Just spent the easter break up in the highlands and had a fantastic trip! Stayed in the Aviemore area and caught up with Ospreys, Black Grouse, Caper, Crested Tit, Scottish Crossbill and breeding plumage Slav Grebe. A trip to Gruniard Bay on the Saturday added Great Northen & Red Thrt Divers, Wil...
Was lucky enough to spend two days in Scotland with Marcus of ebirder fame, to try and improve my birding and photography skills but to be honest the birding was so spectacular the photography moved rapidly down the priorities!
Some of the following are sensitive species so I'll only give approxim...
We have just received for commission sale a Manfrotto tripod kit. It is labelled up as 'Swarovski' but is the 055 Aluminium tripod (MN055) and has the 128RC head much favoured by birders (including myself). It is in good condition and is on sale for ONLY £110. Please call 01925730399 for an appointmen...
We have on commission sale a set of mint MT055XPRO3 Manfrotto Tripod legs for sale, this item is not boxed and will need a tripod head. It is the tripod I use as it is ultra-stable for digiscoping and seawatching. The seller is asking ONLY £125 for these legs. To check availability or book an appointmen...
We have received on commission sale a pair of the original Swarovski 8x30 SLC WB Binoculars. These are in green with a carry case and strap and have been recently serviced by Swarovski so are in good condition. The seller wants ONLY £600for these. The details are on our website: https://www.focalpo...
We have on commission sale a nice item, a Swarovski STX95 Scope, consisting of the objective 95 end, the straight 'Ocular' ('eyepiece') end and the full Swarovski stay-on case, worth over £230 on its own! It is in excellent condition but isn't boxed. This kit would cost c.£3650 currently and the sell...
We have received on commission sale a pair of Swarovski 8.5x42 EL Binoculars. These have just been back to Swarovski to be refurbished and haven't been used since. They come with strap and rainguard and are one of the original ELs with the better close focussing. The seller wants ONLY £979for these bi...
7.15am - 9.00am Scrubby area between Stoney Brow and Beacon Country Park (my patch) Seems to have been a big arrival overnight - Goldcrests, Chiffchaffs, Song Thrushes, Robins (slightly dissapointingly nothing unusual) Goldcrest- there seemed to be a continual chorus of Goldcrest calls (where...
Blue Tit in hole in wall - Nothing unusual about that you might say until I tell you that the hole was created by a Kalashnikov AK47 assault rifle. A couple of years ago someone sprayed the front of the building with gun shot, leaving several holes, police having found spent shells, said it was a Kalashni...
Managed a pit stop "home" this afternoon so I went to Fishmoor Reservoir. After 45mins of scanning gulls and getting cold and wet I picked up a first winter Glaucous Gull on the roof of the Walker Steel site opposite the reservoir. Nice big brute of a bird - very impressive. There is a lot more...
Monday 5th July 2021 Drake Goldeneye on the Rochdale Canal near the Canal Trust building at Durn and showing well Information thanks to Stephen Bostock
We are selling, on commission, a Redfield 60mm straight telescope with a 20x-60x zoom eyepiece and non-brand Tripod. This kit is a cheap entry level complete kit. The seller wants ONLY £120 for the kit. To look at it please call 01925730399. COVID safety protocols are still in place at the showroom.P...
We are selling, on commission, a Bushnell Spacemaster 60mm straight telescope with a 15x-45x zoom eyepiece and Vanguard Tripod. This kit has some of the boxes still, has been well looked after and is a very cheap entry level complete kit for somebody! The seller wants ONLY £120 for this kit. To look at...
We have just taken in, on commission, a pair of Zeiss 8x42 Victory HT Binoculars. These are in excellent condition and have the case and all accessories still. The seller is asking ONLY £1099for these bins. To arrange an appointment to view and/or buy please call 01925730399. All COVID safety proto...
I have been tasks with fixing a manfrotto tripod for a friend of mine who is hopeless at pretty much everything. He has misplaced the bolt piece that tightens to limit vertical tilting. I purchased what I thought was the correct piece from manfrottospares.com, but when it arrived the thred was too thi...
1 Wheatear in the autumn sunshine, flitting about the rocks ........surely my last acquaintance with this lovely bird until next year.....? Otherwise quiet except for a female reeed bunting and fieldfares near the morside hotel.
We have on commission sale a pair of Leica Trinovid 8x32 BA Binoculars. These come with the carry case, neck strap and rainguard but have no box. These are the slightly older model than the BNs already on commission sale with us. This model has a longer minimum focusing distance but is a similar size and...
Possible Siberian Chiffchaff near Bollington, 14th April. Middle wood Way is an old disused railway line - it's now a 'green lane' for bikes and walkers. I have several good detailed photographs attached. It had all the signs of the Siberian race, black legs and bill, no yellow at all on head, breas...
It is with great sadness that I have to inform you of the sudden death of Roy Rhodes, a founder member of the LOS and a great birder, he had a lung infection. Another sadness in these trying times.
While out today, a non birder dog walker lady said to me,is it usual to see jays (3),static in trees,i said i think it is unusual, but i have seen this in the same approximate ,location twice my self in the past few weeks, in my own observations of jays they seem to by a bit flighty and restless and soon move...
There was a Little Ringed Plover on the flooded field alongside Bramhall Cricket Club this evening (SJ883830). Also present were four Pied Wagtails and two Lapwings. On the opposite side of the road was a lingering flock of 17 Fieldfare. There was a Swallow over Woodford Parish Church and two Red-...
Was in the lower portion from Birtle to Deeply Vale
Green, Gold, Chaffinch
Blue Geat LT Tit
Dipper Heron
Large flock of Jackdaws
I expected/hoped for a bit more
I popped in to Sizergh Castle yesterday early evening for 15 minutes, before they closed the gates to see if I could find a Hawfinch or two knocking around before dusk, but sadly failed to find any. However, I can see the appeal to them, as the place is descirbed as "an imposing medieval castle set i...
A BLUE JAY was reported in tonight's Coronation Street, by Ken Barlow's grandson, along with "some thrushes and starlings". The location was vague, but I would guess the Red Rec. I know as a category 'D' it wouldn't count on Mr Heaton's year-list, but it could be worth a look.........
We have just taken in, on commission, a very desirable binocular. It is the Opticron 10x42 Countryman, a now discontinued model, but one I consider to be one of the best that Opticron ever produced. This pair are in excellent condition with all accessories and are boxed. They are Japanese made and the...
