I have to confess this is the first time I've been to Brownhouse Wham Res'r and I've got borough listing to thank for it - I'm rather embarrassed to admit that I'd gone up there on the off chance of getting a Little Grebe (!) as I'd seen there'd been some reports from here in the past. Needless to say dipped on the grebe but as I was returning to the car at about 1230 the Red Kite appeared quite low over the farm to the east. A Carrion Crow then came and mobbed it and it headed off west over the dam but as it flew past I could definitely see what appeared to be something projecting back from presumably its legs. Have to say I hadn't seen this initially and if you saw it from any distance I'm pretty sure you wouldn't be able to see it. Despite scrambling up the banking pretty smartish I couldn't relocate the bird. Don't know what to make of that - have to say I don't know much about jesses but would expect them to be longer and more substantial and dangly than this so wondered if could be some rubbish it had picked up but I honestly don't know. The bird didn't have any wing tags. Here's hoping someone will relocate it and get a more prolonged view.
Simon Hitchen had a Red Kite at Brownhouse Wham Reservoir, Rochdale at 12:50 today, most likely one of these birds. It apparently had something trailing form one of it's legs which couldn't be ruled out as jesses though.
Only one place in wales apparently flys Red Kites as falconers birds so it is extremely unlikely to be from there (I think they ony have two birds!) and although they are kept in captivity they wouldn't normally be wearing jesses.
Most likely is that the bird has picked up something from a refuse tip or similar which has become entangled around it's leg, something common amongst tip scavenging gulls.
Brownhouse Wham Reservoir is just south-west of Watergrove Reservoir and so is in the vicinity of the original two birds sighting.
-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Thursday 11th of March 2010 01:23:12 PM
had a check around the res between 1240 and 1425 but no sign, spoke to a birder who was up there but he didnt see them. bit of a long shot i know but hoped they might have returned.
Today at 12:00 a (jammy!) Lancashire birder, Bill Aspin, had not one but two Red Kites just east of Ashworth Moor Reservior.
The first bird went south over Knowl Hill (where the lucky observer was) and incredibly was joined by a second bird just east of Ashworth Moor Reservoir. Both were very high and whilst one departed south-east the other headed off south.
Info thanks to Tom McKinney of Birdnet Information Services
-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Thursday 11th of March 2010 01:07:13 PM
-- Edited by Ian McKerchar on Thursday 11th of March 2010 01:23:55 PM
