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 23 April–24 May 2009.
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May 2009
- 24: A pair of Long-tailed Tits with nine young! A pair of Canada Geese with 10 goslings.
- 23: Once again the Barn Owl. A female Goosander and five Dunlin.
- 22: Two Brown Hares, a Common Sandpiper and a Barn Owl.
- 20: Coot with young. A Peregrine over the Roaches.
- 19: A pair of Oystercatchers sitting on eggs! A very streaky plumaged Tawny Owl!
- 17: Of note: a Ringed Plover, two Whimbrel, five Little Ringed Plovers, 60+ Swifts, 80+ House Martins, 250+ Swallows, three Sand Martins, a Goshawk and two Spotted Flycatchers — the first of the season.
- 14: Good observations included a Black Tern, an Arctic Tern, a Turnstone, four Dunlin, two Grey Plovers, a Hobby and over 1000 hirundines.
- 13: A Little Tern was seen, a very good find.
- 12: A site rarity was observed — a Wood Sandpiper.
- 10: Little Ringed Plovers were now up to six. Three Moorhens were noted — a high count for this site. Two Peregrines were observed.
- 9: A pair of Mandarins with young.
- 8: Two Ringed Plovers and 13 Swifts. A Hobby was noted near the Winking Man pub and two were over Gun mid-afternoon.
- 7: Of note: a pair of Goosanders, four Dunlin, three Oystercatchers, six Little Ringed Plovers, four Whimbrel, a Dipper and an Orange Tip butterfly.
- 6: Seven Dunlin, three Whimbrel, two “Commic” Terns, and a Peregrine over Hen Cloud.
- 5: Of note: two Yellow Wagtails, a pair of Common Sandpipers mating and a Linnet.
- 4: The best sightings were three Brown Hares, a pair of Stonechats, a Whimbrel, and a female Mallard with eight ducklings.
- 3: The most interesting observation of the day was of a pair of Dippers feeding young! Also two Grey Wagtails were feeding young. Four Swifts zipped through the sky.
- 2: The best find of the day was a Lesser Whitethroat. Also eight Common Whitethroats were encountered. Garden Warbler numbers were now up to 12. Six Curlews were also present.
April 2009
- 29: Tufted Duck numbers were up to 23. Garden Warbler numbers had lifted to six. There were five Stock Doves and a Treecreeper.
- 28: Two Curlews, two Oystercatchers, four Mute Swans, a single Moorhen, two Jays, three Common Redstarts (two males and a female), two Nuthatches and a Peregrine.
- 26: Garden Warbler numbers were now up to four. A Dipper was seen again. A Little Owl was noted and three Grey Wagtails were counted. A Peregrine and three Sparrowhawks were observed.
- 25: Firsts for the year — a Sedge Warbler and a Garden Warbler. Little Ringed Plovers now numbered five. The following were also of interest: a male Mandarin, a Snipe, three Curlews, a Dipper, five Sand Martins, 11 Song Thrushes, two Bullfinches and a Coal Tit.
- 24: Four Common Sandpipers, two Little Ringed Plovers, two Whitethroats, 33 Willow Warblers, 12 Chiffchaffs, 11 Blackcaps, two male Common Redstarts, a Dipper, eight Lesser Redpolls and five Reed Buntings.
- 23: Of particular interest: Tree Sparrow — now a site rarity, White Wagtail, a Yellow Wagtail, a Common Sandpiper, two Oystercatchers, a Common Pochard and a Dipper.
- 22: At least 20 Goldfinches were observed. Two Pheasants were calling. A female Great Spotted Woodpecker was at the west hide feeding station and a male was heard drumming in Foster's Wood. 16 plant species in flower including Bird Cherry, Red Campion, Greater Stitchwort, Cuckooflower, Garlic Mustard, Forget-me-not and Common Mouse-ear.
- 21: Three Ringed Plovers turned up.
- 19: The first Whitethroat for 2009 was recorded. Also of note were a Jay, a Little Owl, a White Wagtail, three Goldcrests and now three male Common Redstarts.
- 18: 32 Willow Warblers were counted. The following were also noted: a Yellow Wagtail, three Grey Wagtails, two male Common Redstarts, an Arctic Tern and two female Sparrowhawks.
- 16: Firsts for the year: two male Common Redstarts and two Arctic Terns. Also noted were 18 Teal, 25 Swallows, 14 House Martins, 12 Sand Martins, 11 Blackcaps, 26 Willow Warblers and four Long-tailed Tits.
- 13: Good finds included eight Goosanders, four Little Ringed Plovers, two Oystercatchers, eight Common Buzzards, two Nuthatches, nine Lesser Redpolls and six Reed Buntings.
- 12: Of note were five Mute Swans, two Little Grebes, a pair of Mandarins, 27 Coots, a male Brambling, 22 Willow Warblers, a Peregrine and, exctingly, a Goshawk.
- 11: Best of the finds were a Yellow Wagtail — the first for the year, four White Wagtails, two Little Ringed Plovers, six Common Buzzards, a Peregrine and three Common Sandpipers.
- 10: Four Snipe, four Curlews, three male Blackcaps, 18 Willow Warblers, 15 singing Chiffchaffs, a Redshank, one Little Ringed Plover, one Greylag Goose, three Mistle Thrushes, six Song Thrushes, two Ravens and 11 Lesser Redpolls were among the 34 species recorded.
- 8: Of note were three Grey Herons, 10 Great Crested Grebes, one Wigeon, 36 Tufted Ducks, two Oystercatchers, a Common Snipe, a Curlew, four Lapwings, 23 Coot, a Siskin, over 60 Sand Martins, 25 Swallows, five House Martins, two Treecreepers and three Reed Buntings.
- 7: Three male Shovelers, 10 Swallows, a Grey Wagtail and eight Willow Warblers. Plants newly into flower included Wood Anemone, Opposite-leaved Golden Saxifrage, Blackthorn and Marsh Marigold.
- 6: Two Oystercatchers, three Snipe and 30 Redwings.
- 5: Two Oystercatchers were noted. Also present were six Greylag Geese, three Shovelers, 11 Curlew, three Lapwings, a Peregrine over the Roaches, seven Common Buzzards, a female Brambling and six Willow Warblers — the first of the year.
- 4: Of note were nine Great Crested Grebes, 21 Tufted Ducks, a pair of Goldeneyes, two Little Ringed Plovers, an Oystercatcher, a pair of Kestrels and 12 Chiffchaffs.
- 3: A Common Sandpiper and a Kingfisher were seen.
- 2: The day's best finds were an Oystercatcher, a Redshank and a Little Ringed Plover.
- 1: Goosander numbers continued to hold up at 38. There were now 16 Teal. Two Shelducks were present and two Ravens passed by. By far the best sighting of the day was of a pair of Goshawks seen over the dam. Three Little Owls were seen. Butterflies were noticed. Both the yellow Brimstone and multi-coloured Peacock were present.
Reports by Ray Perry.
The Tittesworth Visitor Centre is at Meerbrook, Leek, Staffordshire ST13 8SW; map reference: SJ9960 
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