Mersey Valley

Chiffchaff, Stretford Meadows 

It was one of those brisk and windy mornings where just because it was bright and sunny it didn't mean it wasn't pouring down, the usual presaging of a storm front. By lunchtime the clouds had rolled in and the rain abated. I didn't feel like doing much so I decided to walk down to Stretford Meadows, over the motorway into Kickety Brook Local Nature Reserve and down the river into Cob Kiln Wood and back home again, which should get me a bit of exercise.

The dawn chorus had been fairly quiet, just the blackbird and the wren for the most part with the great tit joining in well after daybreak. The small birds kept undercover most of the morning, emerging in the lulls in the rain to squabble over the feeders. The goldfinches are as adept as the coal tits at slipping in to grab a sunflower seed or two while the starlings and spadgers fight over the suet feeders.

The complete lack of gulls on the school playing field is marked. Even the lesser black-backs aren't visiting anymore. The lack of white bodies make the place look deserted despite there being two dozen woodpigeons, a dozen magpies and a few jackdaws out there.

Jackdaw, Stretford

Somebody posted a very fine photo of a jackdaw online and that reminded me that I haven't any decent photos of jackdaws. They're either being too fidgety or in the wrong light so they look like black blobs or I just forget to try because I'm too used to their being around. I decided I should rectify this. I got my chance as I was walking past the allotments, a pair of jackdaws were on the pavement across the road stripping fallen twigs to get to any insects under the bark. They were too busy to pose for the camera so I got some OK photos of them at work.

Stretford Meadows 

Yet again I decided against playing hopscotch over the floating palettes into Stretford Meadows and kept to the perimeter path. What I probably lost in singing reed buntings I gained in chiffchaffs and wrens. There were singing wrens in the hawthorns and brambles along the path at twenty yard intervals, chiffchaffs very roughly every fifty yards. The blackbirds and great tits kept to the tall trees along the way and the greenfinches and goldfinches squeaked and twittered as they flew overhead. It was only as I crossed over the motorway I realised I hadn't seen it heard any robins. There was no sign of the kestrels or buzzards, either. For once, though, I got to see the pheasant I keep hearing and his lady friend as they fossicked about at the foot of some willow trees.

 Stretford Meadows 

I bobbed over the motorway and dropped down into Kickety Brook Local Nature Reserve where the hawthorn hedgerows were fizzing with singing robins. I have no idea why there was such a contrast between the two sites.

Blackcap, Kickety Brook LNR

There were chiffchaffs and blackbirds aplenty in the songscape and a blackcap sang at the corner of the path where it curves round over Ousel Brook. A song thrush sang from deep in the woods while wrens fussed and sang in the undergrowth by the path.

Kickety Brook LNR

Rooks and jackdaws flew to and fro from their nests over in the rookery by Bradley Lane and a carrion crow sang from one of the electricity pylons. Blue tits, great tits, dunnocks and goldfinches fidgeted about in the trees and a nuthatch made a brief cameo appearance. There were more birds flying about overhead: a few more jackdaws, plenty of woodpigeons, the odd lesser black-back, a couple of mallards flying over from the river and just the one ring-necked parakeet shrieking into the treetops. "That's a chunky looking rook," I thought to myself as a raven croaked by.

Kickety Brook LNR

The threats of rain had been few and fair between and the sun shone brighter through the clouds as I walked through to the river bank. The Mersey was running fast but wasn't as full as it has been lately. A few mallards bobbed about on the river including a duck shepherding her flock of half a dozen ducklings over by the far bank at the bend. A coal tit sang from the trees by the golf course across the river, great tits flitted to and fro on either bank. The trees on my side of the river were busy with blackbirds, robins and chiffchaffs and every so often a wren would dart out into the open for a quick blast of song before ducking back into cover.

River Mersey 

I walked down towards the Carrington Spur bridge. I didn't feel like doing much more of a walk. I'll just be lazy and walk down Cob Kiln Lane into Urmston I said to myself as I turned and walked over the footbridge onto Banky Lane.

Banky Lane 

The first hundred yards of Banky Lane was dead quiet save a couple of chiffchaffs then suddenly it became very busy with wrens, robins, blackbirds, great tits and dunnocks singing and blue tits and woodpigeons bouncing about in the trees. I walked through Banky Meadow, keeping to the main path as the puddles weren't deep. Approaching Carrington Road a song thrush struggled to make itself heard over the traffic.

I checked the time. I had ten minutes for the five minutes walk into Ashton-on-Mersey to get the 18 into Urmston and it seemed rude not to do so. The bus dropped me off at the station with a couple of minutes to wait for the train home so I had a nice lazy return journey after a very pleasant walk.