2010 BIG BOROUGH BIRDING BASH

 by John Rayner in Stockport Borough

I was drawn into Borough listing rather late in the year having read about what was happening in Wigan and so wrote up the first month’s diary retrospectively.

JANUARY

1^st I started 2010 on New Year’s Day driving out of the borough, but before crossing the boundary the first bird of the year was a pre-dawn Tawny Owl (1) near Chadkirk, which just clipped the car, hope it was all right.

2^nd Stuck at home garden watching but I managed to increase the list to 19.

3^rd I was out on the local patch adding Bullfinch and Kestrel, but best of all re-locating a Jack Snipe that I had first found in 2009, plus a bonus Woodcock (21). I was quite pleased with myself until I logged on to the GM website and was gob smacked to read of a Little Egret just down the road. I know where I’ll be tomorrow.

4^th Out far too early at Chadkirk in minus 10 degrees looking for a Little Egret by moonlight. Dawn broke but still no sign so I gave up and went down Goyt Valley LNR to find commoner birds plus Mandarin and Goosander. Here I was most surprised to re-find the Little Egret (24) on the icy River Goyt. Later Offerton Sewage Works provided good numbers of Pied & Grey Wagtails and Meadow Pipits (33).

6^th Back to Chadkirk to photograph the Egret and also scored with my first Dippers, Long-tailed Tits, Snipe, Canada Geese and Treecreeper (38).

7^th - 9^th Best birds were 2 Little Owls at Goyt Hall Farm and a Teal on Hazel Grove Golf Course, the latter are scarce here. A few padders e.g. Great-spotted Woodpecker and Rook, then to Etherow CP, which was still iced over but gave the less than inspiring Egyptian and Greylag Geese (44).

13^th - 14^th So far a distinct lack of ‘real’ water birds but this was corrected by a visit to Roman Lakes, Marple raising the total (50).

16^th Still thick snow on the ground and behind Torkington Primary School was a 2^nd Jack Snipe, a Nuthatch and a small mixed finch flock, mainly Siskin plus a couple of Lesser Redpoll (53). Huge flocks of Jackdaw (54) pass over my house twice each day where counts have been be as many as 2,300 in a single flock.

20^th Wren and Chaffinch and winter thrushes had somehow gone unrecorded so far but the skein of c140 Pink-feet and 4 male Yellowhammers at Goyt Hall farm were certainly new. Previously uncounted Winter Thrushes also raised the total (61).

30^th A flight of gulls, probably heading for Audenshaw, passed over Chadkirk C.E. and included both LBB and Herring (63). Must remember to look out for GBB which don’t overfly round our way all that often. Buzzard (64). But this day will be remembered for a certain madcap race against the clock to see Warfy’s Shorelark just before it went to roost.

31^st Roman Lakes was still mainly iced over but the remaining small patch of water held 4 Tufted Duck (65). So ends an action packed month, it will surely slow up from here on in.

FEBRUARY

2^nd Ian McKerchar suggested I do this diary and so, exactly one month into the year I got drawn into this Borough listing malarkey and decided to work out my Stockport Borough list, then type up January. The heavy rain all day didn’t appeal but I felt the need to get out and so went to check a site where I’d found owl pellets in the past. I was shocked to find my first GM Barn Owl (66) for the east of the county out hunting in the rain. I thought they didn’t like to get their feathers wet. A Pheasant nearby (67) looked slightly less bedraggled than the observer.

3^rd and 6^th More visits to Goyt Valley LNR and Roman Lakes but nothing new, only the old favourites.

7^th Chased birds reported on this website but unfortunately no Wigeon at Reddish Vale and no Brambling at Chadkirk.

8^th A small flock of large gulls contained one even larger, 1^st winter GBB Gull (68) over Chadkirk – excellent!

9^th A walk along the River Goyt opposite Chadkirk Country Estate produced a nice perched Kingfisher (69).

17^th Found 4 Ravens together (70) on Ludworth Moor with 2 of them in tumbling display. No Golden Plovers back yet.

18^th A long slog round Etherow and environs produced one new tick in the form of Little Grebe (71) on the river, but still no Great-crested Grebes back on the visitor centre pools. On the plus side I did manage to explore some lovely new habitat that looked very promising for later in the year.

19^th Tried for a reported Waxwing in Offerton but no joy.

