Whilst doing my BBS Survey Squares this am around the Ranges/Redisher saw the following of note;
1 f Ring Ouzel north of Paddys Pond
Single Golden Plover by Lark Hill
Single Brown Hare.

Walking home through Saplin;
1 f Sparrowhawk
1 Grey Partridge
1 Lesser Redpoll

Rob Archer

2 hours this evening - dead is the only word to describe it

Wheatear 3
Curlew 2

-- Edited by Simon Johnson on Thursday 14th of April 2011 09:30:06 PM

Great day on`t moors. 0545 till 1630.. Saw the following;
5 Grey Partridge in usual spot.
4 Green Woodpeckers(2 h)
10 Linnet
2 Blackcap
1 Chiffchaff
6 Willow warblers.
7 Wheatear (3m)
3 Red Grouse top of Red Brook
21 Golden Plover on`t border near Black Moss
1 f Ring Ouzel Red Brook. flew north towards Wet Moss
2 Kestrel
1 Peregrine soaring so high into the sky I could hardly see it.. Superb
4 Little Owl in regular spots
4 Stock Dove
2 Raven carrying food
Skylarks, Curlews and Meadow Pipits galore
4 Swallow
1 Buzzard
2 Grey Heron high over Bull Hill.

A great day.. Rob Archer

This afternoon . Shortish walk, up to the Firing Ranges and back, on the main path/road.
Willow Warbler : At least 12 seen. Most vocal.
Oh and I nearly forgot:
One very red Linnet.

-- Edited by keith mills on Friday 8th of April 2011 07:38:02 PM

Morning Brian. Re your posting for info on walking in the Holcombe area Ian has described a couple of the best walks around the Holcombe area ,through Redisher, Moorbottom Road and up to Pilgrims Cross and back over the tops via Harcles..A great walk , as Ians says with a variety of habitat.. ( can get very busy on sunny weekends though) If you have the OS Explorer map 287 you can see that the Firing range area only covers a small section of the countryside here and that even when the flags are flying there is still loads to go at. Lots of folk avoid the Ranges even when the flags are down and it is always noticably quieter as soon as you enter the MOD Property.. West of the ranges ( and into Lancs) there are miles of brilliant footpaths towards Quarlton that you can walk all day even on weekends and see hardly a soul..(Good chance of a Buzzard around here too) Going north over the Moors (again into Lancs) towards Black Moss and Bull Hill its a proper bleak northern moorland ( I love it!) with few defined paths, but Red Grouse are in the area along with Golden Plover near Wet Moss.. If you take a look on the Rossendale Ornithologists website a couple of their birders are regularly on these moors and describe whats about and areas they go. Basically, if you have the Map and follow you nose you cant go wrong.. Its a great area.. Just depends how far you want to walk really!! Good Luck. Rob Archer

good walk through redisher woods follow the path straight bit of a climb through to moor bottom road follow that right around to the other side of the valley then a path cuts back across the rifle range past the other side of reddisher woods to the start. Gives quite a few different habitats. Alternate instead of going around take the right fork at the end of moorbottom road and get onto the moors. Don't worry about the range, flags fly if you are in danger and its well marked to avoid. Times can be checked on the net for the range. cheers ian

11.30 -15.30 A bit of Vis Mig at lunch time 70 Meadow Pipit , 6 Sand Martin, 10 Chaffinch & Swallowall NW. Raptors inc 3 Sperate Spahawks, 2 Kestrel 2 Buzzard Peregrine 3 Raven knocking about also On the moors well over 100 Mpipit 31 Skylark, 3 Wheatear - red brook - 2 male displaying and singing with a female. Stonechat - female - top track near the pony field Little Owl - on farm ruin near red brook Stock Dove 3 Saplin Wood Chiffchaff 2 Jay Green Woodpecker Reddisher Woods Grey Wag 2

Walked over first light.. Saw the following; Pair of Grey Wagtails on the Irwell, Nuttall Park 1 Swallow by Hollingrove Farm 3 Redwing 1 f Wheatear 2 Kestrel displaying 2 Green Woodpecker 4 Stock Dove 1 Little Owl 2 Chiffchaff 1 Raven 1 m Peregrine causing havoc along the hill top from Red Brook to Top o the Moor Farm. 6 Linnet back in the hillside gorse Loads of Meadow Pipits/Skylarks Pair of Goldcrest , Moorbottom Road Rob Archer

Early walk round moors and Ranges..0700 till 1030. 2 f Wheatear 2 Chiffchaff in Redisher 2 Treecreeper in Saplin 1 Little Owl near Red Brook 2 Raven Green Woodpecker/GS Woodpecker drumming in several areas early doors 1 Kestrel Many singing Skylark,Curlew and Meadow Pipits. 1 f Sparrowhawk Fletcher Bank 1 Swallow over Fletcher Bank Quarry flying west 1 Moor on fire....Hardern Moor in Lancs was ablaze c1230hrs Rob Archer

Walked over early doors... 0515 till 0745.. Think I need to start drinking more..Saw the following;
2 Grey Partridge off Moorbottom Road.. Not so common up here.
Green and GS Woodpeckers tapping away in several places in Redisher and Saplin Woods
1 Kestrel
1 Little Owl (Harcles Quarry)
3 Goldcrest..2 in Redisher and 1 on Moorbottom Road.. Not seen them in these spots through the winter so good to see them here.
Lots of Stock Dove around..Seemed much more vocal at this time of day
Roe Deer all over..

