West Midland Bird Club Annua! Report No 46 1979
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West Midland Bird Club Annua! Report No 46 1979 Corn Bunting by M. C. Wilkes West Midland Bird Club Annua! Report No 46 19 79 Being the Annual Bird Report of the West Midland Bird Club on the birds in the counties of Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire and West Midlands. Contents 2 Officers and Committee 3 Editor's Report 6 Treasurer's Report and Financial Statement 9 Secretary's Report I 1 Membership Secretary's Report II Field Meetings Secretary's Report 11 Branch Reports 13 Belvide Reserve 13 Ladywalk Reserve 16 1979 Bird Record Localities 19 Classified Notes 100 Ringing in 1979 111 Key to Contributors 112 Species requiring descriptions Price £1.50 7 Officers and Committee 1980 President C A Norris, Brookend House, Wclland, Worcestershire Vice-President G C Lambourne, Melin Dan-y-rhiw, St. Davids, Dyfed Chairman ARM Blake, 102 Russell Bank Road, Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands Deputy-Chairman G M Lewis, 9a Plymouth Road, Barnt Green, Birmingham B45 8JE Secretary A J Richards, 1 Lansdowne Road, Studley, Warwickshire B80 7JG Membership Miss J M Nicholls, 296 Olton Boulevard West, Secretary Birmingham B1 1 3HH Treasurer J H W Ridley, 33 Blakedown Road, Halesowen, West Midlands Editor G R Harrison, "Bryher", Hatton Green, Hatton, Warwickshire CV35 7LA Field Meetings S H Young, 32 Carless Avenue, Harborne, Secretary Birmingham B1 7 9EL Ringing Secretary P Ireland, 33 Banbrook Close, Solihull, West Midlands B92 9NF Permit Secretary Miss M Surman, 6 Lloyd Square, 12 Niall Close, Birmingham B1 5 3LX Chairman G R Harrison, "Bryher", Hatton Green, Hatton, Research Warwickshire CV35 7LA Committee Kidderminster Branch Secretary Staffs Branch D Emley, 127 Harpfields Road, Stoke-on-Trent Secretary Solihull Branch Mrs D Dunstan, 4 Blossomfield Road, Solihull, Representative West Midlands Main Committee Miss G Davies, Mr & Mrs B Hutton, Mrs J Jacobs and Miss M Young 3 Editor's Report After several years of helping with the editorial work, Rob Hume regretfully feels unable to continue with his contribution and I should like to thank him very much indeed for his past efforts. Fortunately Pete Dedicoat has stepped into the breach, but I hope Rob will be able to continue illustrating the Report. Due to illness and other commitments, production of this Report has been particularly arduous and an even greater share of the burden than usual has fallen on my wife. Indeed, without her efforts it is doubtful whether there would have been a Report at all. I am also indebted to everyone who has contributed, especially those who submitted records, but I should particularly like to thank Alan Dean, Pete Dedicoat and Dave Smallshire for their help in its compilation. G R Harrison Birds in 1979 Some 223 species or distinct races were recorded in a year of mixed blessings. For the most part 1979 will be remembered for its severe winter, which was comparable with those of 1947 and 1963, though thankfully no particular weather pattern dominated for long so the coldest spells were not protracted. The apparent sixteen-year cycle for hard winters makes an intriguing coincidence. Inevitably the hard weather dominated bird-life throughout the year, bringing some unusual wildfowl movements as birds were forced to forsake frozen waters, many unexpected species visiting gardens in search of food and a high mortality rate which affected breeding populations. Heavy rainfall in late-spring brought flooding and this too frustrated many breeding attempts. Following their influx the previous autumn, Short-eared Owls remained widespread throughout the winter and it was also an excellent year for Brambling. Above all, though, 1 979 will be remembered as the year of the Red-necked Grebe. It opened with both Smew and Pomarine Skua from 1978 and during the first, very cold week both Bittern and Turnstone were seen. A rapid thaw that lasted for some five days brought an influx of Goosanders, a party of White-fronted Geese and four Bearded Tits. With a return to freezing conditions and heavy snow on the fourteenth, six Smew were discovered on the River Trent, taking advantage of water which had been artificially warmed during its passage through the nearby power- station. Three days later a Black-throated Diver arrived, on the twenty-first three Lapland Buntings appeared at two separate localities, a Velvet Scoter was discovered next day and then a Waxwing appeared. Finally, with the onset of even more severe snowfall and cold, the month closed with an exceptional movement of Pink-footed Geese on the twenty- seventh and the arrival of more White-fronted Geese the next day. Apart from a brief respite around the twenty-second, February was again very cold with heavy snow in