I wish I could have played We are Family out there.....a bit of a family affair going on in Grane at the moment

from 5 - 7.20pm

Holden Wood:-

1 Grey Heron...which did fly off and may have settled at Ogden 

60 plus Mallards ..many drakes in eclipse....sadly I put most to flight

2 min Goosander

2 Snipe

9 min Linnet around the shoreline

a few Canada Geese but busy trying to sift through Mallards for something different. 

some meadow pipits, 1 reed bunting

black-headed gulls in smaller numbers than usual, woodpigeons feeding on shoreline

some crows but not many

Ogden:-

kestrel on the slopes hovering  - on way back there were 3 Kestrels which had moved to slopes above Holden Wood

biggest surprise of the day was when walking along the path 50 metres from the old railway track....disturbing a minimum of 12 Grey Partridge!

great-black backed gull on Ogden..which flew over the slopes  ...it looks like it is moulting.....this bird appears to have been almost resident this year...

at least 10 black-headed gulls at ogden...on the far side

Calf Hey:-

2 G C Grebes

4 min Teal

6 min Mallard

a lot of Black-headed Gulls.......could have been 100 almost at one point....

1 Lapwing on the southern shoreline

1 Pied Wagtail

a few Meadow Pipits.......not many around overall!

in the felled plantation on the south side at least 2 Wren....appear to be tending to a family

the second biggest surprise of the day was that very familiar enticing alarm call tick tick tick.....been a while since I have heard it...but lo and behold a stone chat but not 1, not 2, no3, not 4, not 5 but 6.....and it got better.....there was a female Whinchat too!   Never had one in Rossendale before.   7 Chats and me!   The young looked like they had been out of the nest for a while.   The male was looking slightly worn.   The 6th juvenile Stonechat appeared to come from out of the felled plantation...where they appeared to have nested last year. 

only other bird in the plantation area was an alarm calling blackbird.  not to forget min of 3 goldfinch

I have put quite a lot of feed in the stumps and the wall.......mealworms, suet pellet, seeds,  wonder what will come to it?