Have contacted Mr Wisher, and he has confirmed that he did see the Dotterels (in the place where we looked, Paul, Rob and Sonia) - I'm sending him a rarity form.

Courtesy of www.192.com I have found a guy of this name in Little Lever...will contact him to see if it is he who saw the birds. Ken Haydock has also never heard of him.

Never heard of this guy in Bolton Judith.

The message about the Dotterels was sent to Birdguides by someone called Alan Wisher (alwisher@btinternet.com)
This birder is completely unknown to me - if anyone can vouch for him, please let me know.

Did Knowl Moor area again this morning including Rooley Moor and Hail Storm Hill also Whittle Hill (Lancs) but no luck.

Nice to meet Steve Atkins, Dave Winnard and Steve Collins up there though

Rob and Sonia Adderley, Paul Hammond, as well as me and Eddie (my husband, yes he does bird occasionally!) had a good look for these. There are 2 trig points - one on the ridge painted white, where there is a line of smaller masts, and one on the LH side of the road, opposite a fenced enclosure, about 400m down the hill from the TV station. This had a bit of stony ground near it, but no luck. We also checked out Two Lads hill on the way down, but no luck there (there were some there about 10 years ago).
I think we're going to have to know the name of the observer if this record is to go on the county database, and some more details.
The trig point near the masts has the county boundary going through it. Just behind it, in Lancs, the land drops away very steeply and would not be attractive to Dotterels.

According to my dad and most old Boltonians the idea of Winter hill or Bolton being remotely in something with Manchester in the name is obsurd.

Anyway here's the map for all you county list obsessives. The lower black dash and dot line represents the GM border
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x=367500&y=414500&z=4&sv=367500,414500&st=OSGrid&lu=N&tl=~&ar=y&bi=~&mapp=newmap.srf&searchp=newsearch.srf
what you need to do is get together in a line north of the summit and walk south clapping your hands in the air so as to flush over the border ;) (inserts wink smiley to show only kidding).

Good luck to any hardy souls trying for it, great record. I am off to Pendle tomorrow for what a reckon will be better chance of seeing my first ever one.

No luck on Knowl Moor tonight either but 4 Ravens up there.

Well when I saw and photographed an osprey over winter hill last year I was told that this wasnt in the county.
Is it or isnt it?

Update..

Judith is on site and currently no sign of them despite searching.

Ouch Ian,nothing worse than being stuck in work when something turns up .. i will head up at 5pm as soon as i finish work.

-- Edited by warfy at 16:32, 2007-05-04

No one's sure yet as information on them is, well.........non existant other than the Birdguides report

And I do still need Dotterel for my county list................not that I really keep one of course If they are still up there, I'll be stuck at work in about half an hour until tomorrow morning

Are they in Gtr Man? Not that i need them for the county

It seems like nobody knew until it appeared on Birdguides! We should have more info soon though as they will be looked for shortly

Just come on the pager now for the trig point on winter hill, presumably near the mast somewhere?

-- Edited by warfy at 15:45, 2007-05-04

don't know if people already aware, but 3 dotterel reported today Winter Hill, Horwich on birdguides