Watched a pair of goldfinches from Piccadilly station this morning - flying between Star and Garter and the station.

Couple of days late adding this, but on Friday there was a sparrowhawk drifting low over the train as we pulled into Piccadilly.

Steve Suttill wrote:

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Plenty of Goldfinches in the City Centre as well - but I don't think we've got proof of breeding for them yet. I got some nice photos of them perching on razor wire this morning!

Steve

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Sorry, I have taken a while to come back on this one - but this has been my first chance to check my old notebooks in conjunction with my BTO atlas computer records. But I watched adult Goldfinches feeding begging young near the New Islington site on 2nd August 2009.

Should show up as an "out of season breeding record" - missed out on the "official" breeding season by a mere 2 days!!

Cheers,

Bill.

-- Edited by Bill Myerscough on Saturday 24th of April 2010 05:15:42 PM

Mike Noon wrote:

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Male Redstart in full cry this morning

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Male 'Common' Redstart Mike ?

Lots of Goldfinch for me as well this morning, around the Cathedral and in Piccadilly Gardens.

20th April.

A lovely sighting from Victoria Station this lunchtime. Over platforms 1 and 2 of the station a begging fledgling Mistle Thrush was seen perched high up in the metallic rafters and was being fed by an adult bird, which was dropping down onto the tracks and presumably picking up discarded takeaway food bits etc , which it then carried up into the rafters to feed to the vocal youngster.

A really heart-warming sight in a pretty grotty urban setting!

This might have been a first confirmed breeding record for this species for the BTO and GM breeding birds atlas projects for tetrad SJ89P, if there hadn't already been an earlier one!! See Steve Suttill's post on this same thread dated 11/6/08.

Keep atlasing!,

Bill.

-- Edited by Bill Myerscough on Tuesday 20th of April 2010 02:00:52 PM

-- Edited by Bill Myerscough on Tuesday 20th of April 2010 02:06:07 PM

Female kestrel on the town hall tower tonight...previous sitings have been of the male.

Kestrel over the town hall again making a lot of noise.

Kestrel displaying over the town hall in late afternoon. Local crows mobbing but the male putting up with them admirably and the crows flew off....I wonder?

Male Blackbird singing bold as brass from a small bare tree right outside the Co-op building on Miller Street early yesterday morning.

a peregrine was gliding around the retail park at ancoats yesterday at a hight of 70-80 ft.

A possible green woodpecker was seen flying above the railway next to Sackville Street on Tuesday morning, March 23rd. It was too high to see colours. It had a woodpecker-like flight, undulating, short bursts of flight, folding up its wings in between, shrieking staccato while flying. The size was about right but this is hard to estimate for a flying bird and it could have been smaller (blackbird upwards).

This lunchtime on the River Irwell

Mute Swan - Lowry bridge
Drake Goosander - Blackfriars Bridge

Given the number of Woodcock casualties we get on streets near the route of the R Irwell in the city centre, I'm not surprised. Their eyes are st on the sides of their heads and they seem to collide with things.
The Peregrine(s) in Bolton enjoyed a Woodcock dinner the other day, when the vicar found the head and legs with some parts of the wings, near Bolton Parish Church tower and sent me the photos. There's a river at the back. I suspect the birds must fly straight along the river at night, and the Peregrines can chase them successfully in the ambient light.

Same amount as Pied Wags as Dave had yesterday, 120+

Good to catch up with Simon H in the city!

Dave

Just to clarify, the drake Goosander on the bank of the Irwell by the Lowry Hotel is in fact dead! That is to say it is deceased, not living, expired

thanks again Rob...

M & F Goosander on River Irwell - Victoria Bridge to Blackfriars Bridge 13:00

12 Tufties (a new species for my City Centre list) on the Irwell by the Cathedral this morning. First time I've seen icebergs floating downstream!

Steve

A Buzzard today at about 2pm flying south (ish) over the Whitworth Street west area being mobbed by a Crow.

4 Goosander (2 male 2 female) on the Irwell viewed from the Bridge on Bridge st

9.30am 02/01/2010

Cheers Dave

Almost constant movement of winter thrushes from my 10th floor viewpoint near Bridge Street - including a number of birds flying past the Town Hall watched but not pursued by the Peregrine.

Plenty of thrushes being forced into the city centre, 20+ Redwings in our work car park on Chapel Street all morning having a constant battle with a single Fieldfare, several Mistle Thrushes and Blackbirds.

10+ Fieldfare flying around Bridge street near the Markaddy.

c200 Fieldfare in trees on Princess Parkway central reservation, Hulme @ 3pm yesterday - tues.

12v redwing flew over Albert Sq at 2.00pm