Flixton

Sand martins, Irlam Locks

The garden's been full of baby spadgers all day, largely invisible tweets and chirrups as they follow their parents around in the depths of the sycamores at the bottom of the garden. Every so often one of the males will supervise a youngster's visit to the bird feeders. A juvenile dunnock looking a bit dishevelled and bewildered in the Mahonia was a new arrival.

The mixed herring gull - lesser black-back pair was back again over the school playing field again this lunchtime. I don't know if they're an actual pair or just just hunting partners. I've also noticed that the first of the black-headed gulls have started drifting back, though they're not stopping here yet.

Was feeling a bit down today, a combination of a bad night's sleep and being browned off with the current restrictions. In the end I dragged myself out to Flixton for a walk. It would be an opportunity to add to my portfolio of "a warbler was here a moment ago" photos.

Song thrushes, blackbirds and wrens were belting out song in the trees around Dutton's Pond, drowning out blackcaps and chiffchaffs. The coots on the pond had a couple of almost grown juveniles in tow.

Walking down towards Jack Lane a young song thrush flew down and fossicked around in the cow parsley by the side of the path. More blackcaps and chiffchaffs, and a family of long-tailed tits fussing about in the willows on the railway embankment. A couple of reed warblers were singing in the nature reserve. One of the patches of nettles on the wayside had been stripped of leaves by red admiral caterpillars.

Red admiral caterpillar, Jack Lane

A small flock of house sparrows were dust-bathing on Jack Lane. I stopped a while to let them finish and was rewarded by a close flyover by the first swallow of the day (there was no sign of them in the paddocks closer to the railway). 

Dust-bathing house sparrows, Jack Lane

I didn't fancy doing an adventurous trip to the big metal fence at Irlam Locks so walked up to Irlam Road and followed it down to the end. There were far more swallows over the paddocks at this end and as I reached the canal a flock of a couple of dozen sand martins turned up and perched on the wires above the road. They weren't remotely bothered by me or any of the other passers-by.

Sand martin, Irlam Locks

There weren't so many black-headed gulls on the water treatment works this time and no oystercatchers. Instead there were about fifty magpies and nearly as many starlings, also a couple of pied wagtails.

I decided to wander over into Irlam just to push the boundaries a bit. Walking over the locks I noticed a family of grey wagtails feeding on the Flixton side shoreline. A few mallards and a family of coots were loafing round on the stretch of the old course of the Irwell by Ferry Road and a couple of chiffchaffs were singing by the path.

I got the bus back to the Trafford Centre and thence back home. A rewarding walk but it was nice to get home for a cup of tea.