Alkrington Woods/Rhodes Lodges.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Alkrington Woods/Rhodes Lodges.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

About 3 hours wandering around didnt reveal much in the way of summer visitors aside from w or 3 singing Chiffchaff. Other spots: - c20 Siskin in 2 flocks - pr Great Crested Grebe - 2-3 Grey Wagtail - Cormorant - Kestrel - Sparrowhawk - 2-3 Nuthatch - Lots of calling Tits, singing Dunnocks and finches.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sat 30th Brief scan of the Lodges during hailstorm. Not much about 2 Dipper on the Irk (seen frequently by my brother and his wife in recent weeks) C40 Canada Goose c20 Tufted Duck 3 Mute Swan Small numbers of Mallard, Coot and Moorhen. Surprisingly no Goosander. Went back to the woods in the early evening hoping for calling Tawny Owl, but it was still very damp and I heard nothing.

S Rothery · Status: Offline

1400-1500 visit
43 years ago, this was my local patch when I started birding. I manage to get back every few years.
Funny how places seem smaller when you go back. And much denser growth especially along the Irk from what I recall.

6 Ring-necked Parakeets around Boardman Brook, just before the first lodge and then in the woods near what was the 'Nature Reserve'.
1 Grey Wagtail on Boardman Brook nr Rochdale Rd
1 Jay
Great, Blue and Long-tailed Tits
Nuthatch heard
c20 Tufted Ducks
6 Moorhen
5 Coot
4 Mute Swans

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Late posting of a couple of recent visits

23rd Dec 11:30 - 12:30:

- 3 Redhead Goosander on the Lodges

- 1 Little Grebe (catching small fish)

- 6 Mute Swan

- 50+ Canada Geese

- low numbers of mallards and Tufted Duck

Around the woods

- 1-2 Bullfinch - 1 male and 1 other calling bird

- 1 Mistle Thrush

- c2 Coal Tit (singing briefly)

- plus 3 Jay and the usual small passerines

25th Dec 15:15 - 15:45 - during the worst of a heavy shower

- 2 pr Goosander

- 1 Great Crested Grebe

- 6 Mute Swan

- c10 Canada Geese

- 1 Grey Heron

Small numbers of Coot, Moorhen, Mallard etc

- 31 Magpie gathering to roost

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Afternoon visit with Simon Gough.

Of note...
-2 drake Pochard
-few Tufted Duck
-small group of Long-tailed Tit
-1 Goldcrest seen briefly, more heard
-few Robin
-1 Blackbird
-1 Blue Tit
...and Simon caught a brief view of a Kingfisher flying low over the tall grass towards one of the lodges.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

03-Aug-15 07:30 - 10:00

Around the Woods and Lodges
1 Grey Wagtail on the Irk
1 Nuthatch
2 calling Chiffchaff
1 calling juvenille Sparrowhawk trying to avoid some attentive Magpies and Crows

3 Swift
1 Swallow
1 House Martin

4 Mute Swan (3 adults, 1 juv)
pr Great Crested Grebe with 2 chicks

I haven't been able to make many visits this year due to the fact that I'm working in Sweden at the moment. I'm still missing Treecreeper and Great Spotted Woodpecker for this patch in 2015 and I haven't managed a Willow Warbler here either.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

21-Jul-15 09:30 - 12:00

Around the Woods and Lodges and towards Rhodes along the Irk
1 Grey Wagtail
5+ Goldcrest
8+ Siskin
1 Nuthatch
1 Blackcap
1 Chiffchaff

3 Swift
1 Swallow
1 House Martin

4 Mute Swan (3 adults, 1 juv)
pr Great Crested Grebe with 2 chicks

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Brief look around the Rhodes end of the Lodges to score a few welcome year ticks. :) 1 Dipper on the Irk 1+ Grey Wagtail Usual waterfowl on the lakes.

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Friday 6th March

An afternoon tacho break produced...
Black-headed Gulls - at least 150
Common Gulls - 3
Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1
Tufted Duck - 30+
Goosander - 7
Pochard - 1 female
Grey Wagtail - 1
Plus lots of usuals

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Earlier today...on the rafts and swimming

Mute Swan
Canada Geese
Mallard
Tufted Duck
Coot
Moorhen
Herring Gull
Common Hull
Black-headed Gull

John Doherty · Status: Offline

Nice Autumn-Winter weather today.

