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1964 No. 31 THE WEST MIDLAND BIRD REPORT Price Six Shillings Published August, 1965 £ A Tree-Creeper photographed in the Wyre Forest by R. J. C. Blewitt. THE WEST MIDLAND BIRD REPORT No. 31 1964 BEING THE ANNUAL REPORT OF THE WEST MIDLAND BIRD CLUB FOR 1964 ON THE BIRDS OF WARWICKSHIRE, WORCESTERSHIRE AND STAFFORDSHIRE. CONTENTS Page OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE .... 5 EDITOR'S REPORT 5 SECRETARY'S REPORT 6 TREASURER'S REPORT 6 FIELD MEETINGS REPORT 7 RINGING SECRETARY'S REPORT ... 7 SOME BIRDS OF BLITHFIELD RESERVOIR, 1952-1963 8 KESTREL ENQUIRY, WEST MIDLANDS, 1964 . 15 STATUS OF THE BLACK-TAILED AND BAR- TAILED GOD WITS IN THE WEST MIDLANDS 17 CLASSIFIED NOTES 19 RINGING PROJECTS AND RECOVERIES . 52 ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE OF MIGRANTS . 58 KEY TO CONTRIBUTORS 62 FINANCIAL STATEMENT 64 OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE, 1965 President : THE LORD HURCOMB, G.C.B., K.B.E. Vice Presidents : A. J. HARTHAN, 80A Green Hill, Evesham Worcestershire. e. A. NORRIS, Clent House, Clent, Worcestershire. Chairman : P. W. HINDE, 14 Goldthorn Road, Wolverhampton. Secretary : A. J. RICHARDS, 1 St. Asaphs Avenue, Studley, Warwickshire. Editor : J. LORD, "Orduna," 155 Tamworth Road, Sutton Coldfield. Treasurer : L. SMITH, 27 Sunnybank Road, Wylde Green, Sutton Coldfield. Field Meetings Secretary : A. F. JACOBS, 46 Bernard Road, Birmingham 17. Assistant Secretary : J. SEARS, 21 Lynbrooke Close, Hollywood,, Worcestershire. Ringing Secretary : C. D. T. MINTON, 65 St. Johns Hill, Shenstone, Lichfield. Conservation Secretary : G. C. LAMBOURNE, Cottage Farm, Ipsley, Redditch. Branch Representatives : Kidderminster: A. E. DAVIES, 47 Roden Avenue, Kidderminster. Stafford: N. R. WENT, Horsley Lane, Garmelow, Eccleshall. Committee : A. R. M. Blake, M. M. Campbell, W. B. Charlesworth, E. S. Clare, G. Heath, T. E. Parker. EDITOR'S REPORT Most of the residents which suffered in the 1962/3 severe winter have now largely recovered although reports indicated that the Heron and the Kingfisher were still below their usual numbers. Unusual records included Red-necked Grebes at Belvide and Blithfield, the latter the first July occurrence in the Club's history; Red-crested Pochard, believed wild, at Gailey; Brent Geese at Blithfield; Hen-Harriers at Cannock Chase and near Yoxall; a Dotterel on the Clent Hills; a Temminck's Stint at Blithfield; a Grey Phalarope at Bittell and a Red-necked at Blithfield; a Golden Oriole at Packington; and Bearded Tits at Alvecote, a first appear- ance there. 5 The Hobby and Pied Flycatcher bred in Warwickshire and the Black Redstart in a Black Country site. It was a good Quail year, with breeding records, and Crossbills also bred. There was only one report of a diver at the reservoirs during the winter, an unusual dearth, but the recent increase in Eider occur- rences continued. The Wood-Lark now seems lost, only temporarily it is hoped, as a resident. On the other hand, the Collared Dove continued its triumphant progress and is well-established in all three counties. Very many localities within the Club's area receive little atten- tion. While the reservoirs remain, understandably, the focal points of interest in the passage periods and to a considerable extent in the winter I hope members will spread their wings in the summer months. More information is required on the breeding birds of areas such as South Warwickshire, the Teme Valley and the Cheadle district. J. LORD. SECRETARY'S REPORT Indoor Meetings A measure of the support given to the Club is surely demonstrated by the attendance at indoor meetings, which continues to increase. An audience of 200 at a meeting is now not unusual and in the year under review this number and often more have been informed and entertained at each of the monthly meetings. A great deal of credit is due to the Chairman in obtaining the first-class speakers which have made these functions such an attraction. In 1964 these included P. Conder, W. M. Condry, F. C. Gribble, F. C. Hollands, Dr. G. V. T. Matthews and W. B. Yapp. A. F. Jacobs, C. D. T. Minton, C. A. Norris and P. W. Hinde, members of the committee, also added to the year's pro- gramme. All these meetings were again held in the City of Birming- ham Art Gallery and once more we record our appreciation of the facilities made available. Enquiries All members are thanked for the support they have given to enquiries undertaken in 1964, particularly the Kestrel Enquiry, which is set out in detail elsewhere. The Birds of Prey Enquiry and Tawny Owl Survey, both sponsored by the Nature Conservancy, were two other projects in which many members participated. A. J. RICHARDS. TREASURER'S REPORT Reference to the accounts for 1964 on page 64 shows that the decline in our reserves, which has