West Midland Bird Club Annual Report No 53 1986 Great Spotted Woodpecker by S C Brown West Midland Bird Club
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West Midland Bird Club Annual Report No 53 1986 Great Spotted Woodpecker by S C Brown West Midland Bird Club Annua/ Report No 53 1986 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 4 Editor's Report 4 Birds in 1986 17 Treasurer's Report and Financial Statement 20 Secretary's Report 20 Field Meeting Secretary's Report 21 Permit Secretary's Report 21 Membership Secretary's Report 21 Research Committee 22 Staffordshire Branch Report 23 Belvide Reserve 24. Ladywalk Reserve 25 Pellet Analysis of Short-eared Owls — Ooxey 28 The Birds of Saltwells Local Nature Reserve 54 1986 Bird Record Localities 58 Classified Notes 147 Ringing in 1986 ' 155 Key to Contributors 157 Species requiring descriptions Price £2.75 2 Officers and Committee 1987 President C A Norris, Brookend House, Welland, Worcestershire Vice-President G C Lambourne, Melin Dan-y-rhiw, St. Davids, Dyfed Chairman A J Richards, 1 Lansdowne Road, Studley, Warwickshire B80 7JG Deputy Chairman G M Lewis, 9a Plymouth Road, Barnt Green, Birmingham B45 8JE Secretary H McGregor, 74 Ivyfield Road, Erdington, Birmingham B23 7HH Treasurer K A Webb, 8 Vernon Close, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands B74 4EA Report Editor N P Barlow, 1 Yew Tree Cottages, Maxstoke Lane, Meriden, Coventry CV7 7HR Research G R Harrison, "Bryher", Hatton Green, Hatton, Committee Warwickshire CV35 7LA Chairman Promotions and P K Dedicoat, 2 The Elms Paddock, Pattingham, Fund Raising Wolve.rhampton WV6 7DW Committee Chairman and Bulletin Editor Membership D S Evans, 49 Inglewood Grove, Streetly, Sutton Coldfield Secretary B74 3LN Field Meetings S H Young, 32 Carless Avenue, Harborne, Birmingham Secretary B17 9EL Permit Secretary Miss M Surman, 6 Lloyd Square, 12 Niall Close, Birmingham B15 3LX Ringing Secretary A E Coleman, 67 Park Lane, Bonehill, Tamworth, Staffordshire Staffs Branch D W Elmley, 127 Harpfields Road, Stoke-on-Trent Chairman Solihull M Hewitt, 33 Hurdis Street, Shirley, Solihull, West Branch Chairman Midlands Warwickshire S M Haynes, 4 Spinney Close, Old Arley, Coventry Recorder CV78PD Worcestershire S M Whitehouse, 5 Stanway Close, Rudyard Gardens, Recorder Blackpole, Worcester WR4 9XL 3 Staffordshire G Evans, Flat 5, Kenilworth Court, Mill Street, Cannock Recorder West Midlands R M Normand, 18 Hamstead Hall Avenue, Handsworth Recorder Wood, Birmingham B20 1EY Main Committee S C Brown, Mrs D Dunstan, R Harbird, R M Normand Records Committee N P Barlow, G Evans, G R Harrison, S M Haynes, R M Normand, S K Welch, S M Whitehouse 4 Editor's Report As I sat down to write these comments the 1985 Report arrived, and it is again clear that Graham Harrison has established a high standard for the West Midland Bird Club. I only hope that the 1986 Report can achieve similar standards. The amount of work that Graham has had to deal with in the past has amazed the four County Recorders and myself and it is no wonder that he felt the time had come to devolve the report preparation amongst county representatives. In so doing, however, the problems of drawing the component parts has become more difficult and as this is the first year of the new team I hope that any inconsistencies will be allowed for. Helpful comments are indeed invited. The positive side of this devolution is that the Recorders have already established closer links with birdwatchers in their areas and I believe that more records have therefore been forthcoming. There are still notable gaps, such as south Warwickshire but hopefully these gaps will be filled in time. I would like to thank all those who have taken the trouble to submit records. It was not until I edited the Report that I fully appreciated the significance of many of the records in building up a picture of species status and movements. There are a number of minor amendments and alterations to the style this year which are entirely personal. In particular and for clarity January to February is referred to as the first winter period and December as the second winter period; March-May are the spring months, June-August the summer months and September to November the autumn months. Brierley Hill Pools are referred to as Fens Pools. Finally I would like to thank, in particular, the artists John Martin, Maurice Eccleshall, Brett Westwood, Roger Hancox whose drawings, as usual, have added immeasurably to the report; the photographers Phill Ward, Mike Inskip, Graham Mant, Charlie Brown and Mike Wilkes; Graham Evans and Graham Harrison for their invaluable editing help; Maureen Smith for typing assistance; and the County Recorders and their teams:— Warwickshire: Steve Haynes and Steve Cawthray Worcestershire: