TITTESWORTH BIRD NEWS
Summer 2009 issue
(Covers the period – April to June)
Weather and season
APRIL: In England the month equaled the third warmest April in a series dating back to 1914. In the London area temperatures reached 21ºC at times but locally 19ºC was the highest - on the 24th. The range of daytime figures for the month was 10 to 19 ºC for this area. Little rain fell during the month and winds were generally weak.
MAY: Rainfall was above normal in the north west of England. Sunshine was around the norm for the month. Overall daytime temperatures locally were no better than April, although 20ºC was reached on three occasions.
JUNE: There was a hot and sunny start to the month, 25 and 26ºC recorded in the first few days. Taken overall the month was barely warmer than April and May locally. In this area there was heavy rain on the 10th causing flash floods in Sheffield. However, rainfall was below average for the month. Mid-summer’s day was on the 24th June.
Upcoming events
By the time this newsletter appears July will be over, thus events will be highlighted only for August and September.
1st and 29th August: “Aren’t Birds Brilliant” events led by the RSPB. Meet at the visitor centre at 10.30am. Look out for RSPB personnel and volunteers who will be wearing fleeces with the RSPB logo. This is a FREE event.
5th August: Pushchair walk. A one-hour stroll with the Rangers. Meet at the visitor centre at 10.30am. This is a FREE event.
12th August: Mini beasts and den making. Minimum age five. Suitable for under 12s accompanied by an adult. Meet at the visitor centre at 2pm. This event is FREE and Ranger led.
19th August: Kite making with the Rangers. Suitable for kids over 5 years of age accompanied by an adult. Cost £2.
14th and 15th August: Wizard water experiments. Minimum age 5. Maximum age 12. Meet at the barbecue shelter from 2pm – 4pm. A small charge may be levied.
27th August: Family fun day. Arts, crafts and other exciting activities. Come to the visitor centre between 11am and 5pm. A small charge is incurred.
2nd September: Pushchair walk. See 5th August for details.
4th September: Isn’t wildlife wonderful walk. Join the Tittesworth Rangers and the Peak District National Park Rangers for a wildlife walk around Tittesworth’s conservation area (not normally open to the public). Meet at the barbecue shelter at 6pm. Event finishes at 8pm. Wear suitable clothing and footwear. A FREE event.
20th September: Habitat helpers. Join the Rangers and help carry out some practical habitat work to help the native wildlife. Hot drinks will be provided. Wear old clothes and stout footwear and don’t forget your packed lunch. Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult. Meet at the visitor centre at 10.30am – finishing around 12.30pm. This is a FREE event but booking is essential. Call 01538 300400.
25th September: Bat walk. Meet at the barbecue shelter at 7pm for an informative talk about our nocturnal friends, followed by a short walk around the site. Minimum age 8 years. All those under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Cost per person is £2. Booking is essential. Ring 01538 300400.
Bird report for 2007
Just a reminder! The Tittesworth Water Bird Report for 2007 is available from reception in the Visitor Centre. The purchase price has been held again at £2.50, good value for a 64-page report. Thanks are due to the Ranger Service for once again sponsoring the report by meeting the printing costs. One hundred and thirty four species of bird were recorded in 2007. Thanks are due to Brenda Scott who produced the whole thing, that is, compiled the data from the logbook and other sources, then analysed the data, wrote the report, organised its layout, drew the illustrations and arranged the printing schedule. Well-done Brenda! A great job! This is very much appreciated by the regular visitors to the site and the report’s readers. If you think you can help Brenda with any of the tasks involved in the next report, then please contact her as follows:
Tel: 01298 71141 or email: BSAquaArnemetiae@aol.com.
All proceeds from the sale of the reports will be donated, as usual, to wildlife charities. Once again thanks to Paul Flackett for providing the cover photograph. This year it is a classic: a Goldfinch perching on a teasel. To view more of Paul’s excellent wildlife photography visit his website at – www.photosofwildlife.co.uk.
Conservation projects
Detailed information about the progress of environmental projects has not been received at the time of writing this newsletter, so will be covered in a future issue.
BIRD and other nature news: selected highlights
APRIL:
*** STAR BIRDS ***
On the first day of the month, the best sighting of the day was a pair of GOSHAWKS seen over the dam.
On the same day there were 38 Goosanders, a Dipper, two Ravens and two Shelduck. Yellow Brimstone and multi-coloured Peacock butterflies were also present. Good finds on the 2nd included an Oystercatcher, a Redshank and a Little Ringed Plover. On the 3rd a Common Sandpiper and a Kingfisher were seen.
Kingfisher
Of the many species seen on the 4th the following are worth a mention: nine Great Crested Grebes, 21 Tufted Ducks, a pair of Goldeneyes, two Little Ringed Plovers, an Oystercatcher and 12 Chiffchaffs. The 5th was a “cross over” day. A female Brambling (winter visitor) and six Willow Warblers (first of the year) were recorded. Also present were six Greylags, three Shovelers, 11 Curlew, a Peregrine and SEVEN Common Buzzards.
Common Buzzard (soaring)
Plants newly into flower on the 7th included Wood Anemone, Opposite-leaved Golden Saxifrage, Blackthorn and Marsh Marigold. A late staying Wigeon was noted on the 8th plus a Siskin but over 60 Sand Martins were counted. On the 10th 34 species were recorded including four Snipe, three Mistle Thrushes, six Song Thrushes and 11 Lesser Redpolls. The best find on the 11th was a Yellow Wagtail – the first for the year. Of note on the 12th were five Mute Swans, a pair of Mandarins, 27 Coots, 22 Willow Warblers, a Peregrine and a Goshawk.
Mute Swans
Firsts for the year: two male Common Redstarts and an Arctic Tern on the 16th. On the 18th 32 Willow Warblers were counted.