been taking place during the last 6 few years, has been halted. The increased subscriptions have more than covered our expenditure, thanks being due to the various officers whose great efforts have kept the costs down. Further sales of copies of "The Birds of Staffordshire" have helped to take our balance towards the figure at which it stood a few years ago. Although administrative and printing costs are likely to increase, the present subscription should be adequate for a few years. Now that the Club has been registered as a charity many members are helping to defer the date of the next increase by covenanting their subscriptions. There are probably many more who could help in this way. During 1964 the membership increased from 611 to 673 after taking into account 43 who failed to pay and 46 who resigned. L. SMITH. FIELD MEETINGS SECRETARY'S REPORT During the year, full-day field meetings were held at Bittell and the Lickeys, Belvide and Gailey, Blithfield, Slimbridge, Cannock Chase, the Long Mynd and West Kirby. In addition, the first of a series of half-day meetings took place at the Wyre Forest. These have been arranged on Saturday afternoons mainly in the interests of members who find it difficult to get away on Sundays. All meetings were well attended and a wide range of birds (and bird- watchers) were encountered. A. F. JACOBS. RINGING SECRETARY'S REPORT 1964 saw a further increase in ringing activities in the West Midlands, largely as a result of the greater number of qualified ringers. Finches, thrushes, hirundines and Starlings continued to be the most widely ringed species and the increased concentration on these groups is illustrated by the wealth of recoveries (pages 52 to 55). A feature of all the ringing was its co-operative nature, teams of ringers frequently assembling together on occasions where a joint operation was beneficial. Examples of this were for mist netting at the extensive thrush roost at Sandon (270 Redwings were ringed one afternoon) or the finch roost at Trickley Coppice, Middle- ton (1,000 birds ringed in Autumn, 1964), for batfowling at Starling roosts (over 1,000 on one night) or for rounding up Swans (310 one week-end). A further contribution was also made to the national Sand-Martin Enquiry with ringing at newly-found colonies in Worcestershire and at Sutton Coldfield and at roosts at Alvecote and Westwood Park. The number of recoveries of some species which have gradually accrued over the years is already enabling a provisional pattern of 7 movements to be outlined. For instance, the extent of movement of Mute Swans in the West Midlands is now fairly clearly understood, the dispersal area of the Gailey Herons in their first year is known, the apparently random wanderings of Greenfinches during the winter is revealed, and the continental breeding areas of Starlings visiting the West Midlands in winter is defined. The Starling recoveries in 1964 were largely of birds ringed in the severe weather of January and February, 1963, and bring to thirteen the number of foreign recoveries of Starlings ringed in this period. The most notable feature of the 1964 recoveries was the marked exodus of British Linnets into France in the autumn, a movement noted also in other parts of the British Isles. This dispersal, an irregular occurrence, was well documented for the Club's area with six such recoveries including three Linnets ringed at Brandon in the space of two days. Other interesting recoveries included a Whitethroat from Brandon in Portugal, a Fieldfare from Hartshill in Finland, a Snipe from Blithfield in N. Italy, and a Swallow, also from Blithfield, which was caught by a schoolboy in the Ashanti region of Ghana. Full details of the main ringing activities of members are given on pages 57 and 58 and all recoveries over 10 miles (40 miles for the Mute Swan) on pages 52 to 56. C. D. T. MINTON. SOME BIRDS OF BLITHFIELD RESERVOIR, 1952-1963 Blithfield Reservoir is located near Abbots Bromley in Stafford- shire. It is a drinking water reservoir with a capacity of 4,000 million gallons, a top water area of 790 acres and a perimeter of about 8| miles. There is no public access to the reservoir but a main road crosses the centre and another road runs along part of one side. The South Staffordshire Waterworks Company is thanked for their helpful co-operation in making this survey possible. Filhng commenced in 1952 and the first systematic duck counts in the autumn of 1954. In the survey of the winter distribu- tion of the anatidae and their conservation in Great Britain, pre- pared by the Wildfowl Trust and published in 1963, Blithfield is shown as the third most important of the reservoirs judged on the total number of birds and on the value of individual species. Regular duck counts at the reservoir, organised by T.

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