mid-month. Bearded Tit and Mealy Redpoll were discovered in the first few days, but it was the anticyclone that developed 4 over Scandinavia on the fourteenth, bringing Siberian conditions to the Continent and blizzards to Britain, that sparked off a flurry of movement. Within the next few days no fewer than ten divers, thirteen Red-necked Grebes, a Slavonian Grebe and a Dusky Thrush arrived, the latter being seen intermittently for some time and providing some recompense for a spate of frustratingly inconclusive claims of rare thrushes in gardens. About this time too, enormous numbers of finches descended on the Kidderminster area, culminating in a mixed flock that contained at least a thousand Brambling and twelve-hundred Linnets. In late-February, two Whooper Swans arrived, to stay until May, arid more Smew and a Great Grey Shrike appeared. One or two Iceland Gulls and more divers and Red- necked Grebes appeared during March, which remained unsettled and rather cold. Bewicks Swans moved through on the third and fourth and next day the second Bittern of the winter was found, whilst a passing frontal system on the eleventh brought a party of 42 Kittiwakes with it. A Rough-legged Buzzard was seen on the fifteenth and it, or another, was found poisoned later in the month. High pressure in mid-Atlantic brought further heavy snow on the sixteenth, but following southerly winds on the eighteenth a few Wheatears began to pass through. Their passage was quickly curtailed by the return of cold, northerly winds, however, and whilst a few Chiffchaffs and a Willow Warbler also arrived in March, Sand Martins failed to do so for only the third time since 1 934. Following the recent pattern, spring was again late, with April cold and unusually quiet. Few summer visitors could be found before the ninth, when southerly winds began a strong passage. Instead, and more in keeping with the weather, a second Velvet Scoter appeared on the tenth. An incredibly early Swift was seen on the twelfth, however, and despite the return of colder weather in mid-month a Marsh Harrier passed through on the twenty-fourth. Early May brought snow on the second, a brief stay from a Ring-necked Duck and a Crane, as well as seeing a Great Grey Shrike and a Red-throated Diver still lingering on. The customary passage of Sanderling peaked about the seventh, on which day a Kentish Plover was also seen, and a strong passage of Black Terns on the thirteenth coincided with an improvement in the weather. The discovery of five Waxwings the next day, though, was symptomatic of its variability. Temminck's Stints arrived on the sixteenth and seventeenth, Osprey on the twentieth and Spoonbill five days later. Passage continued into June, with one of the year's most unexpected surprises, a Barred Warbler, on the third; a Golden Oriole on the same day; and a Great Reed Warbler on the tenth, whilst Corncrakes were heard at this time and at the end of the month. The breeding season was characterised by widespread reports of declines in the numbers of tits, Goldcrest, Wren, Treecreeper, Kingfisher and Heron, which traditionally suffer from hard winters. Heavy rain during the last few days of May also caused flooding and amongst the many ground- 5 nesting species to be washed out were Teal, Garganey, Little Ringed Plover and possibly Gadwall. Again there were no reports of Cirl Bunting either, but on the credit side Ringed Plover bred for the first time; one pair of Oystercatchers were successful, though another failed; Gadwall bred for the first time in Warwickshire; Marsh Warblers were found at two new sites; Hen Harrier, Goshawk, Hobby, Quail and Common Tern all nested successfully and Grasshopper Warbler enjoyed a peak year. Late June also saw the first of a small irruption of Crossbills, whilst early July's highlights were a singing Woodlark, Little Tern, Spotted Crake and a Brambling in song. Later in the month a Caspian Tern was seen on the twenty-fifth and a Night Heron, found two days later not far from where one was seen in 1978, poses the possibility that it had remained in the area undetected for a year. Following heavy rain and gales in mid-August, there was a passage of Little Gulls around the eighteenth and a Marsh Harrier arrived at the same time to stay for ten days. Another Harrier passed through on the thirtieth and Greenshanks peaked as usual late in the month, but it was a poor year generally for waders and particularly for Curlew Sandpiper and Dunlin. Early-September produced a Black-necked Grebe, but the event of the month was the Lesser Vellowlegs, which stayed for two weeks from the fifteenth. A party of Bearded Tits arrived on the twenty-ninth, to be followed by others in the first half of October, when a Pectoral Sandpiper was present on the first and a Golden Oriole was found dead on the third.