Wilmslow Guild birdwatching group coach trip on 24th March Sunny spells but windy
Highlights 9.40 to 16.30 Glossy ibis, red-breasted goose, green-winged teal, chiffchaff, nuthatch, treecreeper, rock dove, goldcrest, garganey, little egret, great egret, goldeneye, redshank, common gull, Cetti,s warbler, blackcap, greenfinch, song thrush, reed bunting, great crested grebe. 62 species seen altogether with lesser spotted woodpecker and bittern heard but not seen.
New members are always welcome. Please contact rsm898@gmail.com for more information.
The Stockport Birdwatching Society May coach trip took us to this RSPB reserve today (the original trip to Anglesey was rearranged due to the closure on the M56).
Highlights were undoubtedly the 6 to 8 Hobby hawking in the sunshine. A booming Bittern, good views of Yellow Wagtail, an obliging Barn Owl and a full set of warblers (Sedge, Reed, Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Grasshopper, Garden, Blackcap, Cetti's, Willow, Chiffchaff and Goldcrest). A combined total of 79 species. It's a huge reserve and we could have done with more than the 6 1/2 hours we had to cover it all.
-- Edited by Nick Hilton on Saturday 13th of May 2023 09:29:01 PM
I ticked my lifer Least Sandpiper here too Sid, again counted as in Staffs!
With a sunny day forecast I decided to visit again today as it is a great reserve and can easily fill a days birding. Added to that the report of my favourite migrant (more later) and I had to go!
As always it took far longer to get there than I expected, I always think of it as just Staffs but in reality its far south Staffs on the border with Warks! The car park was full with only a couple of spaces, I grabbed one as a car was just leaving and headed out onto the reserve. A long walk is needed to get to the reserve proper but I eventually made it! I wandered around the groups of birders assembled and said hi to many that I knew. One reaquaintance was with a lone lady birder I had met at the Caspian Tern at Frampton RSPB, Dawn, who was with her pal Claire and it turned out that the three of us hooked up to bird together all day
My first nice bird was a distant wildfowl species in flight which I called out as an Egyptian Goose, always good to see. A couple of showy Great White Egrets were on the lagoons with a few Little Egrets. Then on a tip off we headed back along the path to Fishers Mill Pit and were told we had just missed a Bittern which had been stood out in full view, but I did see it slink off into the reeds but by the time I put my scope up it was gone. A long wait and no further sign so we returned to West Scrape. After sitting and me helping with invertebrate ID for a bit (lots of dragonflies, damselflies and a Scorpion Fly to ID!) a shout went up that had us skittering down the path by the scrape. Then we had about a 40 minute wait before the bird we had come to see finally popped out - a beautiful Wryneck. This, my favourite of all scarce migrants to the UK, sat on top af a post only 20m away, posing for around 2 minutes, giving everyone superb views. It was great that this was a lifer for my 2 colleagues and we all left ecstatic after putting in a whole day trying to see it and ending in success
First visit here with High Peak RSPB group from 11.45-16.30
Very impressive although not a great deal in terms of facilities .
Highlights: Yellow Wagtail, summer plumage Ruff, 4 Little Ringed Plover, Red Kite, many Swift, Swallow and House Martin, Garden Warbler, 3 Common Whitethroat, Blackcap, 3 Willow Warbler, 2 Little Egret, 7 Avocet, 2 Redshank, Mediterranean Gull, 2 Common Tern, Kestrel, Treecreeper, 5 Cettis Warbler, 4 Sedge Warbler, 2 Reed Warbler, 7 Reed Bunting, 4 Oystercatcher, 2 Stock Dove .
You are right Chris it is a very impressive reserve and has given me a couple of good birds in the past in the shape of a White-rumped Sandpiper (November 2012) and a Pacific Golden Plover (July 2014). These were listed as Staffordshire sightings as they were both on the northern lakes which comprise a very large part of the reserve.
