Looking forward to some more of your perambulations then Nick :)

Verbs of motion - an almost infinitesimal selection. Shuffle, trundle, amble. Use them or lose them, Nick. I also like embellishing my reports. It entertains me if no-one else. Keep it up!

Jaunt, saunter, wander, mooch ... when will he run out of verbs?

Early morning saunter on the moss and plenty about.

4 Skylarks
2 Corn Buntings
9 Lapwings
9 Yellowhammers
6 Grey Partridges
1 Wheatear - female
3 Pheasants
5 Chaffinches
9 Willow Warblers
13 Reed Buntings
9 Meadow Pipits
2 Mallards
1 Kestrel
3 Tree Sparrows
1 Song Thrush
1 Mistle Thrush
1 Buzzard

Late afternoon mooch in very pleasant conditions. Three Wheatears (2m,1f) were in the stubble field to the north of the line and five Willow Warblers were present in and around the moss itself.

Two singing Willow Warblers on the moss this morning plus a singing Chiffchaff. No sign of yesterday's Wheatears though.

3 Skylarks
1 Greylag over south.
7 Lapwings
12 Meadow Pipits
7 Yellowhammers
3 Mallards
8 Linnets
8 Chaffinches
1 Chiffchaff
11 Reed Buntings
1 Moorhen
2 Willow Warblers
1 Song Thrush
1 Sparrowhawk

Plus the usuals.

Lapwing
Skylark
Buzzard
Blackbird
Robin
Wren
Great tit
Meadow pipit
Mallard
Linnet
Carrion crow
Yellowhammer
Long tailed tit
Dunnock
Pheasant
Reed bunting
Chaffinch
Snipe (flushed from ditch)

Only one female Wheatear present this morning on the airstrip. Plenty other birds around though.

9 Lapwings
6 Skylarks
9 Chaffinches
c25 Linnets
7 Yellowhammers
12 Meadow Pipits
2 Mallards
5 Reed Buntings
1 Song Thrush
2 Pheasants
2 Grey Partridges
1 Wheatear - female
3 Greylags - over south
2 Fieldfares - over east

Despite a biting breeze this morning there was loads of activity on the moss. A good number of Meadow Pipits were new in as well as a pair of Oystercatchers on the flood by the airstrip. Reed Bunting and Skylark numbers were up as well. There were still good numbers of Fieldfares around too with many of them feeding in the stubble field to the north of the railway line.

8 Skylarks
c35 Fieldfares
2 Mistle Thrushes
2 Grey Partridges
2 Song Thrushes
9 Reed Buntings
9 Chaffinches
5 Mallards
c30 Linnets - mostly in one flock.
2 Oystercatchers
8 Lapwings
1 Jay
10 Meadow Pipits
1 Cormorant over west.
8 Yellowhammers
1 Moorhen
3 Tree Sparrows
2 Long Tailed Tits
1 Kestrel

Plus all the usuals.

On the Moss from 3.30pm - 4.30pm

1 Fieldfare
2 Tree Sparrow
1 Greenfinch
1 Meadow pipit
1 yellowhammer
2 Jays
2 Mallards
1 Reed Bunting
5 Buzzards

-- Edited by Lawrence Hindley on Wednesday 12th of March 2014 06:25:46 PM

Peregrine just south of the airstrip this morning others plenty flocks of fieldfare and lapwings at least a dozen buzzards (including round Kenyon where there was loads) and two kestrels.

Also saw quite a few goldfinch about

One other thing saw what looked to be a recently fledged song thrush this being so they must have been nesting in January I kid you not

-- Edited by Pete Astles on Wednesday 26th of February 2014 04:04:26 PM

First visit down here for about a month and the first signs of spring are now starting to show. The gorse is now beginning to flower and several species of bird are now in full song. The moss itself is wetter than I've ever seen it and LWT have now constructed a small bridge over the ditch part of the way down on the eastern side. I imagine this has been done to divert the footpath away from the impending sluice that they are proposing to construct to aid the re-wetting of the moss.

