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BACK TO THE MANCHESTER BIRDING WEBSITE HOMEPAGE -> Manchester Birding Forum -> GREATER MANCHESTER BIRD SIGHTINGS -> Rookeries in Greater Manchester
Post Info TOPIC: Rookeries in Greater Manchester
Zoe Barrett


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RE: Rookeries in Greater Manchester
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This afternoon at Worthington Lakes 70 nests recorded mostly near the care home and Kilney Court. Also pre-roost gathering of Jackdaws

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Z Barrett
Ian McKerchar


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Zoe Barrett wrote:

Yesterday evening visited Hall Lane, Leigh. There was 15 nests with at least 10 occupied in woodland off Hall House Lane but difficult to view. Also an outlier of 3 active nests in a single tree within Bedford High school. Is this a new site? I wonder if these are birds from the old Tyldsley rookeries.

 This is indeed a new site Zoe.



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Zoe Barrett


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Yesterday evening visited Hall Lane, Leigh. There was 15 nests with at least 10 occupied in woodland off Hall House Lane but difficult to view. Also an outlier of 3 active nests in a single tree within Bedford High school. Is this a new site? I wonder if these are birds from the old Tyldsley rookeries.

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Z Barrett
Zoe Barrett


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Today visited several locations which have had rookeries in the past including near Aldi; Elliot street; Tyldsley cemetery and The Gatehouse pub off Cherington Drive. However, all these sites seem abandoned. There is howeve, 10 active nests at St John's Church, Mosley Common. Does anyone know of any other sites around Tyldsley?

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Z Barrett
Zoe Barrett


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St Edmund arrowsmith school had a tree with 5 nests in which looks to be abandoned but another tree near the playing fields has 7 active nests. Not sure if some of the neighbours are keen as one spoke to me saying they need shooting.

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Z Barrett
Zoe Barrett


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Update since yesterday. There is a rookery at Holiday Inn, Haydock in two separate trees 12 occupied nests in addition to the one a bit further up the road with 9 nests. Haydock racecourse had 10 occupied nests in two trees just on GM boundary.

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Z Barrett
Zoe Barrett


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9 nests active on roadside tree opposite The Parks business park just a bit past Holiday Inn, Haydock Park. Couldn't see any rooks within grounds of hotel itself. Not sure if this rookery is the normal location or a new one?

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Z Barrett
Zoe Barrett


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20 active nests at St Thomas Church, Golborne spread over several trees. Lots of activity. The small rookery at Golborne High school is now abandoned. It looks like they have moved the nests

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Z Barrett
Zoe Barrett


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The rookery off Kenyon Lane, near Croft only has 8 occupied nests now which are all in one tree in a garden. This is much reduced from previous years, so perhaps some of these rooks moved to the new one in Lowton

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Z Barrett
Zoe Barrett


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This week at the Newton road, Lowton rookery opposite Lowton Community Cafe there is now 8 nests with the 8th almost fully built. There is also a nest in a garden off Beech Ave which is 200 yards from the main rookery.

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Z Barrett
vic chatterton


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Now 5 nests at Mottram Rd Hyde Morrisons

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fredford


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Birtle rookery , in two locations , 200 yards apart , now has 24 nests . Hooray !
Good result after last years disappointing total .

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Ian McKerchar


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Whilst in my dad’s back garden today I noticed a Rookery containing at least 7, possibly 8 (or more), nests in Hall House Wood, Bedford, Leigh, with birds very vocal and busy. I had noticed Rooks feeding on the playing field in front of Bedford High School on occasion for a good few months now but as far as I’m aware this is the fist time they’ve nested in the woods there.



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James Minchin


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A brief flyby the Uppermill rookerie, I counted at least 7 nests with activity. Will have to go back and have a proper look with binoculars.

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Ian Bertenshaw


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9 possibly 10 nests now under construction at St Johns Church, Mosley Common.

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vic chatterton


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Should have said a 4th nest now in construction opposite Morrison's, Mottram Rd, Hyde 



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vic chatterton


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A 4th nest now in construction.



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David Hughes


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Seems to be one in progress at Worthington lake adjacent kilhey Court

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Zoe Barrett


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The Newton road rookery now has 4 nests opposite lowton community cafe with the fourth a new nest in early stages of construction. There are now 3 nests opposite the primary school a bit further down with 2 new nests since mid Feb with one in early stages of construction. So far 7 nests in total at this rookery compared to 3 last year.

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Z Barrett
vic chatterton


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A new site. Mottram Road, Hyde, opposite Morrison's. 3 nests in 2 trees. Remnants of another nest may be a new nest starting  but possibly an old Magpie's.



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Zoe Barrett


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Replying to Dave' s post regarding the rookery at Newton road opposite the community cafe. It is a new site which I noticed last year with 3 nests in one sycmore. They have been rebuilding since early Feb this year and there is now a new nest in an Ash nearby opposite school so 4 nests. It also looked like a 5th might be being built.

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Z Barrett
fredford


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Yes , great to watch and to listen to the wonderful conversations .
Birtle rookery off to tentative start with four , embryonic nests . Or is it three ? Amazin how difficult it is to count them .

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dave broome


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That time of year when rookeries are awesome to watch. This weekend at St Johns Church, Mosley Common four nests are mostly built now, with the beginnings of a fifth. Of the four large nests, three are very close to each other in one tree. No idea whether that is because its the optimum tree for forks to build in, or whether the birds involved are closely related, or just best mates!!! One of those three nests was the only one to survive the winter storms. Today there was quite a bit of communal aerial display/interaction going on. Fascinating stuff.

In Lowton on Friday there were three nests under construction in roadside trees at the front of Lowton Primary School and Lowton Community Hub. Personally I hadnt seen any there before. Dont know for sure whether its a new site or if I have just missed them before. There were several nests very close to there in a garden last year.



