Urban birding

Tufted duck, Alexandra Park

I'd become a little cross after reading one of those articles that make a big fuss about going out urban birdwatching but turn out to be about someone who books a hotel in a city centre and drives twenty miles out to the nearest wetland so I decided to go for a walk.

The garden had quietened down after a morning rush of spadgers and starlings, the coal tits and goldfinches were on the feeders and across the road the gulls were excitedly wheeling round the school yards waiting for the chance to pinch some kid's lunch.

First port of call was Moss Park, which was fairly quiet save a bunch of spadgers in the hedges, a few woodpigeons and magpies in the tall trees, a singing robin and a mixed tit flock including great, blue and long-tailed tits. It's a tiny park even by our local standards and sometimes there's only a robin and a few woodpigeons.

I walked over to Victoria Park for to get the 150 to Whalley Range. I had five minutes' nosy while I was waiting. There was just a small flock of pigeons, some jackdaws and a woodpigeon. Not unduly surprising: all the action's usually at the other end of the park around the bowling green and the stand of larches. Another day.

I got the bus over to Alexandra Road and walked up to Alexandra Park. It was nice to hear a couple of greenfinches singing with the woodpigeons in the churchyard of English Martyrs.

Alexandra Park

The park wasn't unduly busy with people, I'd just missed the lunchtime rush. Most of the tufted ducks and mallards in the pond seemed to be paired up already, a small group of unattached male tufties drifted round the island bobbing their heads at any ladies they passed. A pair of shovelers dabbling over the other side was a bit of a surprise. I'd expected to find some activity in the heronry on the island but herons was there none today.

The mixed tit flocks in the trees and bushes were very active, with a couple of pairs of great tits actively defending territories though not making any efforts towards nest-building. The blue tits, long-tailed tits and nuthatches confined their efforts to foraging. I could hear a goldcrest but had no luck finding where it was. A great spotted woodpecker kept to the treetops out of the way.

The screeching of the ring-necked parakeets managed to drown out two loudly singing song thrushes. There was a lot of argy-bargy going on in one of the trees near the Claremont Road entrance as  two pairs of parakeets argued about the ownership of one of the holes in the tree trunk.

Ring-necked parakeet, Alexandra Park

I thought about walking up past Brook's Bar and having a look round Hullard Park and Seymour Park in Old Trafford but it was just coming up to school kicking out time so I thought I'd save that for another day.

Two and a half hours' ramble round a few urban parks had netted me thirty-four species of birds and a bit of exercise so it was worth the effort.