Saw 1 M Sparrowhawk; 10+ Tufted Duck; 3 Goldcrest; a Jay, a Nuthatch, and a likely separate Sparrowhawk heard only , plus two heron and a cormorant etc etc

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Of note on one of the lodges:

2 pairs of Wigeon feeding with the many Coot

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Up in Manchester for the Weekend, so managed to make a couple of visits

Sat 2nd Aug 10:30 - 13:30
Though it was dry to begin with, once it started raining there was even less on show than before
- 1 Willow Warbler
- 3+ Chiffchaff
- 2 Dipper

Very little on the Lodges but the Cayuga Duck (escaped or dumped), which has been around since at least the turn of the year, is still present.

Sun 3rd Aug 16:30 - 17:30
Made another quick visit but didn't have time to visit the Lodges. Aside from the very common residents there wasn't much about

- Nuthatch
- Dipper
- 2 Chiffchaff calling

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sun 20th April 16:45 - 18:15

Took myself out again and went round a bit more quickly but there was very little change from the day before:

Woods:
- 1 singing Goldcrest
- 2 singing Coal Tit
- 3 singing Willow Warbler
- 5 Blackcap (3 singers)
- 2 singing Chiffchaff

Lodges
- 2 Great Crested Grebe
- 3 Coots on nests
- Grey Heron
- 2 Black-headed Gull
- 4 Mute Swan
- 2 Greylag Goose
- 19 Canada Goose

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sat 19th Apr: 06:25 - 10:30:
Its been 6 or 7 weeks since I was last in Manchester, so took the opportunity to have a good long walk around in the hope of turning up something a little more interesting than usual. Walked a lot of miles but was still a bit disappointed by the return.

On the Lodges
- 2 Great Crested Grebe (1 nest)
- c16 Canada Geese (1+ pair on nest)
- 4 Mute Swan (no sign of nest that dog-walkers told me about)
- 5 Tufted Duck
- Several Domestic Geese although the longest staying of these birds appears to be no longer with us.

Around the woods and along the Irk towards Rhodes and Heaton Park
- 2+ Grey Wagtail
- Dipper
- 1 Kestrel
- 2+ Nuthatch (1 bring food to a nest hole)
- 2 Jay
- 12+ Blackcap (10+ singers)
- 2 singing Willow Warbler
- 8 singing Chiffchaff

Lots of singing residents - Blackbird, Dunnock, Wren etc

-- Edited by Charles Farrell on Monday 21st of April 2014 07:33:58 PM

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Thanks for the photos Charles, it is definitely a Kittiwake, I've sent you a couple of the shots I got a couple of weeks ago. It certainly looks like the same bird, (although it is difficult to say 100% as they all look alike) but if it is then Steve you're right, the bird certainly didn't appear in any distress and it had no problem with quick elevation and flight when it relocated to a different lodge and back again at least a couple of times.

Steve Christmas · Status: Offline

Yes, the pond by the access to the industrial depot. As you say, the back of the head was quite grey which I think is winter plumage. Despite its tameness, the bird wasn't obviously ill and seemed to be flying OK.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Steve Christmas wrote:

Very tame winter adult kittiwake on the lodge nearest the main road at 1700hrs this afternoon. It was taking bread no more than 3m away from me.

Was that on the 'duck-feeding' pond Steve? As I walked past there around an hour earlier and photographed a very tame bird which looks good for a winter-plumaged Kittiwake. I didn't see it yesterday and wasn't expecting it to still be around. The pattern on the head and nape struck me as unusual, so I'm glad that I took some photos. I'm not used to seeing that species so close up.

Elsewhere on the Lodges and in the woods
- pr Goosander (which flew off)
- pr Wigeon still
- 2 Great Crested Grebe (not present yesterday)
- 2 pr Grey Wagtail (on the river Irk)
- 2 Goldcrest
- 1 calling Nuthatch

Sat 1st March (6:30 - 7:30PM)
- 1 maybe 2 calling Tawny Owl

Steve Christmas · Status: Offline

Very tame winter adult kittiwake on the lodge nearest the main road at 1700hrs this afternoon. It was taking bread no more than 3m away from me.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sat 1st Mar: 07:40 - 09:00:
Quick walk around this morning with my sister, so didnt stop to count everything.

On the Lodges
- 1 m Goosander
- pr Wigeon
- c70 Black-headed Gull
- 9 Mute Swan

Around the woods
- 1 Nuthatch
- 1 Jay
- 1 singing Song Thrush
- lots of singing Coal Tit, Great Tit and Chaffinch

No sign of the Dipper which has been seen recently.

John Doherty · Status: Offline

Nice to meet you, Rob --- I shared Rob's sightings minus the Goldcrest.