-- Edited by dave broome on Sunday 1st of March 2026 08:06:09 PM

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Zoe Barrett


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3 active rook nests in sycamore on Newton Road, Lowton.

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Z Barrett
Mike c cooper


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Birch on Heywood/Middleton border 24/4/25 92 nests

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Zoe Barrett


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Rook feeding on sports field Lowton Common today. Seen one here on most visits recently which is unusual as just one and nearest rookery some distance away to my knowledge.

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Z Barrett
fredford


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Birtle lower rookery . 21 nests , far fewer than last year 35 . Hope it is just a temporary blip .
In reply to Oliver Morris , I have seen rookeries of five nests up to more than sixty and any amount between .

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Oliver Morris


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How many nests for it to be counted as a rookery? 



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PHIL GREENWOOD


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Looks like 23 nests along Irlam Road and Woodsend Road(adjoining Woodsend Park). A very good number. Very difficult to be exact of course.

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Phil Greenwood
dave broome


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Seven nests so far at St Johns Church, Mosley Common. Only one nest survived the winter storms. It was still fairly large, in stark contrast to all the other nests from 2024, of which there was no trace. It would be interesting to know who claimed that nest for this year. 

In Golborne a new site (as far as I know, fairly sure it is new) has been built this year in a single roadside tree at the front of Golborne High School. Three nests, which are presumably an outlier built by birds from the long-standing St Thomas Church rookery, which was reduced in numbers last year. 

There is another small rookery in Lowton, new to me, though on a street I wouldnt normally have reason to go down. Located in a mature tree in a garden between Newton Road and Beech Avenue, it isnt very far as the Rook flies from the reduced site at St Thomas Church, Golborne. I wonder whether avian flu would have had any influence in disrupting rookeries? I havent had chance to stop and check properly, but I got the impression that the Holiday Inn rookery, just outside GM in to St Helens, nr the Haydock Racecourse is down on what it used to be, with a small outlier at the front of Edmund Arrowsmith High School, Ashton-in-Makerfield (initially one nest a few years ago) slightly increased. 

 



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fredford


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Birtle lower rookery .
First sighting of rook with large twig for his nest . Hurrah !

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PHIL GREENWOOD


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Looks like 18 nests now on Irlam Road and Woodsend Road.

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Phil Greenwood
fredford


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Thirty five in lower rookery at Birtle . Highest number since it started about six years ago . Have not yet done a precise count of the higher rookery but seems to be seven .

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PHIL GREENWOOD


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14 nests so far on Irlam Road, Flixton.



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Phil Greenwood
Nick Hilton


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No nests in the small wood between Brookheys Covert and Brookheys Farm this year.

New rookery by the A6144 Manchester Road, just prior to the Saica paper mill Carrington, about 10 nests

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Rod Harrison


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Noticed last few years how, over the border in Calderdale, sadly, how many rookeries have disappeared and those that remain have generally reduced in size. Mind you around Whitefield and Haywood the same is true and no doubt about other areas on the edge of the city.

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Ian McKerchar


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Originally posted today by Brian Shuttleworth:

St James Shuttleworth

Plenty of activity over the last few days, between 20 and 26 nests look to be occupied or being rebuilt, lots of sticks being stolen and fought over, 44 individual birds counted but lots of coming and going so difficult to count.

Regards Brian



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dave broome


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Four nests so far at St Johns Church, Mosley Common, at various stages of construction (just the one nest over the weekend of 24th/25th Feb, one which had largely survived the winter storms). Six pairs were actually present this morning. One of the pairs without a nest were sat in the canopy while one intermittently preened the nape of the other. One of the highlights of the year is this burst of activity before the foliage appears.
Elsewhere in Tyldesley nests are also under construction at the Elliott Street/Castle Street estate - initially appeared to be an outlier from the Tyldesley Cemetery rookery - a site which now seems to be abandoned.

-- Edited by dave broome on Thursday 7th of March 2024 06:41:25 AM

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fredford


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Yesterday much excitement and joy .
Three nascent nests appeared in Birtle lower rookery and two a little further up the road , in a tree not used previously . Rejoice !

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Mike c cooper


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Birch on heywood/middleton borderSun 9/4/23 114 nests

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fredford


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Last evening , i counted twenty four nests in Birtle lower rookery . Hurrah !

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PHIL GREENWOOD


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Looks to be 14 active nests in 3 trees, in the Irlam Road area, Flixton. The main tree from last year does not appear to be in use.

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Phil Greenwood
fredford


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Just seen the first twigs being brought to Birtle lower rookery . Hurrah !

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fredford


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Birtle .
Lower rookery . Birds becoming noisier , more talkative and moving around the site more .
Perhaps building will begin , soonish .

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Mike c cooper


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Birch on heywood / Middleton border 27/4

92 nests

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Roger Baker 3


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19th April.

Eight active Rook nests at Hattersley roundabout .. M67 terminal.

Roger.

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Paul Carroll


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Rooks are back again nesting at the top of the car park light cluster at Asda Ashton under Lyne.



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Paul C
fredford


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Birtle .
Lower rookery 25 nests . Middle rookery 5 nests . Top rookery 25 nests .
These started six years ago with the lower , then the top , then the middle . Distance between lower and top is about six hundred yards with the middle slightly nearer to the lower . Is this to be counted as one rookery ?


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Mike Horwood


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Possible nine nests in Holcombe Church



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PHIL GREENWOOD


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Possible 20 nests on Irlam Road, Flixton, with a further 3 in a tree round the corner off Woodsend Road, behind DeBrook Lodge care home..

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Phil Greenwood
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