The three [badly sited] hides around Neumann's are now all useless. The rapid growth and invasion of reeds has cut visibility dramatically and the water margins recede ever further. Another season/summer will surely make them redundant. The unrestricted growth of hawthorn and other bushes make...
Our annual first trip of the year began, not too early, with 4 members of our group departing Rochdale and heading for coastal Lancashire. Promise of more rain around dinnertime, did not put us off. We called at Preston Docks first, hoping for the Ring Billed Gull with no success.Clifton Marsh area n...
With 5 days of the year remaining this may be a wee bit premature. However, as I sit here sprawled out across a settee, having eaten too much of everything, I find myself reflecting on the excellent records turned up by dedicated local patch workers in 2015. Who could have predicted a Stone Curlew, two R...
I've been bought a year's National Trust membership by my future mother-in-law as she seems to think it'll get me access to more places for birding...so, where's good to go in the North West (I've got two weeks off work over Christmas, so if the weather is half decent I could visit a few then)? I know Size...
Does anyone have any news/insights on whether we can expect a good influx of winter migrants from Scandinavia this year? I'm thinking mostly of redwing, fieldfare and waxwing, and I hope I'm right in saying a lot depends on the weather and subsequent availability of berries in Scandinavia. I'm sure...
Dozens of magazines from CAWOS dating back into the nineties, featuring reports, articles etc free to a good home, collect from North Manchester, Queens Road Collyhurst area upon arrangement
As we have not been getting the big number of gulls at Heaton Park Res. this autumn Ian and I checked out the tip at Pilsworth where most of our birds come from.Viridor who run the tip are using an automated scarer which is in use even on a sunday(the B*******ds) and as a result no gulls are using the tip.Whi...
I thought I'd start this 'hardy perennial' topic up as we have had the GM discussion, but not one for those of us who sneak off to other places occasionally. Apologies in advance for any perceived self-indulgence here... I have had a really good year, my year list has ended up on 232 and I am on 249 UK lifer...
I don't do year lists now. I found the stress and frustration to be counter to what i thought birdwatching was supposed to be about. However it cannot be denied that your observational skills can be sharpened by the need to detect every bird present in a given area, and I felt that I was no longer doing thi...
always on the look out for a bargin?? aldi in altrincham have some robust looking tripods
for sale at a cracking 11.99, i didn,t open the box fearfull of having to get it back in there,
cheers geoff
I have a new scope coming my way and I am itching to give it a try. However as no tripod yet I'll need the benefit of a hide with a shelf I can use my small camera tripod upon. Does anyone know if any local sites have their hides open on Xmas day? Pennington Flash was where I was ideally thinking of going if anyon...
Hi all, I'm fortunate enough to be probably going to Panama for a research project next summer, I was wondering if anyone here had any advice about the best books to get for bird/other wildlife ID. It'd be a waste not to be prepared for some pretty good birding/wildlife watching...right?! Thanks
I thought to start a specific thread for this site as its quite a large area and is a newly created country park a new website has been launched see below. The site is an ex landfill that is due to fully completed in June 2011 and has some spectacular views over the high ground.Expectations are the...
I'm very short sighted and Ive worn spectacles for nearly 50 years and have always worn them for birding. Over the last few years Ive become a varifocal wearer. Recently I upgraded to some swish and fashionable new specs with quite big lenses (not in the Deirdre Barlow category !!) and suddenly Im ex...
I know that most people who use this forum are experienced bird watchers, but for those, like me, who need help and enjoy finding out more about birds and their environment, this course may be if interest. I did the course this term and would highly recommend it. It involves visiting different locatio...
Nikkor 300mm f4 ED IF lens for sale. Excellent condition - boxed and with all accessories. £400 only. Buyer collect from my home which is opposite Pennington Park, Leigh.
Posted on behalf of Dave Ousey: Trip to Dominican Republic. 16/11 to 23/11/2015 by David Ousey. Our normal holiday in November is usually to Sharm el Sheik in Egypt, but with all the recent trouble in that part of the world we had to choose a different location. After a lot of searching we decided to go to...
My parents live in Devon so I keep an eye on sightings down there. I have noticed over the past few days reports from a number of areas of Huge Woodpigeon flocks. There were 20,000 reported in Sidmouth, 37,750 in Sidmouth and 45,000 in Thurlestone marsh. I don't remember seeing flocks this large up nort...