12 Chaffinches - all males with many in full song.
4 Mistle Thrushes
c150 Fieldfares mixed in with c80 Starlings. All feeding to the west and north of the moss.
1 Corn Bunting - heard only in amongst the Fieldfares.
8 Redwings
1 Jay
4 Skylarks - all in full song.
1 Buzzard
2 Yellowhammers
18 Snipe
5 Linnets
1 Song Thrush
1 Mallard - male on the pond.
1 Meadow Pipit

What started as a typical sort of winters day on the moss ended up being fairly good. Snipe winter on the moss in varying numbers but due to the nature of the ground it's very difficult to get a true impression of numbers. During my walk around this morning something unseen flushed what was probably all the Snipe currently present and they then spent the next ten minutes circling around in one big flock. This gave me ample opportunity to count them a few times and my best count made 52 birds. 

1 Song Thrush

4 Chaffinches

1 Sparrowhawk

1 Pheasant - male

52 Common Snipe

2 Kestrels - males

2 Linnets

 

 

-- Edited by Nick Isherwood on Saturday 4th of January 2014 09:19:22 PM

After a typical Christmas Day of eating too much a prolonged walk was what was required today. The walk started by visiting Highfield Moss but I then ventured onto Lowton Heath and onto Mount Tabor with a view to avoiding the many dog walkers around.

On the moss it was fairly quiet but there was some activity over at the western end with the best being six Corn Buntings soaking up the morning sunshine at the top of a tree near the railway line. They didn't stay long as they departed with a flock of Fieldfares.

1 Buzzard
2 Great Spotted Woodpeckers
7 Yellowhammers
2 Chaffinches
6 Corn Buntings
32 Fieldfares
3 Redwings
4 Mistle Thrushes
1 Kestrel
11 Linnets

A quick mooch around just before dusk tonight.

1 Song Thrush
2 Kestrels - m,f
3 Mistle Thrushes
43 Pink footed Geese over NW.
11 Grey Partridges - coveys of 7 and 4.
4 Pheasants - 2m,2f
3 Jays
c50 Fieldfares
2 Yellowhammers
1 Chaffinch

A couple of hours down here this morning from 7.30 in cold but bright and crisp conditions.

1 Buzzard
65 Fieldfares in several flocks
46 Linnets
2 Pied Wagtails
2 Jays
1 Yellowhammer
7 Grey Partridges
19 Pink footed Geese through east.
1 Meadow Pipit
1 Kestrel - female.
6 Chaffinches
12 Reed Buntings
1 Willow Tit
4 Pheasants
1 Sparrowhawk - female.
3 Skylarks
12 Mistle Thrushes - one flock all feeding on hawthorn berries.

A quick scoot around this morning.

c270 Pink footed Geese - 220 south east (150,70), also 100 east but out of county.
4 Redwings
1 Grey Wagtail over south.
9 Yellowhammers
11 Chaffinches
1 Mistle Thrush
1 Jay
14 Reed Buntings
1 Skylark
1 Meadow Pipit

Nick Isherwood wrote:

---

.......
1 Alba Wagtail
..........

---

Hi Nick,
Sorry, this is probably a daft question, but when you refer to "alba" wagtail, do you mean white wagtail? I've noticed people on other blogs and websites also referring to alba wagtails recently, but I'm not sure why. I feel like I've missed something

Thanks

Colin

Two and half hours on the moss this morning and some really good birds about too.