As if birding really is like slotting pieces into a puzzle, I saw the Wigeon pair on the way out - I clocked the male associating with another bird with my naked eye - unmissable, really. They were right at the back of the large lodge in between the 'duck-feeding' one and the big on with the raft, right near the path so they had probably been hugging the bank, as the wildfowl are known to do here. I got my bins out (put away from the shower) and low and behold it was the female as well to complete the pair :))) I did, as I mention, have a close look at the Common, but as soon as it showed yellow-legs it gave itself away as non-Kittiwake :) It was a good bird nonetheles; and I really enjoyed the Lesser-black backs as they cried - always reminds me of seaside holidays as a kid, that sound!

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Quick visit early pm.

On Gull raft...1 Lesser Black-backed Gull with some Black-headed Gulls.

Usuals on the lodges and no sign of the Wigeon pair.

Over at the Duck feeding pond...
A cracking lone Common Gull with Black-headed Gulls and the usuals, including Tufted Duck.

On the river near the business park next to the Duck pond...
A superb Grey Wagtail with a juvenile, very active.
Also a Goldcrest near the gate, 2 more Lesser Black-backed Gulls on the grass verge near the railings and the single Common Gull flew over to join them.

Nice to meet Jonathan there today, sorry the Kittiwake wasn't there for you mate!

-- Edited by Rob Creek on Wednesday 26th of February 2014 02:58:37 PM

-- Edited by Rob Creek on Wednesday 26th of February 2014 03:56:54 PM

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Rob Creek wrote:

2 Kittiwakes currently present, one almost adult like, the other one possibly younger

Just the 1 Kittiwake at the lodges today I'm afraid, sorry to get everyone's hopes up but I've misidentified the adult looking bird, I've totally missed the white wing tips and concentrated on the head and bill, it is infact a Common Gull impersonating a Kittiwake that has fooled the backside off me!
confuse

Much appreciated Ian for pointing that out and for confirmation on the other one being a Kittiwake which turns out to be an excellent site record!

smile

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

2 Kittiwakes currently present, one almost adult like, the other one possibly younger and resembling Black-headed Gull plumage.
Never seen this species here before!
The adult looking bird is quite happily floating on one of the lakes with Common and Black-headed Gulls, the seemingly younger bird keeps flitting from the same lake to the duck-feeders pond (as I call it) just by Manchester Road.

Other birds of note:-
1m + 1f Wigeon still present
Mixed Common and Black-headed Gulls on the raft (Kittiwakes not on this lake)
5 Goosander
Quite a few Tufted Duck
...plus usuals

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Quick call on lunch today whilst in Middleton area.

Female Wigeon, no sign of the male.

No Common Gulls on the lodges this time. All Black-headed Gulls, including one which had a Med Gill look about it with blood red bill and feet but it was definitely Black-headed Gull.
3 Goosander, 20 or so Tufted Duck plus the usuals.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sat 25th. Have just remembered that my nephew also reported a Ring-necked Parakeet over the Lodges - haven't seen any myself out this way.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Mon 27th

Dipper seen near the Lodges today by my sister-in-law while walking the dog.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sun 26th 15:05-15:30

Even quicker tour of the Lodges than the day before and pretty much the same stuff around as the day before
- 6 Goosander (4m + 2 red-head)
- pr Wigeon

Only Black-headed Gull on the lodges.

My nephew also saw a Kingfisher yesterday (Sat 25th)

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sat 25th 9:45-10:30AM

Quick tour of the Lodges and pretty much the usual stuff around
- 2 pr Goosander + 1 flyover
- pr Wigeon (present since sep 13)
- c20 Canada Geese
- 6 Mute Swan
- c70 Black-headed Gull
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 1 Common Gull
Small numbers of Mallard, TuftedDuck etc.

Nearby
- 1 Grey Wagtail
- 1 Goldcrest

No sign of Dipper seen recently, but with most of the undergrowth along the Irk having been hacked back by the Council, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised.

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Wednesday 22nd Jan.
Called in during a lunch break.

Mainly Black Headed Gulls with a few Common Gulls on the raft.
Plenty of Tufted Duck about, a few Goosander, Mute Swan, Coot, Moorhen and
of note...1m 1f Wigeon.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

26th Dec 12:05-13:05:

Much of the lodges frozen - although the ice was not very thick. No sign of the Goosander from the day before. A slight increase in the number of Gull.