20^th A drake Pochard at Reddish Vale L.N.R was a local scarcity (72).

22^nd At last, my first Manchester Goldcrest of the year (73) found in a loose flock of mixed tit species at Hazel Grove golf course.

24^th Found a pair of Peregrines (74) close to last year’s nest site. I have been requested not to make the site public.

28^th The month ended with a bang! At Etherow CP a Great-crested Grebe had returned after probably spending the winter on the sea. Then another 4 borough birds in an hour’s birding on Ludworth Moor - Skylarks in song flight, a calling Curlew, a male Reed Bunting and, best of all, a flock of 23 Golden Plover, some sporting dark bellies. Thus the month ended with the total on 79.

MARCH

Mar 1^st Sunshine, blue skies, birdsong, it must be spring. Made an early morning visit to the Woodford area (and again in the afternoon) but failed to discover any of yesterday’s Shovelers.

Mar 2^nd Two visits to Reddish today for the second and third Waxwing dips of the year, although I did manage 4 in Bolton later in the afternoon. Like Offerton last month there appeared to be no berries in Reddish to persuade the birds to stay. March wasn’t starting very auspiciously.

Mar 3^rd A.M. An extensive Shoveler hunt around many field pools in some previously unexplored Woodford corners – zilch!  P.M. Walked round Roman Lakes and Bottoms Reservoir but nothing special.

Mar 4^th Yet another tour around another local patch when I walked from Chadkirk through Kirk Wood then to Marple along the canal then back along the Goyt but no additions.

Mar 5^th Followed up a post on the website and was soon watching 7 Tree Sparrows (80) on Ludworth Moor. Later I had a lunchtime appointment in Woodford so I pushed my luck and tried all the Shoveler pools again. Nothing… and nothing… then, on the 3^rd pool, a welcome pair of Shoveler (81). These are scarcities in Stockport MBC area.

Mar 7^th Heard a LS Woodpecker in local woodland but by the time I got close it had stopped drumming and I couldn’t find the blighter! Went back in the afternoon and searched thoroughly and eventually found a male Lesser Spotted Woodpecker feeding quietly (82).

Mar 8^th, 10^th, 13^th Various visits to Roman Lakes and Etherow but nothing much to report except rather tedious Coot counts.

Mar 12^th A tour of Woodford right up to the edges of the county boundary. 2 Red-legged Partridge (83) were feeding under a hedgerow by Old Hall Farm. Surely this area should have produced Oystercatcher and Linnet by now.

Mar 16^th Same route as on the 12^th but a 3 hour flog produced very little. Frustratingly I found Linnets, Oystercatchers and a Wigeon a few hundred yards over the border in Cheshire.

Mar 17^th Roman Lakes again this morning. 2 of the 3 hours here today were spent trying to get a view of 2 calling Green Woodpeckers. Mostly they were hidden in an inaccessible wooded valley but eventually persistence paid off (84).

Mar 19^th The first Chiffchaff (85) of the year was singing at Goyt Valley LNR. In the afternoon a fortuitous visit to Woodford airfield produced 2 Little-ringed Plovers (86) on an ephemeral flood, which was just the wrong side of the boundary. They then seemed to chase each other (display?) and went winging away deep into Greater Manchester. Brilliant! Unfortunately the Linnets and Oystercatchers that were also present stubbornly remained in Cheshire.

Mar 20^th - 25^th Numerous fruitless visits to Roman Lakes, Ludworth Moor and other local patches in search of migrants.

Mar 26^th At last, a female Wheatear (87) on the airfield at Woodford.

Mar 28^th Two Sand Martins (88) were found at Cheadle Heath on a walk along the River Mersey.

Mar 30^th Roman Lakes, Bottoms Reservoir and Ludworth Moor yet again. The Stonechats seem to have been wiped out after the January cold spell.

Mar 31^st The month ended with heavy rain, north-westerly winds and a return of wintry weather across the country, all of which slowed up migration. But, as that wise, old philosopher Bertrand Rigby reminded me, “You don’t see owt from your lounge”, so I braved the cold and rain for a muddy visit to Adswood Tip and Alexandra Park, Edgeley. I didn’t see owt !!

