Hi All

I hope this post is acceptable, and I'm sure Ian will edit if necessary, but Groundwork and the Environment Agency are running a project to Bring the River Irk to Life and are seeking local views on how to improve the area . To this end, they're asking if people can fill out a 2 minute survey via this link.

 

https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/JN2B7/

 

This is a good chance to share views on the development of the River Irk in North Manchester and make sure future developments support birds and local wildlife!

There is also a short video about the project here - https://spark.adobe.com/video/cVcXJLnsdNGOf 

 

Please feel free to contribute your ideas and thoughts via the link.

 

Cheers,

Nev

Harpurhey Ponds - 19th July - am.

There's lots of concerted and very worthy activity from several organisations to try and recover/develop this heavily polluted and even more heavily disturbed but potentially excellent site. It's such a shame that it is tarnished by just a few of the unsavoury characters who sometimes visit here. When I visited here on 31st March and walked round towards one of the ponds a youth was seen throwing bread onto the water. My first impression was that he was fishing or alternatively of how nice I thought of him to feed the ducks but closer inspection through my binoculars of his mate, who was sat in a portable folding chair, suggested that he probably had an air rifle and the bread was just a lure to have a closer range pot-shot at the ducks. By the time I got round there they had spotted me and had scarpered.

Anyway on a visit this morning, not a single other person present but there were some decent birds. A Nuthatch was I think a site first for me. A juvenile Goldcrest was seen, with 1 or possibly 2 others of this species calling nearby. A group of 3 independent juvenile Bullfinch were seen. 3 Chiffchaff and a Blackcap sang. A family party of Greenfinch were heard and at least 2 Jays were present. Plenty of Song Thrush about, including fledged young. At least 3 Grey Wagtails, including 2 independent juveniles which were landing on and foraging off the water lily leaves. 3 Sand Martin, 2 Swift and a single Swallow foraged over the water. Not much in the way of waterfowl, perhaps not too surprisingly, other than 2 family parties of Moorhen which remained quite elusive.

There are 2 very small areas of Phragmites present on different ponds and the best bird I've had here was a singing Reed Warbler on 9/5/09.

Good luck to all those involved in trying to improve what could be a cracking site, particularly for one so close to the city centre.


Cheers,


Bill.

I intend to bird Harpurhey Ponds on a very regular basis so you can expect this thread to grow (it's my local spot)

Today:

3 Greenfinch (chasing one another)
1 Chaffinch
1 Long Tailed Tit
Several Great Tit
Several Robin
Three Mallard on the Irk (plus five ducklings!)

1 Coot
1 Moorhen
2 Canada - On the ponds themselves.