- 2 Wigeon
- c150 Black-headed Gull
- 4 Grey Wagtail along the River Irk
- 1 Redwing

plus the usual collection of dodgy Geese, Swans, Mallards etc

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Wed Dec 25th 15:00 - 15:30 Quick walk around the lodges while the Turkey was still cooking. Not a great deal of activity bird-wise and very very dog walkers. I just did a quick circuit of the Lodges hoping for a Goosander or something to help boost my monthly count as this December has been really hard work. 1 x Redhead Goosander on Big Lodge (somehow always on the far side of the lake to me) 1 x Dipper on River Irk where it flows past the Lodges - a very pleasant suprise 2 x Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 x Common Gull c100 x Black-headed Gull 1 x Grey Heron Plus the usual Coot, Moorhens, Tufted Duck, Mallard etc in small numbers.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sat 28th Sep 8:00-9:30:

Quick walk through the woods with lots of calling birds - mainly Nuthatch and Coal Tit. Elsewhere not a lot happening aside from some surprise Wigeon on one of the Lodges.

- 4+ Coal Tit
- 4 Nuthatch
- Grey Wagtail
- 2 Wigeon
- c40 Black-headed Gull
Plenty of the usual Coots and Canada Geese

5PM driving past on the way back from Pennington Flash
- 1 Buzzard along M60 where it borders on to the Woods

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Fri 20th Sep:

9-10AM
Quick visit in damp conditions - so not a great deal about
- 2 Grey Wagtails
- 9 Jay - including a group of 8, very noisy birds
- Nuthatch calling
- 2 Coal Tit

This evening 10:00 - 10:30PM
- Tawny Owl calling

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Aug 3rd:

stuck to the fringes of the woods as I was hoping to see Dragonflies and Butterflies as well, but there was very little around.

- family parties of Great Tit and Long-tailed Tit
- single calling Coal Tit
- singles of Grey Heron and Moorhen
- small numbers of Coot, Malkard and Canada Goose

this evening: 2 calling Tawny Owl

Bill Myerscough · Status: Offline

15th July - am.

Nice views of family parties of Chiffchaff and Blackcap. The Chiffchaff appeared to have two young and the Blackcap also two, possibly three? I'd say that Blackcap is one of the more difficult of the commoner warblers to get visual confirmation of breeding for - certainly in my opinion tougher than Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Whitethroat and Sedge Warbler, so to get some very good views of the adults feeding their begging young was certainly a bonus.

Apart from broods today of 8, 4 and 2 Mallard (these were 10, 5 and 3 on 26/6) on the main water body and the pair of Mute Swan with a single small cygnet there was disappointingly little sign of success for Coot (although 2 nests were occupied 1st May), Moorhen, Canada Goose or any grebes. A juvenile Grey Heron perched atop a Coot nest won't be helping matters!

Cheers,

Bill.

John Doherty · Status: Offline

Look today produced -

1 Mute Swan
2 Great Crested Grebes
Coot on nest
Blackcap in song

Boardman Lane -

Swift, Swallow, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, singing Linnet etc etc

-- Edited by John Doherty on Sunday 9th of June 2013 02:03:03 PM

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Sat 13th April: 13:00 - 15:00 Generally fine but overcast, some light rain

On and around the Lodges.
2 Swallow over the area of the Sewage Overflow
2 Martin (only got the briefest of views, but didn't see a white rump)
1 Willow Warbler singing nr Sewage overflow
1 Chiffchaff (not singing)
1 Great Crested Grebe
c20 Tufted Duck
c16 Mallard
c20 Canada Geese
2 Grey Wagtail

Around the Woods
2 Tree Creeper together
3 Nuthatch heard calling
4 Siskin
1 singing Chiffchaff
2 Jay
1 (poss) Blackcap (only heard a very brief snatch of song)
Lots of singing Greenfinch, Chaffinch Robin etc.

Still haven't heard any singing thrushes here all year.

Charles Farrell · Status: Offline

Mon 11-Mar-13: 10:00 - 12:30:
Quick walk around the edges of the Woods and Lodges. Nice and bright early on before turning a bit chilly. A short snowstorm and then back to nice blue skies.

On the Lodges
3 White Domestic Geese in addition to the usual resident
2 greylag-ish Geese
Pr Great Crested Grebe
15 Tufted Duck
c20 Mallard
5 Mute Swan (4 ad, 1 imm)
c50 Canada Goose
3 Goosander (1m, 2f)
170 Black-headed Gull, 12 Common Gull and 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull

Around the Woods
Lots of Great and Blue Tit
2 Coal Tit
M Chaffinch
4+ Siskin
10+ Goldfinch
Small numbers of Chaffinch, Greenfinch and Blackbird
Jay, Jackdaw and Carrion Crow present
c20 Magpie

-- Edited by Charles Farrell on Monday 11th of March 2013 08:40:49 PM

-- Edited by Charles Farrell on Monday 11th of March 2013 10:08:36 PM

Lawson Dauer · Status: Offline

Early afternoon today:-

Plenty of black headed gulls about (several hundred over two of the lodges) - approximately 50% showing full breeding plumage.

