Treecreepers in Rindle woods
4 Wheatears still in field 67
Also seen;
Whitethroat
Plenty of Willow warblers all around the moss
2 Grey partridge
2 Willow tits
4 Lesser Redpoll
2 Linnets
5 Reed buntings
3 Buzzards
Kestrel


No Cuckoo again!!

10.30 to 13.30

Rindle:
Grey Heron - 1
Kestrel - 2 (or same bird twice)
Swallow 15+
House Martin 1

Grey Partridge 2 (Field 67, ploughed part)
Wheatear 6 (Field 67, grassy section - hard to be sure how many as they appear and disappear in the grass, even though it's not that long)
Mistle Thrush 1

SSSI:

Reed Bunting 3
Common Buzzard 2
Numerous Willow Warblers and one or two Chiffchaff singing

Cuckoo - 1 Took off from trees behind the scrapes at far end, and flew off over the moss towards Windy Bank.

Moss Lane:

Lapwing 15
Jackdaw 6 (aerial altercations with lapwing)
Stock Dove 14

Croxden's:
Deathly quiet.
Few Wood pigeon, Black Headed and Lesser Black Backed Gulls and corvids over.


Amazing how wintry all the vegetation around the SSSI is still looking.




-- Edited by Paul Richardson on Wednesday 24th of April 2013 04:10:40 PM

A few hours this afternoon - no Cuckoo

But: 2x Kestrel 2 x Buzzard (Nook Lane area)
1 x Sparrowhawk (Viridor Roundabout, that)
Mallards
1 Yellowhammer (Rindle Wood)

1 Wheatear (Female)

19-00- 19.50
Rindle road
Wheatear (m)
Yellowhammer
Mallardsx6
Kestel
Buzzard
Cheers Jay
Dont twitch and drive

Cream crown marsh harrier flew west parallel to tip access road from tip towards morleys hall area at 6 35pm and appeared to drop in that area. 3 wheatear along moss lane and 17 stock dove.

This evening,

I found the Whimbrel at 19.40 at the back of field 68 as I was counting the Wheatears, it flew off North.
At least 31 Wheatears in both f68 and f67 with also;
Curlew
3 pairs of Grey partridge
6 Yellowhammers
5 Goldfinch
Grey heron
Jay

No Cuckoo but plenty of Birders, nice to meet you all again

Nice to meet many new forum faces today.

No Cuckoo, but 10:00am for a few hours produced

5 Wheatear
3 Grey Partridge
1 Buzzard
2 Oystercatchers
Some Yellowhammer and Reed Buntings

plus Teal pair on SSSI

Afternoon visit 13.00 - 14.45, Of note.

Moss road area.
Buzzard
Oystercatcher x 2
Grey Partridge x 2
Wheatear (m)
White Wagtail
Swallow x 3

Rindle road F67/69
Mistle Thrush x 2
Yellowhammer x 2
Pied Wagtail
White Wagtail
Wheatear (m)
Sparrowhawk

No sign of Whimbrel or Cuckoo.

Other birds seen this morning in addition to the Cuckoo between 8.15 - 11.00
4 Wheatear (11 seen by David Wells)
2 Mistle Thrush
Curlew
Grey Partridge
4 Oystercatcher
2 Buzzard
Yellowhammer
Pied Wagtail
4 Long Tailed Tits
6 Lapwing

good to meet forum members and lurkers including Dave Wells, Martyn Jones, Melanie Beckford and the Jon Doherty

Thanks , I was looking under Astley Moss no wonder i couldn't find it
Cheers

Hi Karl
It's on the Chat Moss page of the main Manchester Birding website at:
http://www.manchesterbirding.com/chatmossfieldnumbersmap.jpg

Anybody got a map of this place with field numbers on it for people who haven't been before ?
Cheers

Astley Moss 8.30am
Male Cuckoo seen flying to the row of dead trees at the edge of the moss itself (by the entrance of the 'flooded footpath'). It briefly landed in the trees giving excellent views before setting off again.

Curses iPhone spell check. Cuckoo on fence at edge of field 69 spending a lot of time on the floor in the adjacent field

Cuckoo showing well on fence btw field 67 & 69 now

-- Edited by Jon Bowen on Sunday 21st of April 2013 01:08:54 PM

I cant believe the little buggar called after I went for a walk never mind.

the cuckoo was still present on the fence posts of field 69 when I walked back past at 7.20pm.

whimbrel was in field 59 at 7.10pm.

finally caught up with a yellow wagtail at mosslands farm (f18) it then flew into f19

martyn, glad it got you out of doing some dirty work

Male cuckoo finally heard calling at about 6pm after being silent on the fence posts and in field 69 for much of the afternoon as per Steven's and Dennis' reports. Whimbrel flew out of field 67 and over the railway tracks towards 12 Yards Road at about the same time. Red-legged Partridge and two Oystercatchers down Moss Lane.

Thanks to Steven Burke for his Cuckoo posting today - I immediately stopped clearing the junk out of my garage and headed off for the moss (any excuse will do!).

More acurate info now after checking on map. Whimbrel in feild 67. And cuckoo on post in feild 69. It also spent a lot of time on the floor feeding in the same area. Cheers Dennis

Cuckoo showing now 5pm on fence posts in next field to the left of feeding track

Just my luck!! Been every night but Thursday and again this morning till after lunch ! grrrrrrrr.......

