Wild geese and Wigan

Todd's Canada goose, Crawford

It was a bright, sunny morning so I thought I'd shake off the past couple of days' going stir crazy and bob out on a wild goose chase. The intention was to go over to Southport but I noticed the Todd's Canada goose that had been amongst the pink-feet just outside Up Holland had been reported again first thing this morning so I headed thataway. Todd's is the only vagrant Canada goose I've ever knowingly seen, the last i saw was the Winter before the pandemic hit the shores so it would be good to see one again.

It's a straightforward trip out on the hourly train to Kirkby though the way the connections work for me I can miss the train by eight minutes at Salford Crescent or miss it by ten minutes at Wigan. I elected to  wait at Wigan because it's tons less stressful.

I arrived at Up Holland at lunchtime and discovered the station's actually in a village called Pimbo, which would be a much better name. I walked down Pimbo Lane and turned right onto Long Lane (which isn't, I suspect this is all a relic of wartime attempts to confuse paratroopers).

Todd's Canada goose with pink-footed geese, Crawford

I'd been hearing pink-feet and no sooner had I passed the house on the corner when I was seeing a couple of hundred of them on the ploughed field across the road with a crowd of black-headed gulls. I scanned the geese and almost within moments I found a Canada goose, the only one on the field. Was it a Todd's?

Todd's Canada goose with pink-footed geese, Crawford

Todd's Canada goose, Crawford

Well, it wasn't a lot bigger than the pink-feet though there's enough size variation in the Canada geese of England's lakes and canals for that not to weigh heavily in the balance. The neck was short and thin with the nape protruding over the neck rather than running into it. The black at the base of the neck ran into the top of the mantle feathers without the pale margin typical of Canada geese. The bill was relatively long and flat. Crucially, the white cheek patch was tear-shaped rather than roughly rectangular and the black under the chin ran underneath and met the black of the neck. It was lovely to get a close view of this bird.

Pink-footed geese, Crawford

Pink-footed geese, Crawford

On the way back into Pimbo I noticed a covey of red-legged partridges as they scuttled off to one of the field margins. Possibly because a pair of buzzards were circling overhead.

I had to go through Orrell on the way back so I stopped off for an hour's wander round the water park and Greenslate Water Meadows. The clouds rolled in as I arrived and it started raining when I got to the water meadows. The water was already very high and it was very splashy underfoot.

Orrell Water Park
(I'm standing on the path by this, in case of any confusion.)

I arrived at the feeding station at the same time as an excited class of primary school kids out on a nature ramble. I left them to it and carried on with my walk. The rain got heavier, the kids retreated and I returned to the feeding station to wait for incoming. A bunch of moorhens and squirrels hadn't been scared off, the moorhens taking advantage of the squirrels' being messy eaters. The first arrivals back were chaffinches and great tits, quickly followed by blue tits. It took a while for the greenfinches to reappear, then a few minutes later the first of a pair of willow tits.

Greenslate Water Meadows

Mission accomplished I got the train back. The afternoon was yet young so I got off at Wigan and got the number 10 bus, the intention being to nip over to Pennington Flash to see what was about. We hadn't gone far when it started sheeting down and I wondered if I should really bother. It's a long bus journey, the bus circles round through Ashton in Makerfield on its way to Leigh, and the sun came out as we were going through Lowton so I decided to stick with the plan.

It was raining as I walked into Pennington Flash, despite the sunshine. I had to wait to let a convoy of travelers' caravans pass as they were evicted from the car park leaving a shocking mess behind them, including an old toilet. They might be the explanation for it being a quiet visit, there were only a handful of people about.

Grey wagtail, Pennington Flash

The brook was overflowing big time. A chap walking down the path told me I'd just missed a kingfisher. A very obliging grey wagtail perched by the bridge was a fair compensation.

Oystercatcher, Pennington Flash

The car park oystercatcher was back, no idea where it's been lately. All the usual suspects were on the flash, in greater numbers than the last time I visited here: a couple of hundred coots, a couple of dozen tufties, and a huge raft of black-headed gulls. I picked out half a dozen pochards silhouetted in the low sun.

The hides were being locked up when I arrived so I had to stand by the Horrocks Hide to see what was on the spit. Or was was left of the spit in the flood. A few lapwings loafed with the mallards and cormorants on the little island.

The spit at the Horrocks Hide, mostly submerged, Pennington Flash

Looking further out there was another huge raft of gulls, this time mostly herring gulls and lesser black-backs.

I waded through the path to the Tom Edmondson Hide. There was a mute swan on the pool opposite the hide and looking through the vegetation next to the hide I could see a few coots and gadwalls. I could hear teal but I couldn't see any.

By Ramsdales Hide

Ramsdales was completely underwater. A few coots and a family of dabchicks were bobbing around. The usual Cetti's warbler blasted out a song from the flooded brambles in the corner.

Pennington Flash

I wandered back, being careful to stick to the main path this time. A common scoter had reported on the flash yesterday evening so I thought I'd have a last scan of the flash to see if it was still about. The sun was very low by now and filtered through cloud so it was easier to see what was about in mid-water without getting badly dazzled in the process. No scoter, just lots more gulls and a few more pochards and tufties out in the middle. 

A couple of small grebes were swimming quickly towards the Ramsdales bight. At first I thought they were more dabchicks until they swam past some tufties: they weren't a lot smaller than them. I retraced my steps so that I could see them without a lot of willow trees in the way. Too distant to get a decent photo but I could pick out their dark, peaked heads, chubby cheeks and fine bills. So no common scoter but I got a couple of black-necked grebes instead.

Coots, Pennington Flash

I wandered back in the twilight to St. Helens Road for the bus to Leigh, passing a flock of redwings getting one last meal of hawthorn berries before bedtime.

I got the 126 back to the Trafford Centre and for the first time ever I made the connection with the 25 for home. Usually the 126 pulls in as the 25 pulls out but tonight the driver wanted to finish his cigarette. Some days are lucky days and this was one of them.

As the sun sets slowly in the West we bid farewell to Pennington Flash