Cormorant 8 this morning, one with a metal ring (couldn't make out a reading)
Red-breasted Merganser 1
Great Crested Grebe 2
Treecreeper 1
Goldcrest 1
Coal Tit 1
Greenfinch 2

-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Tuesday 14th of November 2017 02:30:58 PM

Red-breasted Merganser still on the lake at 9.40 this morning.

Red-breasted Merganser 1 (first-winter male ?, still present at 12.50)
Goosander 4 flew over
Great Crested Grebe 2
Cormorant 4

Male & female Bullfinch (First for me, as a fairly new birder..... very happy)

1 Nuthatch
Around 10 Goldfinch
All hanging round together

-- Edited by Lizzie Forrester on Wednesday 30th of November 2016 12:11:08 PM

On monday

2 Treecreepers
1 nuthatch
1 great tit
all feeding off the same tree, it's the first time i've seen treecreepers in platt fields.

-- Edited by Lizzie Forrester on Thursday 22nd of September 2016 09:10:19 PM

Egyptian Goose this morning - I'm guessing that it's metal ring was fitted at this site?

Tufted Duck with 3 small juv

Ring-Necked Parakeet on the island

a Coot with a darvic ring jumped in to the water before I could read it - is one regular here?

-- Edited by dave broome on Saturday 25th of June 2016 12:45:37 PM

1st visit this morning for many years, thanks to Tim Wilcox for his directions. Egyptian Goose. Great Crested Grebes with 3 young, 100s of Canada Goose goslings (or so it seemed!), 2 Ring-necked Parakeet and was surprised at how low down some of the Heron nests were on the island trees

Cycling past the skateboard area just now a male Sparrowhawk swooped into the fenced area and grabbed a female Blackbird, spotting me it then flew with its catch out of the skate area and onto the grass. Before it could tuck in a Magpie flew in next to it causing the Sparrowhawk to fly up and drop the Blackbird which immediately flew off. Quite dramatic!

Yes - the Egyptian Goose has been knocking around there for several years now.

26++ Rose-ringed Parakeet out of the pre-roost upto 8pm
Willow warbler singing on the island
Grey heron 'chicks' now almost fully grown, still standing on nest, will fledge any day now.
The usual early summer (and short staying!) common sandpipers on the island - these never stay long.
20+ swallow over the pond


-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Wednesday 29th of April 2015 09:21:01 PM

Had a quick cycle around the lake as it started to tip it down. I saw a very photogenic grey heron and got some nice shoots of it. On the lake was:
4 pochard (2m+2f)
3 grey herons (including on on its nest on the island)
4 mute swans
7 coots
1 moorhen
3 great crested grebes
4 domestic geese
4 mallard x domestic duck hybrids
31 tufted ducks
2 cormorants (one of which had a whitish head)
A ring necked parakeet calling
And many black head gulls, mallards and Canada geese

48 Parakeet out of Pre-roost yesterday evening, albeit very slowly.
Sounded like a small group stayed on the island to as darkness fell.

J

Hi Jamie,
I've done quite a lot of pre-roost counts since the clocks went back in October.
My monthly averages have been pretty consistent; Oct.63, Nov.64 and Dec.61, the highest being 76 on 8/12.
I think the number of birds going to roost will decline as we head towards Spring. The breeding pairs will
tend to stay near their nests, and the roost, if it continues, will consist of non-breeding birds.

The count yesterday was a paltry 21, I think they've been spooked by the Peregrine in the area, or maybe it's
just eaten them all.

A Peregrine Falcon put in an appearance while I was observing the Parakeet pre-roost this afternoon.
It made a pass through the trees N of the lake, but without success. It then flew over to the Holy Trinity Church
on Platt Lane, where it perched on top of the scaffolding that surrounds the spire at the moment.

The Parakeet count was a very low 32, perhaps due to the presence of a Peregrine in the area.
Also, 6 Pochard on the lake.

A misty morning round the boating lake

2 Great-crested Grebe
2 Grey Heron
Tufted Duck
Mallard
Coot
Moorhen
1 Egyptian Goose with a Farmyard x Bar-headed Goose hybrid in tow
Canada Goose

Nuthatch
About 10 Parakeets in 3 separate flocks

Originally posted by Roy King today:


I can't believe iv'e spotted another Egyptian Goose. Walking through Platt Fields today on the pond, low and behold 1 lonely goose. Looking beautiful but shunned by all the other birds. A Swan took an instant dislike and tried to bite him/her. Took some great snaps.

__________________

Thanks a lot Graham. Just need to find Brighton Grove now - that's if the bird's still there!

Where is this graveyard? Is it off wilmslow road - the city centre side of Old Hall Lane? Cheers

Cuckoo heard singing early evening near Platt Fields Park. Not seen, didn't have time to look for it so don't know exact location

92 Magpies counted into the island roost and 44 Ring-necked Parakeets in the pre-roost

Not strictly Platt Fields, but on Wilmslow Road.

Saw a Buzzard slowly flying high up in the sky, due South, mobbed by two Carrion Crows. I always find it funny to think, in these situations, that I'm probably the only one who noticed the birds as nobody around me is looking in the sky. I was probably the only one in the street taking advantage of this aerial spectacle, as the Buzzard swooped and dodged the two Crows and slowly vanished into the horizon...

If you don't look you won't see!

JamieDunning wrote:

---

It's about time Paul!

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Funny thing is , if it was an elephant or a bird in africa the BBC would tell you to leave it alone, the then Wildlife and Countryside act 1981 makes it illegal to release the bird back into the wild, you cant do right for doing wrong, its a no win situation for certain species .

It's about time Paul!

11.30 am went to check on the ill goose today he seems to have developed a limp on the right leg although i did'nt see any cuts or bruising - he was washing/preening himself at the waters edge, i'll pop down in the week to see how he's doing.