November 08'

Weather This Month

Max Temp =  11.4 deg C                 Min Temp = -2.2 deg C

Max Wind=   23.2 mph              Max Rain in 24 hr Period = 28.4 mm

Max Rain in 1 hr Period = 7.2 mm          Total Rain For Month =  109.8 mm

Diary

23rd.  A gap in the diary as events have been slow and with me again suffering a dental abscess which I hope will be cured by an extraction on Monday! Whilst the garden has been slow a new addition to the garden list has been acquired and a bird that has not been seen in the garden since April 2003. The day was started bright on the 16th and as I looked out into the garden I could see that the feeders were popular with quite a few Chaffinch. As I checked through the birds in the trees a bird stood out straight away as a cracking male Brambling. It was very skittish and flew off on several occasions before it returned on at least 3 occasions that morning. I have not seen it since that day but we are still getting many Chaffinch visits with around 5 males and 4 females seen regularly, so it may yet return.

The bird that has been added to the list which has never visited before zipped across next doors garden on the 22nd and clung to the bottom of a Sycamore. It stood out as it's clean white was very striking. It started making it's way up the trunk in a circular spiral movement and I even had chance to shout Mandy to have a look....fantastic.... a good bird anywhere, but all the more so in our garden...a Treecreeper! I would imagine that it was just passing through so I doubt a repeat visit will be seen, although you never know.

I went out on the 22nd with Mandy to get a few shots of a truly beautiful bird as it was only 40mins away I thought I would chance the weather as it was trying to brighten up. The photos were grabbed in between bad light and strong winds so although not the best images they are still the best I have to date of this stunner.

5th. A walk out to my local patch on the 3rd to see a bird which is not very common to these parts. A Brent Goose has been hanging around Cowm Res but to be honest I am not sure it is wild or feral as it hung around with the hand fed birds on the res. A lovely bird non the less so I enjoyed the closeness of the view which shows how nice the feather pattern of this bird is. The light was poor leading me to use a 400 iso which leaves quite a bit of noise in the picture. A couple of other regulars also managed a few poses to boot.

Brent Goose

Tufted Duck

Black Headed Gull

Sadly no winter Thrushes were present but the lack of berries on the Hawthorn & Mountain Ash trees were testament to the presence of them earlier in the week. I hope to catch up with them soon though along with the few Waxwing that have been seen mainly on the East side of the Country but now have moved in land.

2nd.  Another great day on the 1st for migration as I was up hoping to see a repeat of Octobers Thrush fest over the garden. It was even better as I watched the skies from 07:00 to 08:30. Clouds of Redwing filled the sky and these were soon followed by masses of Fieldfare, fantastic. The garden was not to be outdone as migration was also evident within the garden as 3 Redwings decided to rest in the tops of some Sycamores in the garden next door. They stayed a while before the Starlings flew off at speed prompting the Redwing to follow. Then soon after our smallest bird showed it's beauty, and not just one of these cuetis but two. These Goldcrest flitted around the garden and came close up to the office window as it sought sanctuary in the Ivy tree as two resident Wrens did not like their presence and duly chased them off. It was a mad start to the day with the busy spell cut short as work matters called.

I have a lot of contact with people during the day at work and a day never goes by without somebody asking me questions about wildlife or such like. It's great to see so many people with an interest and every now and again somebody has pictorial evidence of their experiences with wildlife.

A gentleman called Victor Jordan who lives in Waterfoot is fortunate enough to live on the banks of the river Irwell and sometimes he is ready with his camera. This picture was taken sometime in September and although not the best visually the content is rather special as capturing one of these special birds by camera can be hard enough but two in the same tree is rather special so I though I would post his proud shot.

Well done Victor!