Birding Group Visit to Moore Nature Reserve : 17th June 2014

Birding Group Visit to Moore Nature Reserve : 17th June 2014

We started out at the car park then walked uphill to the hide that overlooks Lapwing Lake. On the lake were a Little Grebe, Coots, Mute Swans and a small Mallard family. A Cormorant flew overhead. Reed and Sedge Warblers could also be heard. Outside the hide, in the brambles and bushes, Chiffchaff could be heard and we saw a Bullfinch which was calling quietly.

We walked down to the old canal path and on the way we saw Blackcap, Willow Warbler and a Great Spotted Woodpecker which flew off as we approached but landed on a telegraph pole just over the rough ground that is the raptor lookout point. It entertained us there for a while going round and round the pole looking for insects.
We dropped in at the Canal Bed Hide but there was nothing there. As usual, the long walk along the canal bed was devoid of birds – except for a Jay – but there was lots of wildlife, mostly biting us. I don’t think I have ever walked that path is summer without getting very many mosquito bites. It was very hot and humid which exacerbated the conditions. Eventually we emerged into fresh air and sunlight by the farms which was a relief.
As we walked past the farms we saw Reed Buntings and go the first of several fantastic views of Yellowhammers, sometimes on the telegraph wires and sometimes in the trees. We had good long views in our scopes which is not that usual at this site. You can always hear Yellowhammers in the Spring and Summer here but getting good views is often trickier.
We walked down the path to the Moss Side Nature Reserve towards the hide that overlooks the Mersey facing Fiddlers Ferry power station. Reed Buntings emerged from the fields and flew short distances before dropping back down into the fields and a pair of Kestrels patrolled the sky above. Down at the hide it was pretty quiet and, although the tide was out, the grass was so high that it was difficult to see over the top to the mud banks. There were Lapwing and Gulls but anything else was too hard to see.
As we walked back along the path we saw a Kestrel land on some prey in the field and a Skylark was singing loud and clear. Back at Lapwing Lane we got more great views of Yellowhammer. Another Jay flew in front of us as we walked back down to the entry back into Moore Nature Reserve.
We stopped at the bird feeding station but it was pretty quiet. I don’t think there was much food there so apart from Reed Buntings, Tits and Chaffinches there wasn’t much there.
On the way back to the car park from the Lapwing Lake Hide there was a Great Crested Grebe on Lapwing Lake.
All in all a very satisfactory day with the highlight being the Yellowhammers.

Bird Sightings : Moore Nature Reserve