Mosses

Kestrel, Hepzibah Farm, Irlam Moss

This being the last day of the week without any rain weather warnings I had a walk over the local mosses, the plan being to walk up from Irlam Station, have a nosy round Little Woolden Moss and walk down for the Urmston train from Glazebrook. The weather forecast was for sun, showers and wind, in the event the showers were short and light and caused no hassle.

Irlam Moss

Walking up Astley Road onto Irlam Moss I was trying to work out who was who in a mixed tit flock in the hedgerow when I accidentally disturbed a female sparrowhawk. She flew off in high dudgeon with half a chaffinch in her claws. Further along a flock of half a dozen fieldfares and a few redwings were finishing off the last of the berries in a couple of hawthorn bushes. 

Fieldfares, Irlam Moss

The fields of mown turf are usually deserts save the usual couple of kestrels. Today was different: one held a flock of seventy-odd pigeons; another had three dozen lapwings, twenty-odd black-headed gulls and a flock of sixty starlings. A stonechat on the fence in one of the paddocks was good to see.

Grey wagtail, Irlam Moss

Pied wagtails had been flitting round between the fields from the first, I was surprised to find a grey wagtail feeding along the path as I approached the motorway bridge. I was impressed by how the colours of a grey wagtail match the wet greys and yellows of leaves on mud.

Kestrel, Irlam Moss

Scanning the field just before Four Lanes End I found a couple of stock doves among the woodpigeons. As I was watching them I noticed a kerfuffle further down on the other side of Twelve Yards Road with woodpigeons, jackdaws and black-headed gulls whirling about in a panic. It took me a while to find the merlin that had put the wind up them as it zoomed off into the distance. I'd expected a peregrine but I wouldn't put it past a merlin to have a go at a larger bird. (Of course, there might have been a peregrine as well but I didn't spot one.)

Little Woolden Moss

Little Woolden Moss was odd. Flocks of fieldfares and starlings flew over, meadow pipits, wood pigeons and carrion crows flew over in ones and twos and a mixed tit flock worked its way along the birches by the path. Halfway down the path a skein of 250+ pink-feet flew overhead, three dozen of them peeling off and flying over towards Glazebury amid much noise, the rest heading off towards Astley. But on the water there was nothing, even on the bunds at the Western end of the reserve. Three ruddy darters hawking round the dead bracken by the path are likely contenders for last dragonflies of the year.

Female stonechat, Little Woolden Moss

First Winter male stonechat, Little Woolden Moss

I'd got to the end of the path and was approaching the nursery beds thinking I'd made a mistake in not turning into Twelve Yards Road and walking down to Barton Moss. Then something orange caught my eye and disappeared just as quickly. This was joined by another something, and another. They moved closer to the path and slowed down a bit, pausing here and there to have a look round before dashing off again, then coming back. A family of stonechats: an adult pair and two first Winters. I watched them awhile as we all moved on, last I saw of them they were making a mockery of the bird scarers on one of the nursery beds.

Stonechats, Little Woolden Moss

Male stonechat, Little Woolden Moss

Five buzzards were feasting on worms on the field opposite Little Woolden Hall while a sixth flew off into the trees. I've never seen that many in one place before. I didn't have to wait long to repeat the experience: as I walked into Glazebury there were another five buzzards sharing a field with a couple of dozen black-headed gulls and rooks.

Little Woolden Moss

I'd missed the train so I walked down into Cadishead to get the bus to Irlam to get the train home from there.