West Midland Bird Club
Tittesworth Reservoir Latest News
Unless otherwise stated, reports on this page are anecdotal, and have not been verified by the relevant country recorder or rarities committee.
For the scientfic names of these birds, and their local status, see our county lists.
The latest update covers January 2010.
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January 2010
- 27: Ten Whooper Swans were recorded — eight adults and two juveniles. They were only on-site for about three hours. Also present: two Pochards, three Goldeneyes, 25 Tufted Ducks, a Herring Gull, a Snipe and 30 Siskins.
- 24: Four Tawny Owls were found, a high count for this site.
- 20: The best find of the day was a black-bellied Brent Goose, a site rarity. Also of note: a Greylag Goose, 73 Wigeon, 26 Long-tailed Tits, a Tawny Owl, three Great Spotted Woodpeckers and seven Greenfinches.
- 19: A Dipper was observed on the River Churnet.
- 17: Goosander numbers had lifted to 21. Also note the following: 41 Wigeon, eight Lapwings, a Snipe, 23 Herring Gulls, 52 Common Gulls, four Nuthatches, four Bullfinches, a Reed Bunting, a single Grey Heron, a Jay and a Raven.
- 16: Duck numbers: 71 Wigeon, 28 Teal, three Goldeneyes, 147 Mallards, five Tufted Ducks and 12 Goosanders. Also two Snipe, four Goldcrests, a Tawny Owl and two female Kestrels.
- 10: Of note: a Little Grebe, 94 Teal, 12 Coots, three Moorhens and a female Sparrowhawk.
- 9: A flock of about 450 Pink-footed Geese flew over the site.
- 8: Two Woodcocks were found, an unusual species for Tittesworth. Also noted: two hundred and sixty six Mallards, 121 Teal, a female Mandarin, three Nuthatches, a Treecreeper, 16 Blackbirds and nine Robins.
- 7: Two Ravens were recorded.
- 3: A Little Grebe was noted, uncommon on this site. Also worth a mention were two Common Buzzards, three Moorhens, 33 Long-tailed Tits, a Jay, two Goldcrests, a Willow Tit, five Bullfinches and two Nuthatches.
- 2: The most unusual sighting was of two Cackling Geese with 62 Canada Geese. Fifty-six Pink-footed Geese flew over the site and the following were also of note: fifteen Great Crested Grebes, six Goldeneyes, 115 Teal, 42 Wigeon, 38 Tufted Ducks, 11 Goosanders and three Song Thrushes.
- 1: Sixty-one Teal, five Goldeneye, 14 Goosanders, 13 Tufted Ducks, just three Pochards, a Woodcock, a Red Grouse, eight Stock Doves, two Kestrels, a Raven, 16 Long-tailed Tits, 60 Siskins and eight Lesser Redpolls.
December 2009
- 30: On the penultimate day of the year few species were recorded, but included a Snipe, a Kingfisher, a Nuthatch and the wing-tagged Buzzard.
- 28: A Red Fox and a Brown Hare were the most unusual observations.
- 27: The best observation of the day was of 35 Golden Plovers flying over the site.
- 26: An excellent find on Boxing Day was a Little Egret. It arrived at about 3.30pm, flew around the reservoir and then disappeared southwards. Other observations of note: a drumming Great Spotted Woodpecker, 153 Mallards, a wing tagged Common Buzzard, six Stock Doves, 25 Long-tailed Tits, 160 Jackdaws — usually very uncommon on the site, three Moorhens and two male Sparrowhawks.
- 20: Thirty two species were recorded in the logbook including 148 Mallards, 97 Canada Geese, a Kestrel, a Common Buzzard, four Coots, a Moorhen — so scarce at Tittesworth, a pair of Shovelers and two Snipe.
- 19: The best find was a Jack Snipe, a site rarity. Also of interest — 16 Cormorants, 19 Goosanders, two male and one female Goldeneye, 10 Great Crested Grebes, seven Lapwings and 42 Siskins.
- 16: Duck numbers: a female Goldeneye, 43 Wigeon, 81 Teal, three Goosanders, 146 Mallards, three Pochards and 15 Tufted Ducks. Also present: five Snipe, a Treecreeper, four Great Spotted Woodpeckers, 24 Long-tailed Tits, a Willow Tit, a Grey Wagtail and a Reed Bunting.
- 14: Twenty five Goldfinches were located. Also the following were noted: 25 Siskins, a Dipper, 40 Snipe and two Stock Doves.
- 13: A sample of the birds present: a pair of Shovelers, 52 Teal, some Meadow Pipits, 13 Long-tailed Tits and three Song Thrushes. One hundred and ten Pink-footed Geese flew over at about 10am heading south.
- 8: Once again there were around 3,000 Black-headed Gulls in the gull roost but this time there were 185 Common Gulls present.
- 6: Duck numbers had changed a bit. There were 23 Goosanders, 28 Tufted Ducks, 48 Teal, three Mandarins and five Pochards. Also present: nine
Cormorants, two Grey Herons, a female Sparrowhawk, a pair of Kestrels, a Jay, a Mute Swan and two Kingfishers.
- 5: Of note: twenty one Goosanders, 41 Teal, 23 Tufted Ducks, six Great Crested Grebes, approximately 3,000 Black-headed Gulls, 48 Common Gulls, 15 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, two Kingfishers, a Tawny Owl and a Little Owl, four Nuthatches, 32 Fieldfares, 14 Redwings, four Song Thrushes and a Raven.
- 2: One hundred and one Canada Geese, 39 Teal, a pair of Shovelers, five Pochards, six Wigeon, three Great Spotted Woodpeckers, four Coal Tits, five Bullfinches, 20+ Siskins and a Kingfisher.
Reports by Ray Perry.
The Tittesworth Visitor Centre is at Meerbrook, Leek, Staffordshire ST13 8SW; map reference: SJ9960 
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