Local birding

Just a quick catch up. Nice to be working local this week.
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Tuesday after work I made a quick visit to Moat Lane pools. The two juvenile Common Terns were still doing well and both parents were present. The reaction from the Black-headed Gulls present was more subdued today though they still all flew up and circled me. It's interesting the reaction they showed on Monday when the tern chicks were just tiny balls of fluff - maybe the gulls have adopted the terns as part of the flock? I stopped just long enough to make sure they were OK. On pool one the Great Crested Grebes were both simply loafing around in the middle of the pool - are they incubating or not? The Lesser Whitethroat was conspicuous by its silence though quite a few House Martins were flitting around the pool - more signs of delayed migration. A Redshank was calling nearby but was not seen.
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Going home I stopped at Dam Lane where there was still no sign of any Yellow Wagtails - unfortunately it looks like the crop spraying that Jonathan saw has destroyed the nest and both birds now appear to have deserted. In Culcheth I parked up by the peat pile and watched two pairs of Yellow Wagtails continuously bringing food into the two nest sites so these are still doing OK. A Buzzard flew over from the direction of Frank's farm - it was carrying what appeared to be a small bird and the way the Lapwings went banana's when it flew off the ground makes guessing the species none too hard.
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In the garden on Tuesday were the male Bullfinch and an adult Tree Sparrow which could have been feeding young though it was hard to tell. A late evening stroll around Waterworks Lane and Highfield Lane produced an incubating Oystercatcher, three Yellowhammers and a Brown Hare which had flaked across a furrow in a potato patch. A large pigeon flock has persisted on the lanes since the winter and today around 90 woodies were in the usual field with around 9 Stock Doves. Three pairs of Grey Partridges were also observed. The day was complete when I watched a male Sparrowhawk doing a courtship dance on Spring Watch - amazing!
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Wednesday morning and it was relatively quiet at HGF though a pair of Greylags flew low over - still a rare sight here.
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This evening the pair of Bullfinches were in the garden again. I later went off to Rixton to check on the terns. I was surprised at how quickly the chicks are growing - I estimate they have probably doubled in size in the space of four days. They are also now actively wandering around their little island though one is clearly larger and bolder than the other. Only one adult was in residence this evening. A Green Woodpecker flew over pool one. On the pool by the tip were a Redshank (heard calling) and a pair of Shellducks. Around 80 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and two Buzzards were on the tip. A drive along Hollybush Lane produced 114 Lapwings, 3 Oystercatchers, 7 Stock Doves, 5 Grey Partridges and a Yellowhammer. There was no sign of the incubating Oystercatcher in Waterworks Lane tonight.