APRIL

 Apr 1^st Violent hail/rain showers today. After failing for 3 months I found 2 pairs of Oystercatcher (89) at 2 separate locations in Woodford, in a 5 minute spell. Just like buses…

Apr 2^nd An extended visit to the Woodford area but no further wader species. I called in briefly to Roman Lakes to check the ducks where the highlight was one Tufted Duck. Next, Ludworth Moor hoping for a Ring Ouzel but instead Linnets (90) were back singing on territory. Still no Stonechats.

Apr 3^rd, 4^th Repeated visits to Woodford, Roman Lakes, Ludworth Moor, Etherow, Chadkirk etc but no additions.

Apr 5^th A nice flock of 16 Swallows feeding over the River Goyt at Chadkirk (91).

Apr 6^th Single Sand and House Martins (92) joined yesterday’s Swallows.

Apr 7^th Drew a blank on River Mersey (east Didsbury) and at Adswood Tip but a couple of Willow Warblers (93) on Middlewood Way, Hazel Grove were new arrivals.

Apr 8^th Chiffchaffs have arrived in force. A walk around Hazel Grove Golf Course gave no less than 11 Chiffchaffs plus 1 Swallow and a singing male Blackcap (94)

Apr 11^th A nice female Merlin (95) was probably on breeding territory therefore location details withheld.

Apr 18^th After a few days holiday, involving volcanic ash travel problems, I picked up where I left off by missing a Ring Ouzel on Ludworth Moor. Winds are still from the north and northwest and migration in Stockport Borough seems to have slowed to a trickle.

Apr 20^th A Lesser Whitethroat (96) at Bottom’s Reservoir, Marple Bridge was some consolation for missing a Red-rumped Swallow at Audenshaw by 15 minutes. More consolation in the evening with a Common Sandpiper (97) on the banks of the River Mersey, Cheadle

Apr 21^st Just as migration picks up at last, I’m laid low with the dreaded norovirus.

Apr 22^nd After a few fruitless visits to Adswood Tip the Grasshopper Warblers (98) have returned today with 1 showing exceptionally well as it reeled from the top of a bramble patch. A silent Whitethroat (99) that foraged nearby was a bonus.

Apr 24^th A good day for migrants. A very welcome female Yellow Wagtail (100) overflew fields near Old Hall Farm, Woodford. In early evening a pristine male Redstart (101) was at Hazel Grove Golf Course. My first for this site after 35 years birding the area.

Apr 25^th Ludworth Moor and another showy Grasshopper Warbler was the pick of the morning.

Apr 26^th – 29^th Ideal migration conditions and at least 4 hours a day birding Hazel Grove Golf Course, Adswood Tip, Roman Lakes, Woodford, Etherow Country Park and Ludworth Moor, but no new additions.

Apr 30^th The last day of the month and I at last caught up with Swift (102) when 7 flew through at Old Hall Farm, Woodford.

Any additional Spring migrants would now fall into the scarce/rare categories so probably not that many more to add to the borough list until I get a second chance at those I missed last winter.

MAY 

May 2^nd A good day for me in the county, with 2 Avocets in the morning (sadly in Tameside) and, back in Stockport, 2 Garden Warblers (103) singing well at Bottom’s Reservoir, Marple.

May 3^rd Discovered a 2^nd Redstart for the Borough at Etherow during a reconnaissance for tomorrow’s day list attempt.

May 4^th. The Greater Manchester day list started at 05.00 in Stockport Borough but I could not add any new species before we left Stockport for other boroughs.

May 5^th Two Sedge Warblers (104) at Adswood Tip were very welcome as they are not always easy to find locally.

May 8^th Continuous cold north easterly winds are hampering migration.  A couple of visits to Etherow but still no Pied Flycatchers in the usual places - it’s looking a bit doubtful now.

May 11^th Visited to Ludworth Moor, Etherow and Roman Lakes but just the usual suspects.

May 12^th A walk round Bramhall Park. Nice woodlands but no additions.

May 17^th Ludworth Moor again but those elusive chats remain just that.

May 19^th A visit to Roman Lakes this morning. Lots of family parties (Coot, Blackbird, Great-crested Grebe, Chiffchaff) but no new species to add.

May 20^th So, a fairly disappointing May ended here as I was off to foreign climes till the end of the month. Looking for See-see Partridge and Semi-collared Flycatchers was a nice change from fruitless searches for Grey Partridge and Pied Flycatchers in the borough.

JUNE

 June 4^th First venture out into the borough since my holiday and not really a birding trip, just a pint with a few old work mates. It was a huge surprise therefore when a Red Kite (105) drifted over the beer garden. Both a county and borough tick.

