This evening brought a quintessential English garden scene to Romiley with a rose-ringed parakeet squawking noisily from a neighbours eucalyptus tree!! Seriously though, a long-dreaded garden first which made me glad I'd taken the last of my feeders down a few days back!

-- Edited by Andy Bissitt on Wednesday 30th of May 2018 03:32:01 PM

Next doors roof 06:15 this am, Drake Mallard.

While sitting in the back garden on Sunday afternoon enjoying the sunshine, I heard a commotion at the end of the garden and was surprised to see a Magpie with a live Sparrow in its beak, frantically trying to release itself. The Magpie was being hotly pursued and harassed by half a dozen other Sparrows trying to help their pal.

After a few moments, the Magpie flew off, still with Sparrow in its grasp and still being pursued by the other Sparrows. I couldn't tell whether the unfortunate Sparrow was a juvenile.

Red Kite over Hale/Stamford Park Altrincham - 11.45 - departed N

Male sparrowhawk made an appearance this morning. Landed on our roof long enough to get some pictures- nice!!! Nothing else worthy to note at the moment apart from our house sparrows are devouring all my mealworms for their chicks as soon as I put them out in the feeder. I'm having to feed them only twice a day (morning and evening) to keep costs down as I also want to use some for our blackbirds and robins when they ask me for some. Ta!

At least a dozen swifts 'screee'ing far overhead yesterday; two long-tailed tits flitting quite close as we lounged in the garden, and bats flitting over the hedges at dusk - chorlton. 

7/5/18 Dukinfield

A Blackcap has been singing from first thing this morning until now, moving around a few of the adjacent gardens. It was singing from a tree in our garden almost above my head as I had breakfast at around 8am, trying manfully to compete with the various Blackbirds and Robins that seem to around in very good numbers this spring.
Also nice to see 3 fledgling House Sparrows being attended by adults, first seen on Saturday. Not a garden bird around here but also noticed 3 Swifts moving through at height this afternoon.

Irlam garden:
2 Swift this evening - seem to be back on territory nearby.
1 Swallow over.
1 Buzzard circling over the garden this afternoon mobbed continuously by a Lesser Black-backed Gull.

Finally, 3 resident swifts back in old trafford feeding above all the neighbouring houses this afternoon/ evening & 1 paticular pair going into my neighbours eaves.
5 swallows & 1 house martin over.
Sparrowhawk circling overhead.
Pair of bullfinch
4 greenfinch
12 goldfinch
2 jackdaws enjoying the fatballs.

Four magpies thugging around today. Cascades of apple blossom coming down when they were squabbling in the apple tree. Sparrows didn't seem to disturbed though.

Very early this morning got a surprise when stepping out of the door, a singing Garden Warbler in one of the tall trees 50 yards from the house, a first record for this Bolton street!

-- Edited by Simon Warford on Tuesday 1st of May 2018 07:43:23 PM

Nice to see a pair of bullfinch on my feeders in my old trafford garden on Wednesday, not seen since but hopefully it's the same pair that bred locally last year.
Still good numbers of goldfinches daily
4 greenfinch
2 starlings spending most of the time on the fatballs.
2 blue tits
2 great tits
Male house sparrow calling just under the eaves of my house, think he has a mate on a nest in my loft.
No signs of any resident swifts yet, they are late, usual return date is 21st -24th.
Male sparrowhawk getting chased by 3 goldfinch yesterday morning.
Grey heron landed on roof of house across the road from mine this morning but soon flew off.

We have had a pair of Bullfinches and several Goldfinches on our Hale garden feeders for a few weeks. They were joined today by a Nuthatch.

Female sparrowhawk over my Chorlton back garden just, heading SE; pair of greenfinch over W a minute or so before.

Blackcap heard singing frequently from an area roughly N of the garden from yesterday morning onwards (a particularly cheering sound to rise to, as I have the last couple of mornings).

Four years since House Sparrows were round our Failsworth house Leicester Rd /Warwick Ave a pair were on Warwick Ave Sunday afternoon then 5pm female was on feeders in our garden Leicester Rd

From my Atherton garden in the past hour...
- 2 Chaffinch
- 2 Goldfinch
- 1 Willow Warbler (singing)
- 1 Chiffchaff
- 1 Lapwing (in adjoining field)
- 1 Mediterranean Gull (same as above)

3 Brambling still in Dave Steel's Irlam garden today.

Bullfinch hiding at the back of my chorlton garden made a welcome addition to breakfast. And the great tits were inspecting the birdbox very thoroughly.

small fall of migrants in my Horwich garden following a shower yesterday with male and female Blackcap, 2 Chiffchaff and a Willow Warbler all in a bush and twisted hazel near the house.
Feeders continue to be busy with 3 Willow Tits visiting along with Coal, Great, Blue and Long-Tailed Tit. Goldfinches and occasional Greenfinches coming to the Niger seeds. Lots of Dunnock action and four of my nest boxes occupied including Robins hopefully nesting for the 1st time.

We have been watching the antics of a Dunnock from our kitchen window in our Hale garden for a few days.

Our next door neighbour's greenhouse butts right up to the adjoining fence and the Dunnock has been running backwards and forwards along the fence top getting really excited, we think by its own reflection in the glass. 

It must be something to do with the time of year and possibly territorial. Anyone else ever seen something like this?

Two beautiful brambling in my Birtle garden. Cannot say if male or female.

1 Chiffchaff heard singing at the bottom of my Bredbury garden at 7.15am. 1st of the year from the garden.

4 Brambling and a pair of Blackcap in the Cadishead garden of Dave Steel today.

1 pair of Siskin in my Bredbury garden yesterday afternoon were a nice surprise as they are the 1st that i have seen in the garden this winter/spring.