I saw it last month, when it was still smoking. I thought it might be habitat management...

Nick Isherwood wrote:

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Quick mooch on the moss today at 4.00pm.

Usual stuff present as well as a single Wheatear in the adjacent field and a single Swallow passing overhead.

It was also sad to note that not only have the local hooligans took to torching the moss again but they are also now chopping down a lot of the trees in the small copse near the railway line. There are stumps of sawn down trees everywhere and a lot of them are quite sizeable trees too. I had heard that Highfield Moss was a SSSI but by the time the local idiots have finished having their way there won't be anything of interest down there. As the area isn't managed (or owned it would seem) then it looks like this maybe something that just won't go away.

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Nick, did you see kids chopping the trees down? Seems unusual for them to be cutting lots of them down with saw doesn't it? Also, a fair proportion of fires such as these are started by adults either carelessly disgarding smoking materials or with 'other issues' in those areas. That said of course, more often than not it's the local scroats!

Quick mooch on the moss today at 4.00pm.

Usual stuff present as well as a single Wheatear in the adjacent field and a single Swallow passing overhead.

It was also sad to note that not only have the local hooligans took to torching the moss again but they are also now chopping down a lot of the trees in the small copse near the railway line. There are stumps of sawn down trees everywhere and a lot of them are quite sizeable trees too. I had heard that Highfield Moss was a SSSI but by the time the local idiots have finished having their way there won't be anything of interest down there. As the area isn't managed (or owned it would seem) then it looks like this maybe something that just won't go away.

First visit to this site and i,m quite impressed ,I went with a vague hope of a merlin but was very pleased to find yellowhammer,reed bunting,linnet very easy to locate,nice to see these birds alongside the worlds first railway line(too much discovery channel).

kestrel,buzzard,lapwing,crow,jackdaw,grey partridge, mallard and a wind that cut to the quick

cheers geoff

1.30 to 3.30pm

5 Corn Buntings (Hurrah!)
4 Grey Partridge
2 Snipe
2 Pheasant
4 Buzzard (Probably repeat sightings of same bird)
1 Male Kestrel
1 Grey Heron

Sad sight on way back young Rabbit on path totally blind and moving at a snails pace. Hope Myxomatosis is not on way back I remember seeing loads of wild Rabbits with that when I was a kid and its a rotten cruel disease.

Morning 2 hours

Not much activity bird wise but more than compensated by a great sunny morning to be out and about.

2 Buzzard possibly same bird but second time being mobbed by 2 carrion crows protecting nesting area
1 Kestrel
2 Grey Partridge
1 Skylark
2 Reed Bunting
Large flock of fieldfare 70 plus
Loads of wood pigeon including two very large flocks 50 plus.

1 Corn Bunting today, 16 Pink-Footed Geese circling the area before heading NW, 2 Kestrel, Buzzard, 15 Fieldfare and 15 students around the pool with surveying poles

mike haylett wrote:

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hi john, where exactly is highfield moss. is it adjacent to moss ind. estate, regards mike

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its the area between parkside road and winwick lane near lowton.adjacent to newton road,best to go to ordnance survey and go through the get a map and look at it on there.There are a few paths of newton road that lead onto the moss.its only a small area,and the edge of it can be seen from parkside road at one point.don't go very often myself ,just pop in now and again,on the way to or back from the flash.

-- Edited by JOHN TYMON on Saturday 16th of January 2010 05:13:53 PM

male merlin-chasing a small flock of linnets,on the way back from the flash
also 1 buzzard
8 grey partridge

3/1/10 pm

3 Buzzard
9 Grey Partridge
3 Yellowhammer
7 Snipe over
10 Lapwing
5 Skylark
3 Kestrel
3 Stock Dove
2 Bullfinch
23 Fieldfare
c400 Wood Pigeon

Sunday 27 December 2009

15:30-16:30:
2 Buzzard
3 Kestrel
1 Peregrine nearly took a Woodpigeon from a roosting flock
1 Barn Owl
2 Snipe
5+ Yellowhammer

31/10/09 Afternoon

Sightings with Mr Meadows & Mr Thorpe:

1 Golden Plover over >W
8 Buzzard
7 Grey Partridge
6+ Yellowhammer
2 Kestrel
2 Skylark
1 Reed Bunting
2 Great Spotted Woodpecker

Three skeins of Pink-footed Geese over (each of c60-70), heading mainly East @ 16:30

On the moss this morning 9.30am to 11.00am.

2 Buzzard
1 Sparrowhawk
2 Kestrel
16 Redpoll
1 Raven
1 Woodcock
2 Wheatear (1m, 1f)

Plus all the usual stuff.

On the moss this morning between 11.00am and 12.30pm.

Stock Dove (4)
Wheatear (1)
Brambling (1) (flocked with Chaffinches)
Linnet (lots)
Meadow Pipit (4)
Sand Martin (3) in passage
Sparrowhawk (1)
Kestrel (1)

Plus all the other usual birds down there.

Went out onto Highfield Moss late this afternoon with the dog for a walk as I hadn't been down there for about two weeks or so. Absolutely gutted when I saw the moss though as around 40% of the area to the west of the railway line has been scorched by fire.

Much of the dead ferns and grass has been burnt along with quite a lot of the gorse near to the railway. This has resulted in a massive loss of habitat for the wildlife down there along with damage to the hunting grounds of the short eared owls which are sometimes present.

I know spring is round the corner so hopefully this ground can rejuvinate itself quickly.

I hope the idiots who set this fire are proud of themselves.

On the moss this evening (3.30 - 4.30). Sightings as follows: -

Crow - Huge flock of around 150
Starling - Flock of around 150 very near to the flock of crows
Fieldfare - 12
Reed Bunting - 3
Buzzard - 1
Kestrel - 1
Sparrowhawk (male) - 1
Grey Partridge - many in various little clusters
Chaffinch - 15
Yellowhammer - small flocks of around 15
Pheasant - 3
Blackbird - 8
Long tailed tit - 5
Jay - 2

Cheers

Nick

Nick, I may have seen you! I was there at dusk myself...the one without the dog :)

Only managed to see the 1 buzzard...and briefly, it was chased away by 2 kestrels, amongst the other smaller things listed!

No sign of the short eared owl, which was my reason for going :(

None the less, seems like an impressive little place!

Hi,

Thanks for the correction on Highfields location. I wasn't sure whether it was in Greater Manchester or not. I'll make sure I post in the correct place from now on.

You're right about it being under watched as I've never met any other bird watchers down there in the 18 months I've been visiting the place.

It is a great little haven for bird life though with quite a bit of habitat too. I've managed to record almost 60 species down there with the highlights being the S.E. Owl and a hobby during the summer.

Cheers

Nick

welcome nick-a good record that of the jack snipe,it is a much underwatched area and could eisily turn up some good birds,as you've shown in the post-keep posting