November 2016 Bird Survey

Date:  13th November 2016  by Amanda, Anne and Terry, 0800 hrs to 1120 hrs

 Weather : Cool, calm and misty morning, Temperature 6°C to 8°C

Blue Tit 16

Dunnock 9

Wood Pigeon 14

Wren 11

Blackbird 99

Magpie 30

Greenfinch 10

Reed Bunting 13

Chaffinch 3

House Sparrow 21

Carrion Crow 10

Mallard 26

Bullfinch 10

Great Tit 6

Robin 20

Fieldfare 3

Redwing 65

Song Thrush 10

Goldfinch 49

Black-headed Gull 25

Grey Heron 3

Buzzard 1

Kestrel 2

Lesser Black-backed Gull 1

Snipe 2

Redpoll (Lesser) 10

 26 species in all

 A still and misty Sunday morning on the Meadows; a little soggy underfoot following an atrociously wet Saturday.

With three new species this month, one on the BTO red list and two on the amber list, it was something of a red letter day.

10 Lesser Redpolls were feeding in the tops of the Silver Birch along side the New Cut Canal at the entrance to the Meadows on Larkfield Avenue.

2 Snipe were flushed from transect 4 and did a circuit of the field before disappearing along the course of the Mersey towards the Eyes.

And finally a solitary Lesser Black-backed Gull kept sentinel atop a pylon in transect 8.

The local thrushes have been joined by a massive influx of continental birds with almost a hundred blackbirds being recorded, along with 65 Redwing, 10 Song Thrush and 3 Fieldfare. Hawthorn berries were being plundered all round the Meadows. 

The highlights of the day were undoubtedly the Lesser Redpolls, with a honourable mention going to a handsome male Kestrel posing for several minutes on a Holly bush in transect 8.

 The most successful areas of the survey this month was again transect 7; thrush central for a morning at least.

 

Redwing _dsc1789 _dsc1792

Female Reed Bunting _dsc1798

 

On the morning of the 2nd of November a female stonechat (only the second recorded sighting of the year on the Meadows) showed well enough for a photo, see below._dsc1745-2

  

A pair of Willow Tits have been seen on feeders near transect 2 and there is a report of Woodcock being flushed in transect 8.

 Mammals

 7 Grey Squirrels seen during this month’s survey.