Pied Wagtail

I've recently discovered a Pied Wagtail roost site in the centre of Manchester. I was aware of there being some around previously, but not where this one is situated. It's on a particularly busy road with restaurants and offices. In the mornings on my way to work I could here them but never see them. Then one morning just as the sun was coming up I counted 35 leaving the roost site. It was quite a spectacle, and noise, as they are not the quietest of birds. There may have been more, and judging by the mess on the pavement I'm sure there are. A count of around 50 has been seen since.
I managed to take a some close-up shots of one at Elton reservoir last week.

Pied Wagtail

The humble Pied Wagtail is always a busy little bird. It's one of those that you can usually hear calling in flight before you see it.
This particular bird was on the side of a reservoir and it seemed intent on seeing what I was up to. Rather than follow me though, it would fly ahead of me fifteen yards or so and wait for me to catch up. Or at least it seemed. I'm sure it had other things on its mind.

Pied Wagtail (Not White)

I came across this very pale Pied Wagtail the other day. It was bobbing around the fringes of a reservoir. It's paleness made me question whether this might be a White Wagtail. I sought the views of birders much more experienced than me, and it would be highly unusual to see a White Wagtail here at this time of year. This is a Pied, but one that put on a nice show for me, so I thought I'd share with you too.

Out and About

Taking advantage of the good weather recently, I managed to capture a couple of common birds that have so far eluded my camera lens. The first was a Long Tailed Tit. A lovely bird that is nearly always in a flock. This one was with 11 other birds. They are always on the move though and make it difficult to get decent shots of. I was quite happy with this one.

My patch has been inundated with Pied Wagtails, but they again tend to be on the move and don't like you getting too close. This one however sat nicely on a fence post for me.

A nice Stonechat, that I came across while watching some Red Grouse.