1 Sparrowhawk - female.
c60 Linnets - one large flock of c50 over the cropped maize field.
1 Siskin over south.
6 Goosander over south. All females.
c68 Fieldfares over east. One flock of 28 plus another c40. As I was leaving a flock of c200 was visible to the east of Winwick Lane.
2 Redwings
1 Collared Dove
5 Mistle Thrushes
3 Meadow Pipits
1 Kestrel - female.
6 Yellowhammers
3 Chaffinches
1 Goldcrest
4 Pheasants - 3 females and a male.
1 Buzzard
8 Reed Buntings
1 Grey Wagtail over east.
3 Jays
1 Great Spotted Woodpecker
1 Little Owl - just out of county to the south.
1 Alba Wagtail over north.
1 Merlin - flew through southwards right by me at a range of only 20 metres. Fem/imm type.
5 Skylark over south.
1 Goldfinch
1 Peregrine - juvenile attempting to take a Black Headed Gull.

Plus the usuals.

The first Brambling of the winter showed quite well this morning with around thirty Chaffinches in the recently cropped maize field near the line. Also, a massive movement of Pink Footed Geese passing over eastwards along with Skylarks trickling through southwards during the morning.

c950 Pink Footed Geese through eastwards.
4 Alba Wagtails southwards.
1 Buzzard
15 Meadow Pipits
46 Skylarks southwards.
1 Kestrel
c30 Chaffinches
1 Brambling - male.
11 Lapwings
6 Snipe
2 Jays
13 Yellowhammers
8 Reed Buntings
4 Lesser Redpolls
10 Greenfinches
2 Goldfinches
1 Sparrowhawk
1 Willow Tit
1 Collared Dove - south. Not often seen down here.
c60 Lesser Blacked Gulls resting up by Highfield Farm plus another c30 on the other side of the line.

A bit windier this morning so not as much about as yesterday.

2 Kestrels
2 Mistle Thrushes
22 Skylarks through south in dribs and drabs.
2 Goldcrests with tit flocks.
3 Chaffinches
4 Reed Buntings
5 Meadow Pipits
2 Jays
c50 Pink Footed Geese through east.
6 Yellowhammers
3 Alba Wagtails over south.
4 Linnets

Not much viz mig going on this morning but a cracking male Stonechat made up for it as it braved the wind on the gorse near the pond.

1 Sparrowhawk
23 Meadow Pipit - most of which came out of roost on the moss.
6 Reed Buntings
2 Kestrels - one female.
10 Alba Wagtails - 9 over south and one north.
2 Redwings - eastwards.
1 Linnet
1 Stonechat - male.
2 Snipe
2 Pheasants - females.
8 Skylarks - southwards.
2 Jays
6 Lesser Redpolls - southwards.
8 Chaffinches

Two days and two possibles!

A possible Cetti's Warbler was present this morning with a tit flock near the north eastern corner. I heard several short loud blasts of song over the space of about ten minutes but despite much searching I never got a view of this bird. It seemed to disappear after this but I heard it again a little while later further down the airstrip. I am quite familiar with Cetti's but this bird despite being quite loud and explosive didn't sound quite right which is why I've only described it as a possible. I'm hoping to re- visit tomorrow to check again.

17 Chaffinches - numbers appear to be building up now.
36 Meadow Pipits - most coming from roost on the moss. Not many passing over.
10 Grey Partridges
4 Alba Wagtails over south.
30 Linnets
10 Yellowhammers
3 Jays
2 Sparrowhawks - both birds together harrying each other.
3 Goldcrests - with tit flocks. The first of autumn.
1 Buzzard
30 Lapwings
10 Reed Buntings
3 Goldfinches
5 Pheasants - females
19 Skylarks - southwards.
1 Grey Heron - north.
1 Tree Sparrow
1 Kestrel
Golden Plovers heard in flight to the south.
c50 Lesser Black-backed Gulls on the ploughed field at dawn.

Late afternoon mooch and a bit of visible migration going on too.

33 Skylarks over south.
4 Mistle Thrushes
3 Yellowhammers
21 Meadow Pipits over south.
5 Pheasants
22 Lapwings
12 Linnets
1 Reed Bunting
23 Alba Wagtails over south.
2 Jays
1 Kestrel

The path up the eastern side has been cut now as well though I tend not to use it these days as it cuts through the trees and bushes. Better to walk up the airstrip and view from that side.