3-5pm in the sunshine, 2 Stonechats, 1 Goldcrest, and quite a few Redwings were the highlights.

Another good day for meadow pipits moving over. At least 100 flying south in the hour I was there, plus a good number of skylarks. Redwings heard but not seen, and three goldcrests in a mixed flock with long tailed, willow, blue and great tits.

Horse Paddocks path afternoon visit
15 Meadow pipit
10 Pied wagtail
6 Magpie
20 Wood pigeon
50 Starling
4 Swallow

cheers geoff

Best get this back to the birds methinks,late evening wander horse paddocks path

1 Kestrel
20 Wood pigeons
1 Lapwing
30 Black-headed gulls
20 Swallows
5 Goldfinch
2 Jay
3 Magpie
1 Yellowhammer ,heard only and would have been a site tick but I couldn,t find it

cheers geoff

Horse paddocks path,20.00 21 ish
2 Lapwing
1 Mistle thrush
20 Wood pigeon
1 Kestrel
10 Swallows
1 Jay
5 Magpie
3 Grey partridge
the flock of little one,s had gone to roost

cheers geoff,cowskin on wood

Geoff Hargreaves wrote:

---

Steve yes (y) was intended to indicated some young present,on reflection i,m just being lazy so won,t do it again

But help me out what,s Cricket

cheers geoff

---

Well Geoff, it's this game played on a field with a bat and ball. The side that are in go out and bat until they're out...

...or until it starts raining again

Steve

Geoffy, what does (y) mean?

Are you meaning young birds? Or are you being familiar as in the current England Cricket team (Straussy, Cooky, Belly, etc.)
If so, it should be Spazza not Sparrowy

Stevie (or Sutty, if you must )

Lots of house martins and swallows this evening, especially over the north western quarter where there were in excess of 200 house martins.

Horse Paddocks walk,Lily Lane Farm 20.00 20.30 even nippier

2 Linnet
2 Grey Partridge
6 Pied wagtail
2 Wheatear
1 Whinchatsomewhat elusive but worth the effort

cheers geoff

Horse paddocks walk 20.00 21.00,just a bit nippy

Usual crowd, of note
2 Grey Partridge
4 Wheatear 3m 1f a proper treat views down to 4m

cheers geoff(and i,m no football fan but I do enjoy United losing and when they lose to City bliss

Single Greylag Goose over then landing on the piles of maure in the fields to the north. Very strange behaviour! At least 6 Willow Warblers, Chiffchaff, blackcap, buzzard, plus usuals.

Willow warblers back tonight with at least 3 present. Chiffchaffs also present. 2 lesser redpoll over plus a single swallow. Rob Thorpe also had a couple of greylag geese over. Plenty meadow pipits in the horse paddocks.

19.30 till 20.30 I set up camp on the horse paddocks path gambled all on the one spot
3 mallard
1 reed bunting
1 kestrel
no sign of the short-eared owl

cheers geoff

Short-eared Owl quartering the paddocks behind Liliy Lane Farm this evening. Great flight views and it spent quite a bit of time perched on a fence post soaking up the evening sun. Also a Tawny Owl calling at the back near Three Sisters and 30 Sand Martins over.

Late sightings for yesterday.

6 Goosander over.
12 Redwings over.
5 Bullfinch.

All the other usual suspects.

5/2/2012 2.30 til 4.30pm

2 Buzzards
1 Kestrel
1 Sparrowhawk
2 Goldcrests
1 Treecreeper
1 Jay
Numerous Magpies, Woodpigeons and Crows,
Great, Long tailed and Blue Tits
4 Robins
1 Chaffinch
2 Blackbirds

An extended wander in the sunshine,with some smashing views of winter hill in the distance,a good start with a kestrel mobbing a buzzard, a small tit flock and numerous magpie,crow,jackdaw and blackbirds up towards three sisters,the horse paddocks turned up trumps again
300 starlings
34 black headed gulls
20 ish blackbirds
45 house sparrows
4 pied wagtails
6 grey partridge
40 fieldfare
14 redwing
20+ meadow pipits
1 kestrel
1 buzzard
wood pigeon,crows,gulls,cormorants over.

cheers geoff

Quiet this morning. 5 grey partridge in the paddocks, single fieldfare, 3 jays, 35+ goldfinch, 2 willow tit and all the usual suspects. No sign of any owls.

Fantastic view of a Short-eared Owl seen at 2.20pm over the field with the beech tree (see yesterday's post by Craig Higson for directions). It was mobbed first by a Kestrel and then 2 Magpies and then lost to view.

We then parked on Riding Lane just a short way from the junction with Bolton Road. We could see three upright structures and presume these are the totem poles mentioned in previous posts. From this vantage point we saw a Short-eared Owl at 3.20pm and at 3.30pm (over the field with the presumed totem poles).

No sign of a Barn Owl.

9 Grey Partridge in the field at junction of Bolton Road and Riding Lane.

Thanks, Craig, for the directions - they were very helpful.

For clarity - if you park on the car park, cross the road and follow the path anti - clockwise, you will come to a crossroads with a bench and a large beech tree. The open area beyond is where I first saw it, although I think it had been flushed from a similar area farther around the site.

-- Edited by Craig Higson on Sunday 20th of November 2011 05:26:04 PM

Short-eared owl still around at 2.15 although mobbed by crows and a jay
then lost to view,huge wigan tick

cheers geoff

2 30 til 4pm today,
1 Buzzard
2 Kestrels
1 Goldcrest and 1 Goldfinch amongst a small flock of Long tailed tits
Numerous Fieldfares
1 Jay
4 Magpies
2 Crows
9 Grey Partridge

13/11/11

No sign of any owls this evening with Mr Hargreaves & Mr Meadows. Mr Broome also drew a blank watching from Riding Lane. We did however observe the following:

4 Buzzards
2 Kestrels
15+ Stock Doves
30+ Skylarks
4 Cormorants
2 Meadow Pipits & a few Fieldfares..

3 till 4 30pm this evening

2 Pied Wagtails
1 Blue tit
2 Robins
4 Meadow pipits
3 Magpies

1 Female Sparrowhawk
1 Female Kestrel
3 Buzzards



Short Eared Owl seen hunting in the Totem pole field for 20mins 4 05 till 4 25 pm before being chased off by 3 Magpies.