Ringing going on at Binn green

10-11.30 a.m. 2 Brambling(f), many Siskin, single Buzzard over.
Cheers Ian

A couple of brambling present at the Binn Green Feeders this morning, quiet elsewhere due to 'shooting' further up the valley.

Sat 19th Dec.

Binn Green.

Small flock (7-10) of Brambling turned up around 09.00 hrs .... vanished after 15 mins.

My first this winter.

Roger.

The highlights of a stroll round Yeoman Hay today were: 1 Kestrel (female) 1 Grey Wagtail 1 Pheasant 1 Red Grouse (female) I noticed there weren't many feeders at Binn Green anymore, anyone know what's happened there?

A walk around Yeoman Hey at lunch produced 4 Kestrel, 4 Coal Tit, 2 Grey Wagtail, 3 Pied Wagtail, 2 Meadow Pipit and plenty of swallows and house martins passing through.

Snow Bunting was 50 meters from the summit of Chew Res

Friday 24th July

Meadow Pipit
Merlin
Snow Bunting
Buzzard

-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Tuesday 28th of July 2015 09:50:43 AM

3 Crossbill this pm: m,f,juv - adjacent to viewpoint

Also ~3 redpoll over, 1+ Siskin calling, Treecreeper, Peregrine screaming

Hello Jim,
I am sure Jim and I passed you all yesterday, as we were around from about 10.30 -2pm. We only managed two sightings of a female Crossbill. One in the middle of the tree, and the other very good, as it was on the top branch of the tree to the left.
Also we saw one Lesser Redpoll.

Tuesday 7th July 2015, 8.30am

Binn Green

c30 Crossbills. At least 4 males, the majority juveniles
Mixed group of juvenile finches, consisting of Siskin, Lesser Redpoll, and Chaffinch
Blackcap singing
Juvenile Coal Tits


-- Edited by David Walsh on Tuesday 7th of July 2015 06:40:37 PM

Spent the day here today.

Binn Green:

4 blackcap
2 swallow
1 very recently fledged robin
4 coal tit
10+ siskin
2 lesser redpoll
2 crossbill (juvenile and a female)
blackbird, blue tit, goldfinch, chaffinch, woodpigeon

Yeoman Hey / Dove Stone and surrounds

2 willow warbler
3 grey wagtail
2 pied wagtail
10+ meadow pipit
2 siskin
6 goldfinch
3 or more common sandpiper
3 black-headed gull (including one juvenile)

Chew Valley path:

1 willow warbler
15+ meadow pipit
5 grey wagtail
2 dipper
4 stonechat (including juveniles)
1 ring ouzel
1 little owl (suffering the ire of grey wagtails)

2 pied wagtail (including a juvenile) at the very top, along with c50 Canada geese, and the usual numbers of meadow pipits.

Glad you saw them Rob, I suspected there was at least 2 groups of Crossbills present, As I viewed the group in the Larches I heard the Glipp Glipp Glipp of anther fly over group but didn't see or locate them.

3.45-4.45pm Binn Green,

Crossbill 5, 1 adult male, 1 female and 3 juvinile birds present In the Larch trees to the right of the viewing platform.

Also
8 Lesser Redpoll
Treecreeper
Goldcrest
Blackcap a singing male in the small copse in front of the car park

-- Edited by Mark Burgess on Sunday 28th of June 2015 05:35:07 PM

8 flew past at dinner at Binn Green look out on to the larches on the right.

Ian it must've been you I spoke to approx 3.50pm near the viewing area.

-A late showing of a female Crossbill at 5.29pm then a juvenile at 5.48pm but that was it for me as far as Crossbills go!
-Lesser Redpoll - didn't count, lots of them including a group of around 10 birds
-Siskin - lots of juveniles around, not a single adult
-few Goldfinch
-2 Great Spotted Woodpecker
-2 Chiffchaff seen, 1 really close up near the viewing screen, more heard calling
-1 Coal Tit
-few Blue Tits
-2 Mallard over
-Red Grouse heard opposite viewing area

Had an hour at viewing area (11 - 12 ish) in hope of seeing crossbill and was lucky. Initially had a small flock in flight, approx 15+, only seen briefly but did pick out a male. A short time later also picked up some in larches to left and down the slope from viewing area. Not able to estimate numbers as often on opposite side of trees to me, but again had a male and several females and juveniles.