June 5^th A Spotted Flycatcher had put in an appearance at Etherow a week or so ago, whilst I was away, but I couldn’t re-find it today. No Pied Flycatchers or Wood Warblers either this year despite what looked like perfect habitat to my eyes. Followed this with a visit to Roman Lakes to see if the Mute Swans had a brood yet but the female was still sitting.

June 9^th A lunchtime walk around the quieter parts of Hazel Grove Golf Course didn’t produce any birding surprises (although 2 Broad-bodied Chasers were a good record)

June 11^th A 2 hour circular lunch time walk around Ludworth Moor produced some breeding records but the best bird was a fly through Peregrine.

June 16^th A plan to search for Hobby at Ludworth Moor worked out to perfection when a Hobby (106) flew by at close range within 5 minutes of my arrival.

June 17^th Another long walk around Etherow C.P. and environs and this time I was delighted to find a female Redstart in the wood where the male was singing earlier in the year.

June 18^th Reports of a Quail at Offerton had me searching crop fields behind Goyt Hall Farm in the unlikely hope that I might re-find it. No chance of course.

June 19^th Back round Hazel Grove Golf Course but the highlight was photographing the BB Chasers.

June 21^st Good news from Roman Lakes where the Swans had hatched 3 Cygnets. Best bird apart from that was a Garden Warbler giving alarm calls but it was just outside the borough.

June 23^rd A cycle ride today along the Middlewood Way. Birding was quiet but 4 dead common shrews together on the path were unusual.

June 26^th Ludworth Moor today and mammals stole the show again with a vixen with two well grown cubs playing in bright sunshine.

June 28^th & 29^th A recent report of a juvenile Stonechat attracted me to Woodford for 2 days running, but it had moved on. Birding took second place to dragonfly photography with a total of 10 species in the area.

June 30^th  I finished the month off with a tough (for me!) evening cycle ride up and around Ludworth Moor. The idea was to listen for owls but all I found was a lost Morris Dancer. That’s another story ☺

JULY

 Jul 2^nd. Old Hall Lane, Woodford once more. I speculated on the possibility of eventually finding a Quail here, or Cuckoo, or even Stonechat, but the highlight today was the sandwich in the Davenport Arms.

Jul 5^th. An evening visit to Woodford. The airfield grass was mowed last week and there wasn’t much skylark action, although a Curlew flew by. I hope their young survived the mowing.

Jul 12^th. Woodford was becoming my regular spot. Quite a bit cooler this morning and little bird action, so it was doubly annoying that a vagrant Reed Warbler (local rarity) was singing less than 1/2 mile away but in Cheshire.

Jul 13^th. Chadkirk today and much breeding evidence in the form of juvenile Nuthatches, Wrens, Grey Wagtails, Swallows, House Martins, Blue and Long-tailed Tits.

Jul 26^th. After a short holiday away from the borough I spent a wet afternoon in Ernocroft Woods, Etherow C.P., after a morning report of Crossbills in the area. A flock of 18 Mandarin in eclipse by the approach to the hide and large flock of c20 Coal Tits (mostly juveniles) were all I could muster.

Jul 29^th. Woodford again to check for any passage migrants. Best finds were a Raven calling loudly and a Kingfisher on the River Dean. (A pair of Bee-eaters was reported from the Cheshire side of the airfield in the evening!  Oh, $?**!!)

Jul 30^th. Another walk through Ernocroft Woods, from the upper path this time, but Crossbills remained elusive. On from there to Ludworth Moor but the best could manage was a pair of Whitethoats giving alarm calls, 2 Buzzards and a flock of Linnets.

July 31^st. Finished off what had been an extremely quiet month a visit to Goyt Valley LNR. Young Nuthatches and Treecreepers had joined a roving tit flock but too many shotguns for enjoyable birding.

AUGUST 

Aug 4^th. Roman Lakes. Lots of youngsters and family parties around with an optimistic Coot building a new nest. The Mute Swans were down to just 1 cygnet.

Aug 6^th. Bridle Road, Woodford has a couple of pools where I day dream of wader passage (although I’ve never seen a wader here – and, of course, none again today). Best was a ragged Raven in heavy moult.