Rob Archer

Couple of hours up here this afternoon

Peregrine male in an arial battle with a Spahawk and making a few stoops at it
Raven 2

Not much up on the tops just

Skylark 2 flushed
Fieldfare 80
Starling 100

a tit flock in Sapplin Wood had
Treecreeper, Goldcrest, 7 Coal Tit, 30 Blue tit and 10 Long-tailed tit.
2 GSW also in woods

11.30 - 1600

Gyr type falcon or Hybird seen on the moors this afternoon.
I had walked along moor bottom road and up onto the moor top looking down into the Irwell Valley, the bird was soaring round above the moor, using the thermals from the ridge along moor bottom road, it was mobbed by a Raven & Merlin - and flew east over the valley towards the wind farm and Ashworth moor res.

It was very bright up there and hard to get any plumage detail, it looked white from below including the head (no hood or anything) and it had dark tips to the primaries, it was also the same size as the Raven that mobbed it!

Also up here
Merlin
Spahawk at least 5 different birds inc 3 together
Kestrel 2
Raven 5
Feildfare 964 NW
Bullfinch 3 NW
Skylark 3
Starling 78 west
Little Owl 2
Green Woodpecker 2
Treecreeper 2

Not much most sightings Hawkshaw side of riflerange

Kestrel
Raven
Meadow Pipitts
Pretty sure two late wheatear
12 redwing
one nuthatch few jays reddisher woods

mark seen Andrew flintoff doing a fast walk and crush a grape stu francis on boltons moors.

Back to better stuff to see. today
4-5 kestrels
sparrowhawk
1 wheatear
1-2 redstart
2 ravens

Hi Mark
No sign of any Whinchat so far up here

Good 4 hours up here this morning
The fields with the miniture ponies along moor bottom road had lots of birds
Willow Warbler -30 at least,
Whitethroat
Blackcap 2
Goldfinch 15
Bullfinch 2
GSW
Little Owl
Nuthatch 2
and best of all Stonechat 2 juv

On the moors
Tree Pipit flew west
Wheatear 4
Kestrel 5
Swallow 100+
House Martin 3
Raven (heard)

Reddisher wood
Jay
GS Wood
Nuthatch
two grey wagtails

Holcombe Hill/moor 7-8 Kestral assume one family
lots of M Pippits some with flies feeding young
Quite a few wheatears some juvenile
wren
willow warbler
family of coal tits
swallows
carrion crow
Green Woody
pheasant

cheers

ian

very pleasant but not much about
In Reddisher wood
Mallard and ducklings walking/falling down the lodge outlet
GS wood pecker
Chiff Chaff
Moor
1 curlew 1 wheatear few skylarks more M pippit
Hawkshaw lane
family of jays

Windy Sunny day

Two wheatears
meadow pipits skylarks
heard one green wood
pheasant
GS wood
chiff chaff willow warbler
and that was about it

Reddisher wood
Heard Green Wpecker
Saw and heard GS Wood pecker Jay Chiffchaff Grasshopper Warbler Gold Crest nuthatch
Moor bottom rd
2 Wheatear Skylark M Pipit pheasant curlew
Riftle Range
Curlew Pheasant 22 Rooks swallow swifts

Fantastic Wood Warbler today, a County tick for me, thanks to Paul Wilsons directions and, Mike Horwood( I think, the original finder), also great to see Dipper on the stream and good to meet Phil Owen and his niece who with young eyes is an excellent bird finder.
Cheers Ian

In addition on the other side of the range
a lot of wheatears over 15. At one point they were every few metres
curlew heard green wood pecker heard skylarks
meadow pipit



-- Edited by Ian Boote on Saturday 1st of May 2010 01:54:43 PM

2 Garden Warblers singing at the start of Moorbottom road this morning.

Wood Warbler singing at the northern end of Redisher Wood at Holcombe this morning.

Info thanks to Simon Johnson

3.30-6.30pm

Peregrine
Raven 2
kestrel
Wheatear 13
House Martin
Swallow 12 north
Red Grouse
Curlew 4
Green Woodpecker 3

Redstarts and Ouzels seem to have moved on