Somewhat "pumped up" with enthusiasm over the phalarope experience from Saturday's trip down into Gr. Manchester, and while keeping one eye on the Wales/ South Africa Rugby match today, I was thumbing through old bird reports digesting previous phalarope occurences in the county and was surprised to come across a report of a Wilson's Phalarope in the 1990 annual report. This reads as follows:

"A strong westerly wind with showers deposited this first for the county at Pennington Flash on the morning of 22nd September. It was located later at Martin Mere, Lancs, where it spent a further week."

The only other phalarope recorded for that year was a Grey Phal. at Audenshaw ( a site first) on 25th/26th November.

As Wilson's Phalarope does not appear to be included in the systematic list for Greater Manchester, I wonder please if anyone can clarify the situation?

I assume in those days that Wilson's Phalarope was still a BBRC rarities species and so possibly was rejected by the rarities committee, but there would appear to be little or no scope for misidentification if it was present for a whole week at Martin Mere, where presumably it would have been subject to close scrutiny by many observers.
Could it therefore be the case that as a matter of oversight it has inadvertantly been omitted from the county systematic list?

Mike P.