Aug 7th -10^th. Time off from birding as I’d set myself a target to photograph Purple Hairstreak, which in the event proved to be extremely difficult. 6 hours over 4 days staring at the same Oak near Chadkirk produced only a handful of sightings and 1 poor photographic opportunity. Judging by the numbers of foraging tits and blackcaps through this tree I’m surprised this lethargic butterfly survives at all.

Aug 11^th. My usual walk down upstream along the Mersey at Cheadle was completely overgrown and impassable. 2 Stock Doves and a flock of 9 Mistle Thrushes were notable. I followed this with a walk round Abney Hall Park.

Aug 12^th.  Woodford. 4 hours, 22 species. Hard work.  

 Aug 16^th.  Ludworth Moor shone on a rare sunny day. A party of 4 Whinchats (107) at Far Bradshaw were the first new birds in the Borough for exactly 2 months, also 4 Ravens in a loose flock.

Aug 18^th. Ludworth Moor again. Good numbers of common birds e.g. flocks of 18 Linnets, 26 Swallows, 18 Goldfinch plus 2 Ravens and a Willow Warbler still in full song.

Aug 19^th. Ludworth Moor for the third day running but there were no passage migrants today, even though moorland habitat elsewhere in the county is apparently inundated with them.

Aug 20^th. Hazel Grove Golf Course today and I hit a new low with only 7 species (yes, that’s seven) in 2 hours and I wasn’t walking round with my eyes shut! OK, so it was the quiet time of the day around lunchtime but no wonder I’ve started photographing hoverflies.

Aug 21^st & 22^nd. Fourth & fifth visits to Ludworth Moor this month but still no new passage migrants for me. They all seem to be on Horwich Moors lately!

Aug 23^rd. A walk in the rain around Roman Lakes produced most of the expected species but nothing out of the ordinary.

Aug 25^th. Yet another visit to Ludworth Moor as it still seemed to be the best bet for passage migrants. A flock of 187 Meadow Pipits was noteworthy but no Tree Pipits seen or heard amongst them despite close scrutiny.

Aug 26^th. Etherow Country Park produced very few passerines. 24 Mandarins and an Egyptian Goose were by the weir.

Aug 27^th. Jackpot! My 7^th visit to Ludworth Moor in 12 days produced 5 Ravens and 2 Buzzards feeding on a sheep carcase. Passage migrants comprised 5 Wheatears and 2 Spotted Flycatchers (108), the latter being especially welcome after the frustrations of reading that they were passing through the county in unprecedented numbers. Then I made a late evening visit to Woodford aerodrome and was rewarded with a juvenile Cuckoo (109) sitting on the Stockport/Cheshire boundary fence.

Aug 29^th. Ludworth Moor again today covering Brown Low, Clough End and Far Bradshaw, but fairly quiet after the excitement of 27th. Best bird was a single Whinchat at Far Bradshaw.

Aug 30^th. First a brief visit to Mellor Moor, just a tiny scrap of heath now, which was even more degraded as it was partly burnt over - very few birds here. Then another 3 hours on Ludworth Moor in beautiful bright sunshine. Best bird by a mile was the first Stonechat (110) of the year up here, a post breeding dispersal bird that hopefully will over-winter and find a mate. There were 3 Wheatears nearby.

Aug 31^st. On the last day of quite a busy month I did a tour of the borough visiting 3 sites. Early morning I tried Abney Hall Park again, which is a great site with bags of potential, not much today but I’ll be back. Early afternoon I searched Woodford, later followed by a cycle ride down the Middlewood Way. There are only a handful of new species I can reasonably expect to add from now on.

OCTOBER

Oct 1^st. Morning and evening visits were made today to Roman Lakes where the 2 Wigeon put in another appearance. Jackdaws flying to evening roost were building up with 1370 flying west.

Oct 2^nd. Much disturbance at Roman Lakes and most of the waterfowl were elsewhere so I moved on to Etherow C.P where the best was a flock of 23 Mandarins including 4 juveniles.

Oct 3^rd. At Roman Lakes in heavy rain the Wigeon now numbered 3.

Oct 4^th. Ludworth Moor (2 Ravens, 1 Sparrowhawk)

Oct 5^th. A good mooch around Roman Lakes area today produced only a few highlights (3 Wigeon still present and a Green woodpecker perched up nicely).

Oct 6^th. Adswood Tip today and the only thing of note was a steady passage of Meadow Pipits south.

