Update:
I am having a catch-up on a few pieces of information that have been supplied to me and upon which I have been remiss in adding to the Website. These are:
Graham Rowling found a dead Barn Owl towards Patrick Farm on the 27th July 2016 and we have just had a post-mortem returned by the Predatory Bird Monitoring Scheme which suggests that the cause of death was an unknown trauma, possibly a collision, and the bird appears to have been a bird of the year.
There was a colour-ringed Little Egret seen by Paul Johnson on the 25th September 2016 and this was ringed by the Tees Ringing Group as a nestling on the 24th May 2016 at a private site near Hartlepool.
There was a colour-ringed Redshank that was present at Marsh Lane on a number of dates between the 19th March and 29th April. This was ringed as an adult on Thorney Island, Chichester Harbour, West Sussex, on the 17th October 2015 and was seen again there on the 26th February and 13th March. This is a useful indication that our breeding waders probably winter on our immediate coastlines.
Please see photographs of Meadow Pipit and Stonechat added 8th October 2016, Fox added 3rd October .
In case anyone is having trouble comparing Hawkers, there were a couple of nice examples on the 28th September. Migrant was seen on the Causeway and Southern seen in the Game Crop. BOTH are males. Females have basically the same body markings as the males but with brownish base colour, and lack the body tapering at the start of the male’s abdomen. Southern should be on show until mid/end October; Migrant through October and possibly into November.
Male Southern Hawker
Photographs by Jeff Rankin
Male Migrant Hawker
31st October 2016
Misty start, warm and sunny thereafter. Light south-easterly wind.
In the warm weather today, with temperatures again up to about 15 degrees, there were a few Dragonflies on the wing around the Reserve (although no species were given they were presumably either or both Common Darter and Migrant Hawkers) and there were three Red Admirals seen as well.
Nine Fieldfare went over and there was a mixed flock of Siskin, Redpoll and Goldfinch along the Concrete Road, totalling over 20 birds.
30th October 2016
Overcast all day, still remarkably mild. Temperatures up to 14 degrees.
Today’s counts were different for Wigeon and Teal (see below) but included a little more variety with an immature drake Goldeneye, pair of Goosanders and a pair of Pintail.
Other counts comprised seven Mute Swans, a Black Swan, 190 Greylags, 220 Wigeon, 150 Teal, 51 Gadwall, 21 Mallard, 33 Shoveler, eight Pochard, 28 Tufted, nine Little Grebes, one Great Crested Grebe, five Herons, a Little Egret, 14 Cormorants, 20 Moorhen, 33 Coot, 250 Lapwing, 14 Snipe, 54 Black-headed Gulls, three Lesser Black-backed Gulls, six Skylarks (over) and a single Chiffchaff by the car park.
29th October 2016
Overcast all day, still remarkably mild. Temperatures up to 14 degrees.
Plenty of birds and some good Duck counts, although nothing particularly unusual on site. The Wigeon flock reached 281 today and Teal were up to an impressive 282. There were also more Common Gulls of late with seven in the morning and six in the afternoon.
Plenty of Finches and Thrushes were about during the morning, with 23 Siskin, 57 Redwing and eight Fieldfare seen in various places, together with one to two Grey Wagtails, two Redpoll, 60 Goldfinch along the central streamline, 43 Stock Doves around Siden Hill Wood, three Skylark (east) and the pair of Stonechats again near Patrick Bridge. There was also a Green Sandpiper on the river at Patrick Bridge.
Other birds of note included the immature drake Pintail still on Car Park Pool with two drake Pochard, 54 Gadwall, 27 Shoveler, a Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, two Water Rail (River Hide and top end of Car Park Pool) and 150 Starlings.
28th October 2016
Mostly overcast, light south-westerly wind.
The juvenile Pintail was on site but there was no sign of the full adult male, whilst, east of the A452 there were at least 16 Skylarks, four Meadow Pipits, two Mistle Thrushes and a pair of Red-legged Partridges. Along the concrete road there were 15 to 20 Goldfinches and six Siskins.
27th October 2016
High cloud, west, south-westerly wind, slowly clearing as yesterday, sunny p.m.
At least 30 Starlings came out of the roost at about 8 a.m. and there were plenty of other birds flying over or on the move, though not necessarily in particularly big numbers. In the hour from 8 to 9 a.m., at least 37 Goldfinch went over in small parties and in variable directions, plus three Siskins, a Redpoll, 31 Fieldfares, 15 Redwings (and a similar number along the Old Road), 260 Wood Pigeons, six Meadow Pipits, two Linnets, one Skylark and one Pied Wagtail.
An estimated 15 to 20 Song Thrushes were feeding and calling along the Old Road from the cottages as far as the Old Road game crop. There was a Mistle Thrush nearby.
Whether on the move or just local birds, two Great Spotted Woodpeckers also flew down the valley before perching up in the Poplars east of the A452.
In the evening, the ringers undertook a roost session in the Reedbed catching and ringing 14 Reed Buntings, 43 Starlings and a Wren. The Starling roost totalled at least 600 birds. The Wren had a wing length of 55mm and weighed 11.4g, which is at the very top end of the weight record for this species.
Just after dark a Whooper Swan was heard calling from Oak Hide but did not linger.