Steve Whitehouse, Richard Harbird, Gavin Peplow, John Sirrett Staffordshire: Graham Evans, John Bennett, Tony Blake, Pete Downing, Dave Emley, John Martin, Trevor Smart, Steve Welch West Midlands: Bob and Alicia Normand Migrant Arrivals and Departures: Steve Welch Hotline: John Bennett This is essentially their report. Birds in 1986 The year can be divided into distinct phases. January and to a much greater extent February were bitterly cold. The spring and summer months were 5 generally wet with temperatures below normal and little "summery" weather. The autumn however made a pleasant change with generally warm mild weather in September and October. November and December were again wet but generally mild. Birding was nevertheless good with 222 species seen (the same as 1985) and two of these — Black Kite and Yellow-browed Warbler — were new to the region. The cold weather from late December continued into January with northerly and easterly winds leading to a progressive drop in temperatures and some snow on the eighth. This brought an influx of Fieldfares and Redwings into the region with 4000 and 1000 respectively descending on Sandwell Valley. Both Bewick's and Whooper Swans were noted early on with 15 Bewick's at Bredon's Hardwick and 12 at Alvecote. On the sixth a female Bearded Tit was seen at Brandon, 800 Golden Plover at Bredon, 273 Dunlin at Bredon's Hardwick, and 123 Snipe at Coton and 115 at Wyre Piddle. Five Ruff at Draycote was most unusual and this reservoir held some birds from 1985 including two Great Northern Divers, female Long-tailed Duck, Scaup, immature Velvet Scoter, three redheaded Smew and a pair of Bearded Tits; other birds from 1985 included another Great Northern Diver at Fens Pools and 67 Barnacle Geese at Bittell. > Cold but clear weather continued until the middle of the month when westerlies brought milder and wetter weather into the country. A party of White-fronted Geese flew north over Coton on the eleventh. The influx of Short-eared Owls in the previous year led to six congregating at Sandwell Valley by the twelfth, a Merlin was seen in the Bredon area and a male Hen Harrier at High Green. A Bittern was a surprising find at Ufton Fields on the nineteenth and on the same day, Grey Plover were present at Coton and Grimley. Gull counts included 3000 Common Gulls at Draycote and 2000 Lesser Black-backed Gulls at Throck- morton Tip. A sharp frost on the twenty-fourth froze over many small waters and easterlies brought dull cloudy cold weather until the end of the month. A number of different birds arrived, duck numbers were concentrated on the larger deeper waters and a number of birds were forced to leave the area. Great Northern Divers at Draycote and Shustoke had both departed by the twenty-seventh and a Bittern at Upton Warren on the twenty-fifth had left by the twenty-eighth. The Barnacles left Bittell on the morning of the heavy frost. Counts of wildfowl rose with 600 Canada Geese at Blithfield, 400 Teal at Ladywalk, 976 Mallard at Aqualate and 534 Ruddy Ducks at Blithfield. Merlins were reported from Kingsbury Water Park, Defford Airfield and Holt. Iceland and Glaucous Gulls became more prominent and by the end of the month up to six Iceland and fifteen Glaucous Gulls had been seen. 400 Siskin at Westport Lake and two Long- eared Owls at Park Hall were also noteworthy. The easterlies which had started at the end of January continued throughout the whole of February. Generally the weather was bright but the cold winds made birdwatching hard work. The persistent cold caused the ground to freeze to 1' 0" 6 by the end of the month. Many species left the area and those that remained experienced considerable hardship. The long icy spell was caused by a blocking anticyclone to the north east and temperatures remained below freezing for most of the month. It was the coldest February since 1947, occasional snow flurries did not melt and by the end of the month few waters remained open. A Red-throated Diver appeared at Draycote on the first together with a Kittiwake, an immature Peregrine was seen at Upton Warren on the second and a Mediterranean Gull at Chasewater joined the large gull roost there. 26 Bewick's Swans were at Eckington and by the third numbers at Bredon's Hardwick built up to 170. An adult and immature Whooper Swan appeared near Alrewas on the 4th, staying until the 16th, with a Black-throated Diver at Belvide also on the 4th. A male Bearded Tit was seen at Brandon on the seventh. A Red-necked Grebe stayed at Fens Pools from the fifth to the seventh, possibly the same bird was seen at Edgbaston Reservoir from the eighth and at Bartley from the ninth to the eleventh. On the eleventh the Reservoir froze over almost entirely, the bird could not get airborne and was attacked and killed by Crows.