Oct 7^th. Roman Lakes again but no changes except an influx of Robins.

Oct 8^th. I made short, unproductive visits to both Abney Hall and Gatley Carrs.

Oct 10^th. A potter today around Goyt Valley LNR (22 Redwing) and Roman Lakes (still 1 Wigeon).

Oct 12^th. An out of borough visit to the northeast coast merely highlighted what was missing locally with good views of Red-flanked Bluetail, Red-breasted Flycatcher, Yellow-browed Warblers and Woodchat.

Oct 11^th & 13th. Two walks around Ludworth Moor in beautiful, warm sunshine produced Redwings, Ravens, Tree Sparrows, Wheatears, Golden Plovers etc.

Oct 14^th. Roman Lakes today and the best bird news I could manage? Coot numbers are up to 68.  L

Oct 16^th.  Hazel Grove Golf Course – dead as usual!! The pool held 5 Mallard, 5 Moorhens, 2 Coot and a single Little Grebe.

Oct 17^th. The search for October migrants continued with a round of visits to Woodford, Brabyn’s Park and Roman Lakes but the less than usual birds remain desperately elusive.

Oct 18^th & 19^th. Two visits to Roman Lakes. 1 Teal was new in on 18^th and Wigeon went up from 1 to 2 on 19th.

Oct 22^nd. Today, another tour round the Borough starting with Abney Park where Snipe and Grey Wagtail were site ticks for me. Then on to Roman Lakes, where there was not a lot and Ludworth Moor, where there was a small passage of Fieldfare (142 birds) and Black-headed Gulls were hovering over Hawthorns to pick off the berries.

Oct 24^th. Roman Lakes – nothing new.

Oct 27^th. I popped in briefly to Roman Lakes (nowt) then a big slog round Ludworth Moor but nothing special (33 species in 5.5 hours). Horwich Moors it ain't!! L.

Oct 29^th. Gatley Carrs look really good habitat but the best I could manage were good numbers of Bullfinches and a Carrion Crow chasing a Sparrowhawk. As Waxwings are surrounding Greater Manchester I did an afternoon tour of all the usual berry trees but nothing in yet.

Oct 30^th. At Roman Lakes (15^th visit this month L) there was the usual fare plus a new Little Grebe. Later in the day a Green Woodpecker was my first on Ludworth Moor. Another look at berry trees at Woodley precinct, Henry Street, St John’s estate and various other sites in Offerton but, although Waxwings have reached Salford, Oldham and Horwich, they don’t appear to be any at of the traditional Stockport Borough sites yet.

NOVEMBER

Nov 1^st. A nice circular walk taking in Roman Lakes, Mellor Golf Course and Linnet Clough. I tried to count every bird and logged 502 individuals of 33 species. Highlights were a Green Woodpecker, 55 Lesser Redpoll and a Goosander on the river.

Nov 4^th.  A quick look at Roman Lakes and noted an increase in numbers of common wildfowl. I’m now searching for Gadwall, Goldeneye and Water Rail but all are difficult birds round these parts. I’ve also been touring round various likely berry trees over the past week or so, ever since Waxwings were reported from Horwich, Oldham and Chorlton. Today it paid off with 2 Waxwings (112) on Rowans in Offerton, at a regular spot for them.

Nov 5^th.  As I was passing by I made a brief visit to Old Hall Lane Woodford.

Nov 6^th. Today was crisp and sunny, Pink-feet were on the move with skeins of 350 and 55 east over Hazel Grove. No more Offerton Waxwing sightings.

Nov 8^th. Roman Lakes in terrible weather but nothing new. Still no larger flocks of Waxwings in Offerton.

Nov 9^th. I had just found a juvenile Peregrine (in Cheshire) which then overflew the GM half of the airfield when I got an intriguing call to check out a funny grebe at Hollingworth Lake. No further sightings from Woodford.

Nov 12^th. After all the excitement at Hollingworth I had another dose of that anything can happen optimism so tried Roman Lakes to see how many grebes had dropped in. Last month a Little Grebe had appeared briefly but it was grilled closely and was definitely nothing rarer. Today there were the usual numbers of Coot, Moorhen and Mallard but nothing else. A strange, faintly goose-like honking was traced to the Juvenile Mute Swan – didn’t know they could be that vocal.

Nov 15^th. At Roman Lakes there were the usuals plus another Little Grebe, a drake Teal and a Kingfisher.