Male cuckoo currently on fence posts of field 69 and has been there for the last 20 mins hopping down onto the ground occasionally

Whimbrel still showing well in field 67 mid morning, also 40 Wheatears between field 67 and Moss Lane.

10.15-11.15am Irlam Moss

1 Whinchat - in cattle paddock behind Woodbarn Fm
2 Golden Plover - in f52 almost in full summer plumage was a surprise
1 Wheatear - m f52
2-3 Yellow Wagtail
1 Blackcap - singing m
1 Swallow
4 Willow Warbler
2 Chiffchaff
2 Pied Wagtail - pair
1 GS Woodpecker
3 Canada Geese
2 Tufted Duck
7 Mallard
Lots of Lapwing - birds in most fields
2 Sparrowhawk
2 Buzzard
1 Kestrel
2 Stock Dove
1 Siskin over north




-- Edited by Steven Nelson on Saturday 20th of April 2013 03:49:12 PM

Cuckoo heard calling on Astley Moss this morning at 6:30.
You said it may be back this weekend Dave. Right again!
Whimbrel in same field as last night.

Whimbrel now in field 67

27 Wheatear in field 67 at the moment

12 till 2
Rindle road area
Kestrelx2
Buzzardx3
Reed Bunting
Yellowhammerx2
Treecreeper
Lapwingx4
Pheasantx3
Mallardsxloads
Canada Geesex3
Jay
Willow warblerx6
Wren
Robinx3
Chaffinchx4
Long tailed titsx2
Usual Corvids
Single Swallow
Cheers Jay
Dont twitch and drive

8 wheatear all within a few yards of each other along moss lane ths evening (3females)
Singing whitethroat in scrub at junction of moss lane and rindle road.

Rindle Road and Astley Moss areas- Late report from Monday 15th: ( 5.45 am to 7.20am)


Grey Heron
Canada Geese
Mallard
Pheasants
Grey Partridge (4)
Sparrowhawk
Moorhen (2)
Lapwings
Curlew (sev.)
Black-headed Gulls
Lesser-black-backed Gulls (sev. over)
Stock Doves
Wood Pigeons
Barn Owl (1)
Skylarks (heard only)
Wrens
Dunnocks
Robins
Song Thrushes (5/6, all only heard)
Redwing (1 over)
Blackbirds
Chiffchaff- a good scatter
Great Tits
Blue Tits
Treecreeper 1 ( Manchester ones seem to sing louder than ours in Durham??- almost deafening close up!)
Magpies
Carrion Crows
Starling
Chaffinches
Linnet 1 ( solitary one perched high)
Goldfinches- lots
Yellohammer 1

Quick half an hour or so...
Swallow
Grey Partridge
Yellowhammer
Lapwing
Pied Wagtail
Mallards
Whimbrel

A Rabbit chasing the Grey Partridge made me giggle

-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Tuesday 16th of April 2013 09:50:37 PM

And two Oystercatchers off Moss Lane, a Curlew near Rindle Cottages and a single Swallow over Rindle Road.

Also seen this evening around Astley moss, 2 Curlew 3 Buzzards 6 Willow warblers mainly around the scrapes and along the path beside the SSSI. 11 Teal It was good to have a chat with you Ian.

12 Wheatear off Moss Lane this evening (only 2 females) with a further 5 in field 67 (the latter seen along with Dave Thacker).

A walk round Cadishead Moss and Little Woolden Moss area this morning with Dave Steel. Earth moving taking place on Little Woolden Moss, with new bunds and leveling taking place.


Jack Snipe 3
Snipe 3
Corn Bunting 1 (heard only)
Wheatear 3
Buzzard 5
Swallow 20+
Sand Martin 8
House Martin 1
Willow Warbler 4
Curlew 3
Tree Sparrow 5
Linnet 5
Grey Partridge 10+
Fieldfare 1
Jay 3
Oystercatcher 2


-- Edited by Alan Warford on Monday 15th of April 2013 09:50:44 PM

Moss lane 1.30-2.20pm
19 yellowhammer, 11 reed bunting, 7 tree sparrow and 26 chaffinch in field at west end, single little owl (apparently called billy, According to my 5 yr old son!), 11 stock dove and several swallow round the farm buildings.

At least one Willow Warbler singing on Astley Moss this morning.

10.15-11.15am Barton Moss

1 Willow Warbler singing
1 Swallow
1 Peregrine
6 Buzzard including a displaying pair
1 Curlew
2 Grey Heron
4 Teal (2 pairs)
5 Mallard
Mixed flock of mostly Fieldfare (c70) & Redwing (c20)
3 Grey Partridge
c30 Lapwing
1 Yellowhammer
5 Reed Bunting
10 Linnet
3 Pheasant
Plus usuals

Other wildlife:
Cracking male Roe Deer
3 Small Tortoiseshell butterflies
1 Peacock butterfly

12.00- 1.00
Top end of 12 yards
Mixed flock of finches(Bramblings and chaffinches)
Mixed flock of thrushes(fieldfare and redwings)
Lapwingsxloads
Magpiesxloads
Grey partridgex5
Yellowhammer
Kestrel
Buzzardx4
Pheasantx5
Grey heron over
Wood pigeonsxloads
various tits
Mallardsx3
Cheers Jay
Dont twitch and drive

-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Friday 12th of April 2013 03:29:04 PM