The definitive birdwatching site guide for Cheshire, Lancashire, Manchester and Merseyside.

The counties of the northwest – Lancashire and Cheshire, plus the two metropolitan areas of Manchester and Liverpool – provide a surprisingly diverse range of habitats and some of the best birding opportunities in England. The region is blessed with estuaries, with the spectacular Morecambe Bay being one of Britain's finest wetland sites, home to the largest wader roost in the country. Further south, the Ribble and Mersey offer further sanctuary to wildfowl and waders, while inland lie marshland sites such as Leighton Moss and Martin Mere, a lure to wintering swans as well as thousands of Pink-footed Geese. Inland upland areas towards the Pennines host breeding plovers and Dunlin, Black Grouse, Ring Ouzel, Merlin, and the last English Twite population.

To the south lies Cheshire, another county with a rich avifauna to explore. The stars are perhaps the breeding Black-necked Grebes of Woolston Eyes in the very north of the county, but elsewhere there are productive wetland reserves such as Frodsham Marsh and Sandbach Flashes, belts of agricultural land that host species such as Yellow Wagtail, while seawatching from the Wirral peninsula can be astonishingly productive with a great chance of rarities.

This book contains a comprehensive review of all the region's significant birdwatching sites, providing the information necessary to make the most of each and every trip, whatever the time of year, with detailed maps alongside notes on access and target species. Handy for the glovebox or backpack, it is an indispensable resource for any birder in this bird-rich corner of northern England.