Mosses

Pink-footed geese, Little Woolden Moss 

'Twas the first dry day after the downpours, though it was still very grey, very wet and very windy. I decided against pushing my luck with much travelling and pottered over to Irlam for a walk over the mosses.

By Astley Road 

Walking up Astley Road the small birds were undercover, even the Zinnia Close house sparrows were nowhere to be seen or heard. The field of turf closest to the houses had been turned into a small pond. Further out a covey of a dozen grey partridges foraged in the field by Roscoe Road. Ironically, had I been on Roscoe Road I wouldn't have been able to see them.

Grey partridges, Irlam Moss

Up to the Jack Russell's gate I'd seen a dozen more partridges than small birds. That changed as I stood by the wayside to let a heavily laden tractor trundle by. It went slowly so I had plenty of time to pick out what was what in the mixed tit flock in the trees. The dozen long-tailed tits made it easy by coming down to within arm's reach to tell me off, the blue tits, great tits and coal tit were a bit more circumspect. A red admiral butterfly was a surprise.

At Prospect Grange a trio of mistle thrushes, two of them juveniles still with that hint of mildew in the plumage, sat on the telegraph wires with a couple of dozen starlings.

Astley Road 

The turf field immediately to the South of the motorway was littered with three dozen pied wagtails and a buzzard, the one immediately to the North had fifty-odd pied wagtails, about a hundred black-headed gulls and a handful each of herring gulls and lesser black-backs. Further down a black line on the turf in the distance was a flock of a couple of dozen lapwings and a similar number of starlings. A male kestrel was hovering over the rough beyond the stables.

Walking past the stables I was shocked when a sheep jumped up at a stall and bleated loudly at me. I wasn't sure if it was on the naughty step or had got in somehow and couldn't work out how to get back out, either way it was in no distress and I wasn't going to interfere any.

I got to Four Lanes End where a pair of kestrels seemed to be hunting in concert. Further out, to the North of Lavender Lane, a cloud of woodpigeons and jackdaws had been put up by a buzzard and the female marsh harrier.

By Lavender Lane 

The walk had been dry for the most part so far. Here I had to negotiate a couple of big puddles where the land drains had overflowed. The water level in these is usually a couple of feet below the field margins.

Pink-footed geese, Little Woolden Moss 

Little Woolden Moss was in a giving mood. Robins and wrens called in the trees, goldfinches, linnets and reed buntings flitted about and the usual gang of carrion crows broke off from whatever it was they were up to to give the marsh harrier a hard time. Mallards went to and fro between the pools and the fields beyond and a pair of Canada geese loafed on a bund. A lot of noise heralded the arrival of a flock of pink-footed geese that settled on the barley stubble in the field to the North of the reserve.

Pink-footed geese, Little Woolden Moss

Pink-footed geese, Little Woolden Moss

Pink-footed geese, Little Woolden Moss

Pink-footed geese, Little Woolden Moss

Walking back I was stopped by a couple in a car who were visiting for the first time. I told them where the car park is and that the paths were good to walk on despite the rain. They asked about short-eared owls, I reckoned it was a bit early for them but you never know your luck. I have to admit I'd been keeping half an eye out for them myself on account of the grim weather. Another couple were parked up by Four Lanes End, they were also hoping for shorties. We had a chat and compared dodgy knees (I've nothing to complain about in comparison) and I wished them luck.

Grey wagtail, Chat Moss 

Walking down Twelve Yards Road I was surprised to find five swallows hawking low over the rough pasture. And even more surprised to find a juvenile grey wagtail fossicking about one of the potholes on the road.

Pink-footed geese, Chat Moss 

Fifty-odd pink-footed geese fed on the barley stubble by the road, keeping to the far side of the field. A murder of a couple of dozen carrion crows lurked in a corner with a dozen jackdaws, I couldn't work out why they'd congregated in that particular spot. A couple of young, beardless ravens cronked overhead, chiffchaffs called in the young willows and there were woodpigeons all over the shop.

Barn owl, Chat Moss 

It was delightful to see a barn owl hunting over one of the fields with the osier plantations. It showed well, if distant, then flew over the road and disappeared in some rough pasture.

Twelve Yards Road 

It was a very quiet walk down Cutnook Lane. I bumped into another chiffchaff as I crossed over the motorway then I walked down to the bus stop for the 100 back to the Trafford Centre. It had been an odd afternoon's birdwatching, I'd seen a hell of a lot but it hadn't felt remotely busy. Some days creep up on you like that.