At least 3 goosanders (2 x m; 1 x f).

A massive fight between 2 coots (so big that an 'innocent' bystander of a coot found itself caught up in the melee).

Close to Boothroyden Road bridge (on the River Irk, about 600 yards downstream of Silburn Way lodge) were two grey wagtails involved in some sort of pairing ritual.

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Friday 25/1/13
Called in on lunch break whilst delivering near Middleton.
Mostly frozen over for all the lodges.
Plenty of Mallard, Coot, Moorhen, Canada Goose, couple of Swan Goose with white heads, 1 male and 1 female Goosander
Only a couple of Mute Swan.
Returned to the van and heard a strange bird call I couldn't identify, it was coming from opposite the butty van lay-by, I've recorded it and will email it to Ian for possible ID
Next stop...delivery in rochdale

Bill Myerscough · Status: Offline

Steve Atkins wrote:

Hi Bill,

On my first ever visit to this site last Sat 19th Jan, I noticed an imm. Mute Swan with a blue darvic ring VD6. On checking my phone I realised that this was one of 4 cygnets which fledged from a pond in Buckley, Rochdale last year. It had been last seen there on 4th Nov 2012 with one of its siblings.

Not exactly a long distance movement but another of the brood VC6 left the Buckley pond sometime between 27th Oct and 4th Nov and was seen at Hay-a-Park, Knaresborough on 5th Nov 2012. (Info supplied by Steve Christmas).

Cheers

Steve

Hi Steve,

Many thanks for that. Hope you enjoyed your first ever visit to this Rochdale hotspot.

A little surprised to see that this immature Mute Swan is still there, as the resident adult pair were trying to chase off other swans just a few weeks ago.

Fascinating to hear about that other bird too, which I suspect must be quite a long distance movement for a Mute Swan.

Cheers,

Bill.

Steve Atkins · Status: Offline

Hi Bill,

On my first ever visit to this site last Sat 19th Jan, I noticed an imm. Mute Swan with a blue darvic ring VD6. On checking my phone I realised that this was one of 4 cygnets which fledged from a pond in Buckley, Rochdale last year. It had been last seen there on 4th Nov 2012 with one of its siblings.

Not exactly a long distance movement

but another of the brood VC6 left the Buckley pond sometime between 27th Oct and 4th Nov and was seen at Hay-a-Park, Knaresborough on 5th Nov 2012. (Info supplied by Steve Christmas).

Cheers

Steve

Bill Myerscough · Status: Offline

Lolling about on the ice on the only partially frozen main lodge this morning (22/1) - c410 Black-headed Gull, c20 Common Gull and 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull. A solitary Lapwing was stood on the ice on one of the smaller totally frozen over lodges.

Also 3 Goosander and c30 Coot. 1 Grey Wagtail on the R. Irk.

Cheers,

Bill.

Lawson Dauer · Status: Offline

Highlights (amongst the usual suspects) of a short walk around the lodges, either side of 1-00 p.m.:-

4 Goosander (2 x m; 2 x f) on Silburn Way Lodge.
1 x Grey Heron on Silburn Way Lodge (well hidden & only seen from the main road side of the lodge).
1 x Great Black Backed Gull on one of the artificial islands on the largest lodge.

Lawson Dauer · Status: Offline

That's the one. And, my wife has just reminded me that another wicker model is of a kingfisher.

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

That will be the 1 that's leaning over like it's about to fall

Lawson Dauer · Status: Offline

One of the wicker 'birds' is meant to be a heron.

Rob Creek · Status: Offline

Stopped for my lunch in the truck stop / lay-by about 1.45pm and had a walk round the mini lakes (lodges) and was quite suprised at how many birds were actually quite close to the main road into Middleton.
Plenty of Canada Goose, Mallard, Coot, Black-headed Gulls, few Moorhen knocking around and only 5 Mute Swan
Highlights included :
Female Bullfinch
Around 40 Tufted Duck m+f (spread over all the lakes)
7 Goosander 2m 5f,
both these species were very active both on the surface and diving

Interesting that the lake with the rafts had only attracted Gulls, most of which appeared to Black-Headed as far as I could tell,
Expected a bit more on those rafts considering they've even got large wicker bird efforgies to attract stuff on.
What are they supposed to be...huge Curlew? Any guesses?