Silhouette of a Willow Warbler
On the 19th the first Common Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat and Wheatear (male) for 2009 were recorded. The following butterfly species were also noted: Green-veined White, Peacock and Orange Tip. Three Ringed Plovers turned up on the 21st. On the 22nd 20 Goldfinches were observed. Sixteen plant species were in flower including Bird Cherry, Red Campion, Greater Stitchwort, Cuckooflower, Garlic Mustard, Forget-me-not and Common Mouse-ear. On the 23rd a Tree Sparrow was spotted – now a site rarity. There were good numbers of warblers on the 24th including 33 Willow Warblers, 12 Chiffchaffs, two Common Whitethroats and 11 Blackcaps. There were two firsts for the year on the 25th – a Sedge Warbler and a Garden Warbler. Eleven Song Thrushes were also present. On the 26th the following were of note: a Dipper, a Little Owl, three Grey Wagtails, a Peregrine and three Sparrowhawks. The 28th yielded a wide range of species including – two Curlews, two Oystercatchers, a single Moorhen, two Jays, three Common Redstarts (2 males and a female), two Nuthatches and a Peregrine. On the 29th Tufted Duck numbers were up to 23. Five Stock Doves and a Treecreeper were also located.
MAY:
On the 2nd there was a Lesser Whitethroat, eight Common Whitethroats, six Garden Warblers and 12 Curlews. The most interesting observation on the 3rd was of a pair of Dippers feeding young! Also a pair of Grey Wagtails was feeding young birds too. Additionally the four Swifts seen were probably the first for the season. Good sightings on the 4th included – a Whimbrel, a pair of Stonechats, eight Mallard ducklings and three Brown Hares.
Brown Hare
Of note on the 5th: two Yellow Wagtails, a pair of Common Sandpipers mating and a Linnet. There were seven Dunlins, three Whimbrel, two “Commic” Terns and a Peregrine on the 6th. On the 7th there was a pair of Goosanders, four Dunlin, three Oystercatchers, six Little ringed Plovers, four Whimbrel and a Dipper. Two Ringed Plovers were present on the 8th and in addition a Hobby was noted near the Winking Man pub plus two more over Gun. On the 9th it was recorded that a pair of Mandarins were with young but no further details.
*** STAR BIRD ***
A WOOD SANDPIPER was observed on the 12th, a site rarity.
On the 13th a Little Tern was seen, a very good find. Good observations on the 14th included – a Black Tern, an Arctic Tern, a Turnstone, two Grey Plovers and over 1000 hirundines. A Goshawk was seen again on the 17th plus the first Spotted Flycatchers (2) of 2009. It was noted on the 19th that a pair of Oystercatchers were sitting on eggs. A very streaky plumaged Tawny Owl was also observed. Coot with young was sighted on the 20th. A Barn Owl was observed on the 22nd and 23rd. The most interesting sightings on the 24th were a pair of Long-tailed Tits with NINE young and a pair of Canada Geese with 10 goslings. Twenty Lapwings were noticed on the 28th. Good news! On the 29th THREE Lapwing chicks were seen beside the Conservation Pool. Butterfly species present: Orange Tip, Small Copper, Painted Lady and Speckled Wood. A female Mandarin was looking after six young on the 30th. Five Common Buzzards were in the air on the 31st.
JUNE:
202 Lesser Black-backed Gulls were counted on the 1st. Eight Oystercatchers were present on the Large Island in the early morning of the 2nd. A Redshank was also seen. Over 150 Swifts hunted over the reservoir on the 4th. Two newly hatched Oystercatcher chicks emerged from their nest on the 6th. On the 7th THREE Oystercatcher chicks were noted. An adult Peregrine plus one juvenile was recorded at the Roaches. A Weasel was the most unusual sighting recorded on the 8th. A Barn Owl was seen at about 2045 hrs on the 11th.
*** STAR BIRD ***
A GRASSHOPPER WARBLER, a site rarity, was found on the 13th and 14th.
Nuthatches were observed feeding young on the 13th. Two Common Terns were recorded on the 14th. On 16th a juvenile Common Sandpiper was observed. A Barn Owl was seen again on the 16th. A pair of Great Spotted Woodpeckers had a juvenile bird with them on the 17th. A male Peregrine and the juvenile were at the Roaches on the same day. Twenty-one Coots counted on the 21st, a high number for this site. Two juvenile Great Spotted Woodpeckers were found with a pair of adults. On the 22nd three Curlews were noted. Blackbirds drove off a Tawny Owl apparently trying to raid their nests! It was also reported on the 22nd that six specimens only of the Southern Marsh Orchid had been found. Good! Only one Oystercatcher chick could be found on the 28th. Had the other two been predated? However, two juvenile Great Crested Grebes and two juvenile Lapwings were recorded. The rare Grasshopper Warbler was still present. Only one Oystercatcher chick was noted on the 29th, thus it seems confirming the loss of its two siblings. Fourteen Black-tailed Godwits flew south at about 9pm. Butterflies on the wing on the 29th: Painted Lady, Meadow Brown, Small Copper, Comma and Red Admiral. Four adult and two juvenile Grey Herons were observed on the last day of the month. An adult Coot had four young in tow and a male Great Spotted Woodpecker was seen feeding a juvenile bird at the west hide bird table.
In conclusion
The above observations represent 7% of the sightings recorded for the quarter under review. Please continue to record data about the normal as well as the unusual, for birds, mammals, insects and plants. These data help us to understand the site in ecological terms and, thus future site plans and policy can reflect more precisely beneficial changes and upgrades for wildlife. Thanks everyone.
Ray Perry 28th July 2009
Tel: 01625 432668
Email: ray_perry@btinternet.com