Nov 16^th. I had a quick look over the main lake at Roman Lakes but nothing new in. Then moved on to Ludworth Moor where the best bird of the morning went unidentified as a skein of c220 Pinkfeet was led by a small wader. Other than that 35 species in 4 hours was about par for the course.

Nov 18^th. At Roman Lakes (again) where 4 Tufted Duck were new but still no scarcer ducks, however, I still feel this is my best place to search for these.

Nov 21^st. I had a look around the usual Waxwing haunts in Offerton but they have very few berries left now. So on to Woodbank Park to try and find a finch flock, and perhaps a Brambling, but nothing unusual here except perhaps for a large flock of 52 Mallard on a very small pool.

Nov 22^nd. Very steady at Roman Lakes with just the usual counts of common species.  But one day, one day!

Nov 23^rd. A 5 mile circular walk round Middlewood Way, Marple, Marple Locks and Chadkirk but bird of the day was a Treecreeper.

Nov 24^th. After a very cold night I hoped for some cold weather bird movement so visited both Roman Lakes and Ludworth Moor. Best bits were the long stay Little Grebe at R.L. and 2 Ravens mobbing a Buzzard at L.M. with 4 Tree Sparrows at Larkhill.

Nov 27^th. I failed with today’s Waxwings at Etherow C.P. being just 10 minutes late but a Peregrine flew over whilst I waited. Unusually early, very cold weather for late November and Roman Lakes was almost completely frozen over allowing more accurate counting, e.g. 85 Coot, 17 Moorhens and 66 Mallards but nothing scarcer. Surely a Water Rail will put in an appearance one day. No more local birding till month end due to domestic duties.

DECEMBER

Dec 1^st. I followed up a report of Waxwings at Stockport train station but none there this afternoon.

Dec 2^nd.  Again followed up news of Waxwings at Stockport station and this time I found a small flock of 9 here. Leaving these I was surprised and delighted to find another flock of 9 waiting for me at Hazel Grove station just a few minutes later.  

Dec 3^rd. Woodford often features on weather reports as a very cold place so no surprise that on arrival the outside temp read -13 deg.  Best bits were a flock of c110 Fieldfare and a snipe sp. flying high overhead, which was a good candidate for a Jack Snipe.

Dec 4^th. An attempt to get to Roman Lakes in freezing conditions came to naught when I got my car stuck for 2 hours on the icy track at Bottom’s Bridge. I only managed a quick look at Main Lake where all the usual suspects were present on a very small patch of open water. 

Dec 5^th. On Hazel Grove Golf Course I flushed 2 Common Snipe then a Jack Snipe, which rose with a 3rd Common and then they both conveniently circled in the same binocular view for a superb direct comparison of key features. I’ve not seen Jack Snipe at this location since January, possibly a returning bird. Also 2 Greater Black-backed Gulls that flew north were local scarcities.

Dec 6^th. A new Borough bird at long last in the form of 2 very pleasing male Bramblings (113) at Larkhill on Ludworth Moor, accompanying other finches and Tree Sparrows.

Dec 7^th. Today I thought I’d try for a couple of target species on my dwindling hit list. Firstly, I wondered if the redpoll flock at Mellor Golf Course might contain a mealy, but I couldn’t find the flock and only turned up a single Lesser Redpoll and 2 Woodcock. So, I moved on to Etherow C.P. where the targets were bacon barmcake and Water Rail. I easily found one but the other remained elusive.

Dec 8^th. Bright blue skies and beautiful snow scenes on Ludworth Moor today. The fantasy bird of the day was Snow Bunting - the real bird of the day was a Woodcock flying closely past at eye-level. This wasn’t a flushed bird so it spent some time circling round as it looked for a suitable place to land.

Dec 9^th. Yet another Woodcock at Hazel Grove Golf Course but no snipe species.

Dec 10^th. I attempted Roman Lakes again and, after the events of the 4^th, decided this time to park safely and walk in. Not a good idea either with rain water slicking over the ice sheet. Walking was impossible without crampons and I fell a few times, got a wet bum and gave up.

Dec 11^th. I followed up a report of Short-eared Owl at Woodford but without success. Better birding (but just in Cheshire) was finding 43 Waxwings at Poynton Station on the way home.

Dec 12^th. A further 3.5 hour vigil at Woodford Airfield failed to produce any Short-eared Owl sightings.

