Day Out to Leighton Moss RSPB : 6th July 2011

Day Out to Leighton Moss RSPB : 6th July  2011

It had been a while since we were last at Leighton Moss and we hoped that although it was late on in the season that we stood a chance of seeing Bearded Tits or at least a good range of Warblers. We were to be disappointed in this department, however, as we did not see a single one of either ! That is not to say that our day was wasted however because, apart from a  brief shower, the weather was warm and sunny and we ended up with fantastic views of Marsh Harriers.

As soon as we hit the car park at the visitor centre we saw Chaffinches, a Robin and a Dunnock. We dropped off at the bird feeding station where there was only a lonely Pheasant feeding on the ground so went straight to Lillian’s Hide where the dominant species by far was Coot with around 200 on show. There was a pair of Great Crested Grebes with one chick that we could see though it was absolutely tiny. There were a number of Greylag Geese and Mute Swans and, as ever, lots of Mallards.

We moved on to the Tim Jackson hide where the same species recurred but added to this were a couple of Tufted Ducks and a Deer. Moving on to the Griesdale Hide we added a Heron to the list but by far the best was a view on the near horizon of a Marsh Harrier swirling around. Eventually it came to roost for a while on a branch of a dead tree. We had time to get the scope on it and we got good – but somewhat distant – views of it until we decided it was time to move on.

We walked back the way we came but when we got to Lillian’s Hide we continued on to the Public Hide where we had previously seen Bearded Tits. Not so this time, however, but we did get even better views of another Marsh Harrier as it came close to the hide, hovering over the reeds for a long time, wheeling away and returning again to give us even closer views. After about ten minutes of this it wheeled around the back of the hide and was gone.  Again we saw the usual suspects and lots of Swifts could be seen in the sky above.

We decided to see what was to be seen at the slightly removed Allen Pool and Eric Morecambe hide so we had a cup of tea and then set off there. At the Allen Pool Hide there were large numbers of Lapwing. We also saw an Oystercatcher, a Heron and around 250 Black-tailed Godwits.

At the Eric Morecambe Hide we saw an Avocet, Oystercatchers, Redshank and six Little Egrets. We also saw a Heron and a couple of Pied Wagtails chasing each other at the waters edge.

The day had already flown by and we tried – in vain – to beat the rush hour in Manchester. We were a bit disappointed about the warblers and the Bearded Tits but this was made up for by the closest views we have ever had of a fantastic Marsh Harrier.

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