Mersey Valley

Stretford Meadows 

The walk across Stretford Meadows was phenomenally quiet: a couple of chiffchaffs squeaked from hawthorn bushes, wrens churred in the undergrowth and a ring-necked parakeet called in the distance. Woodpigeons passed overhead in twos and threes and the occasional lesser black-back floated by. 

There was a sudden commotion and the male kestrel shot up from his usual perch and circled round, calling shrilly all the while. I couldn't see what had upset him, he's generally not fussed by dogs and walkers and there was a hundred yards and a stand of oak saplings between us so it wasn't me. He carried on for a few minutes until eventually a female sparrowhawk rose from the bushes and shot off towards the town centre. The kestrel fussed round for a minute or so before flying off towards the motorway. I don't know what that was about, perhaps the sparrowhawk just landed too close to the kestrel for comfort, perhaps it had stolen a meal, perhaps even the sparrowhawk had tried to take the kestrel.

While I was watching the kestrel I noticed a flock of swallows and a handful of swifts flying very high up further than the naked eye could see.

Stretford Ees

I walked down along Kickety Brook into Stretford Ees. Magpies and blackbirds fossicked around the path margins and great tits and goldfinches flitted about the trees. A mixed tit flock in the trees by the path to the river hinted at many things but I could only see or hear great tits, blue tits and a chiffchaff while the parakeets that were making such a racket kept well into the depths of the tree canopy.

There was a water activity session going on at Sale Water Park so the Canada geese cruised the lake margins while the mallards, Canada geese, mute swans and coots clustered around the slipway hoping for treats.

Half a dozen herons loafed on Broad Ees Dole with a few mallards, gadwalls and moorhens. Brown hawkers patrolled the vegetation in the ditch in front of the hide but there was no sign of any damselflies about.

Great tits, Sale Water Park

There were more brown hawkers about as I walked alongside the lake down Cow Lane. There wasn't much birdlife about until I got to the feeders at the café. Even then there wasn't much about at first save a woodpigeon feeding in an elderberry bush. After a few minutes a great tit turned up, within five minutes there was a dozen of them. I had to admire the feisty coal tit that kept elbowing its way through the crowd to get to the fat balls.

It was time to be getting home so I got the tram into Chorlton and the bus home for teatime.