Dec 13^th. The thaw was well and truly underway but both Roman Lakes and Etherow were still mostly iced over. Fewer birds at Roman Lakes than recently but 3 Tufted Ducks were new.

Dec 15^th. At Woodford the flock of c30 Fieldfare and c10 Redwings were feeding on the airfield and a female Merlin dashed down Old Hall Lane. Small passerines here seem to have declined sharply since the cold spell. I followed this by re-finding a Little Egret only just outside the borough near Poynton Pool, presumed to be the bird seen earlier in the year returning to the same area.

Dec 16^th. Offerton ETW area held good numbers of corvids and circa 26 Mandarin Ducks by the Goyt. I couldn’t look over the settling beds as repair work was underway.

Dec 18^th. I walked around Hazel Grove Golf Course in a fresh fall of snow but unfortunately there was no fresh fall of birds.

Dec 19^th. Chadkirk new pond held 4 Snipe. But the best at Goyt Valley LNR was a flock of at least 74 Mandarin Ducks and it was also nice to see Goldcrests, Wrens, Long-tailed Tits and Nuthatches surviving the prolonged cold snap.

Dec 20^th. There had been recent reports of Goldeneye on the River Mersey but these were from outside the borough. Today I walked a length of the Mersey that bordered Stockport borough (downstream from Cheadle Bridge) and was rewarded with 2 female Goldeneyes (114) on the very edge of the boundary. Fortunately two approaching dog walkers flushed the birds towards me and they landed opposite Bridge Farm, well within my recording area.

Dec 21^st. The Jack Snipe was back at Hazel Grove Golf Course.

Dec 23^rd. The target today was Water Rail and the willow carr at Etherow seemed as good a place as any. None seen or heard and noticeably few small passerines, they seem to be suffering badly in this prolonged cold spell.

Dec 26^th. I made another deliberate attempt to discover a Mealy Redpoll at Mellor Golf Course but only 5 Lessers were found. At Roman Lakes waterfowl numbers were well down as the coldest December for over 100 years continued, only 24 Coot and 2 Moorhens present although there were a total of 63 Mallard around.

Dec 31^st. A last thrash round Stockport Borough turned up a couple of surprises in the form of 4m, 1f Goosander on the canal basin at Lockside, Marple and a male Goldeneye at Roman Lakes. The latter is quite a local rarity. Etherow C.P. didn’t produce much and the only surprise on Ludworth Moor was a Chiffchaff at Larkhill. So ended a very enjoyable year of local birding - roll on 2011.

 

2010 Stockport Borough summary.

This borough year list has been quite a slog at times with only 8 new birds in the second half of the year despite countless hours of fieldwork. There were only 2 blank months however, July and, perhaps unexpectedly, October. I ended the year on a total of 114, which I believe is quite respectable given the large urban areas in Stockport borough and in particular the lack of decent, undisturbed water bodies that might attract wildfowl and passage waders. I kept myself going with the thought that some rarity such as Firecrest or Hawfinch was always just round the next corner. Even a Willow Tit would now fit in this category as they appear to be absent all year round in these parts.

I know of 7 additional species in the borough that I missed during the year: A single party of Whooper Swans overflew Woodford for one fortunate observer, Reddish Vale C.P. had a one-day Gadwall and also hosted a redhead Smew on the last day of the year. A Ring Ouzel put in a brief appearance on Ludworth Moor. Also, a Water Rail was heard (once?) at Etherow and a single Crossbill was at the same location in Ernocroft Woods but couldn’t be re-located. Late news of a Short-eared Owl at Woodford also resulted in a wild-goose chase. Additionally, in better year, I might have expected to find Pied Flycatcher and Wood Warbler so a total around the 120 mark is certainly possible.

Highlights of the year included self found Lesser-spotted Woodpecker, Barn Owl, Red Kite and Waxwings whilst the mega of the year was the Little Egret at Chadkirk. The beauty of this game is that birds like Merlin, Cuckoo, Hobby and even ‘common’ birds such as Stonechat, Sedge Warbler, Greater Black-backed Gull or Pochard all assume rarity status so finding them gives quite a buzz. I would recommend having a year round Stockport Borough, not just for the thrill of the chase, but because you will discover many hidden corners never previously visited, enjoy some grass roots birding and, of course, this total of 114 is very beatable.

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