5.30-7.30pm

5 crossbills, 2 males, 2 females & 1 juvenile showing well in the larches just to the right of the viewing area at binn green, then the views got even better when they all decided to drop further down into the open branches of the trees in full view at about 10 yards away, lots of pics taken & then they decided to drop onto the ground after they left I went to see where they had been dropping down & there was a small pool of water, so obviously having a drink.
other birds around...
redpoll
siskin
great spotted woodpecker
nuthatch
treecreeper
goldcrest
jay
bullfinch
goldfinch
chaffinch
peregrine falcon
kestrel
willow warbler
blackcap
coal tit
mistle thrush
a pleasant couple of hours

It was a good karma day today clearly, after great views of Black Redstart in Manchester City Centre first thing, I made it up to Binn Green by about 11. I met Stuart Rothery and had a chat, hello! We thought we heard a Crossbill calling and Stuart headed off. Within 2 minutes of me wandering through to the viewpoint, 10-11 Crossbills flew over my head and dropped into the trees out of sight! I had a quick look from the road and then realized that all I really had to do was wait by the fence by the feeders. Right enough the birds appeared within a few minutes and then I watched them for about 45 minutes feeding like machines in the Larch trees. It was a classic mixed group, with at least a couple of streaked juveniles, a rich orange male, a couple of yellow younger birds (males too?) and a rich greeny-yellow bird that I took for an adult female. Absolutely awesome, I hadn't been online so I was pretty gobsmacked when they dropped in, I had been hoping as I walked up the hill but how often does it go that well?

Also seen a Siskin and several Lesser Redpoll and a busy couple of Great Spotted Woodpeckers

I walked round the reserve and to be honest the far side by the Sailing Club was pretty quiet, seems less busy than last year to me. I did have good views of some busy Stonechats up Chew Valley, plus a Dipper on one of the weirs, I've not seen one there before.

Another Dipper seen by the roundabout at the bottom of the hill as I headed home, plus at least 8 Grey Wagtails on the brook at different spots.

Yet another brilliant session at Dove Stones, one of my absolute favourite places to go birding

-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Sunday 14th of June 2015 09:24:51 PM

Two cuckoos calling at 7am both heard from the main car park, only one seen.

Spent the day here after visiting the abandoned cottage area to see the ring ouzels. Highlights:

Binn Green:

1 bullfinch
1 willow warbler
Coal tit and chaffinch the most numerous, but also great tit (with nesting material), blue tit, goldfinch, robin, blackbird, woodpigeon.

Yeoman Hey:

2 dipper (on the overflow)
4 pied wagtail
5 or so redpoll (including the pinkest one I've ever seen)
3 common sandpiper

A couple more redpoll in the conifers next to Dove Stone itself, and one common sandpiper at the far end (which could have been one of the three noted above), 4 displaying dunnocks at Ashway gap woods, and plenty of willow warbler to be heard all around.

Path up to Chew Reservoir:

1 willow warbler (in the trees by the pond, singing as I went up, and as I came back down :) )
20+ meadow pipit
c10 wheatear
3 red grouse

Chew Reservoir and surrounds:

10+ meadow pipit
1 pied wagtail
3 wheatear
2 ring ouzel
2 skylark
1 swallow hawking over the reservoir
2 raven
5+ red grouse
3 common sandpiper
2 dunlin (giving absolutely wonderful views; birds of the day)
1 curlew
1 kestrel
35 Canada geese

2 mistle thrush and 1 singing song thrush as I left, so I saw all of our summer thrushes here today.

-- Edited by Shannon Llewellyn on Thursday 23rd of April 2015 09:31:37 PM

Binn Green feeders very busy, still 1 Brambling and about 6 Lesser Redpoll plus a Song Thrush which I don't see there very often.

Yesterday's sightings:

Around sailing club:

2 oystercatcher
2 pied wagtail
1 treecreeper
several singing coal tit

1 goldcrest and another singing coal tit in the Life for a Life wood

Path up to, and around, Chew Reservoir (where the vast majority of the day was spent):

40+ meadow pipit
4+ wren (2 seen, more heard)
1 dunnock
5 stonechat (including one male giving stunning views; very much the bird of the day)
1 pied wagtail
1 grey wagtail
1 dipper
4 skylark (2 seen, 2 others heard)
1 jay
c20 red grouse
2 pheasant
5 teal
2 mallard
3 canada geese
2 kestrel
1 peregrine


Sheep fields leading up through to the quarry:

c15 meadow pipit
2 robin
2 goldfinch
1 jay
3 pheasant
1 red-legged partridge

Another (or the same?) peregrine seen perched on the quarry face.

Set off early morning for a walk up to Chew and then along the edge and back down to the reservoir. Quite quiet bird wise but heard Raven, saw plenty of pairs of Red Grouse then a mixed tit flock at the feeders. It was a stunning walk in fantastic snowy conditions with a temperature inversion filling the valley below with cloud.