After dark a night walk using night vision technology found, on the fields to the east of the A452, the following birds feeding or roosting: a pair of Red-legged Partridges, one Redwing, one Song Thrush, 20 Skylark, one Woodcock, five Lapwings, two Badgers, a Hare and seven Rabbits. There were 15 Snipe feeding on the island in front of Oak Hide and a further ten feeding in the tip field. There was also a Wren roosting in the underpass.
26th October 2016
Initially grey and cloudy, but noticeably milder as the winds moved to the south-west. Cloud slowly clearing and by early afternoon it was a gorgeous, mild autumn day.
Both male Pintail remained on site this morning and there were more Wood Pigeons on the move, at least 150 over in the early part of the morning. A male Sparrowhawk kept many of the birds on edge.
25th October 2016
Sunny start, some cloud over from the west, light north, north easterly.
A sky watch from the Car Park from 8.30am to 9.00am yielded the following: 197 Wood Pigeons, 68 Fieldfare, five Chaffinch, 11 Jackdaws, two Stock Doves, five Pied Wagtails, 11 Skylarks, three Goldfinches, one Meadow Pipit, one Golden Plover (heard only) and at least 15 Thrushes in ones and twos which were thought to be Song Thrushes as there were at least ten further birds seen or heard on the Reserve itself.
The Wood Pigeon passage eased after 9.00am but the Thrushes were still coming through with, for example, a further flock of 40 Fieldfares at 9.30am. At least 50 Redwings were, later in the morning, feeding along the Old Road.
A full adult male Pintail joined the juvenile on Car Park Pool this morning, best viewed from River Hide.
Pintail on Car Park Pool – Photograph by Jeff Rankin
24th October 2016
Mostly cloudy, light east, north easterly.
There was a single Golden Plover in the fields to the east of the A452 this morning and along the concrete road, a mixed flock of 50 finches, mainly Goldfinches with a few Siskins and also some Redwings. In the adjacent horse paddock there were four Song Thrushes together on the brash pile.
A male Pintail was again on Car Park Pool and a Kingfisher flew across towards the causeway area. On Railway Pool, there was a Little Egret and the Kestrel was again hunting in the crop field.
23rd October 2016
Low cloud/mist slowly clearing by lunchtime, sunny intervals, east, north-easterly.
An adult male Pintail joined the immature male on Car Park Pool this morning and there were also two Little Egrets. Eleven Little Grebes was a good count for this time of year and the juvenile Great Crested Grebe was also on site along with the Brewers Duck.
In the evening, approximately 250 – 300 Starlings came in to roost with an impressive display from one flock totalling about 130 birds. A few Reed Buntings also came into the Reedbed to roost and more surprisingly, a Grey Wagtail dropped into the reeds in the Car Park pond at dusk to roost, whilst a second one thought about it but flew off to the north-west.
22nd October 2016
Mistly/low cloud, light northerly eventually clearing mid to late afternoon to sunny intervals.
A Great White Egret joined a Little Egret briefly in the river by Patrick’s Bridge at about 9.00am but it didn’t linger unfortunately.
Perhaps as a result of the low cloud, there were regular parties of Thrushes on the move over the flood plain with, for example, in the period from 9.30am – 10.30am, 67 Redwings over plus 40 more along the hedge lines north of Patricks Farm and a further 20 along the Old Road. Also on the move were 90 Fieldfares, two Song Thrushes, three Siskins and two Skylarks whilst in the oilseed rape north of Patricks Farm there were nine Meadow Pipits, four Greenfinches and a hunting Kestrel. A Kingfisher called as it flew down river and there was at least one Grey Wagtail by the pumping station although no sign of the Stonechats.
In the newly sown fields east of the A452 there was a flock of at least 35 Skylarks.
Meantime, on the pools the immature male Pintail remained on site, a Dunlin was a new arrival (on Railway Pool) and continues a pattern of occurrence in late October and early November as occasional waders move westwards and we pick up the odd stray. There were also 22 Snipe on site and a Mink was seen by the causeway screens.
Late news for Saturday – a juvenile Marsh Harrier flew through at lunchtime and was fortunately captured on film.
Marsh Harrier – Photograph by Max Silverman
21st October 2016
Mostly cloudy, occasional sunny intervals, light north, north-westerly.
The juvenile male Pintail remains on site, along with a single drake Pochard and there were three Little Egrets, 73 Shoveler, 20 Mute Swans, 25 Cormorants and 3 Water Rails today. Two of the Water Rails were calling at the south end of the Railway Pool and another at the north end.
A late Chiffchaff revealed itself on the railway embankment, and there was a Coal Tit by the car park feeder. Four Lesser Redpolls went over and there was a Treecreeper feeding in the Tit flock on the central streamline.
In the field by the Aeromodellers there were two Greenfinches, three Song Thrush, three Redwings and six Fieldfare, whilst amongst the alders along the concrete road there was a mixed flock of ten Siskins and two Goldfinches. A Stoat was seen again and a Peregrine and a Kestrel went over.
20th October 2016
Cool start, mild, sunny, easterly wind.
Like buses…. we wait some time for the 200th species and then, within a few weeks, we have added three to the list with the 202nd species being a Cattle Egret that put in a brief appearance on Railway Pool before vanishing. Fortunately, some photographs were successfully taken by Jeff Rankin, the finder.
Cattle Egret – Photographs by Jeff Rankin
The male Stonechat was on the flood plain by the mobile phone mast, but there was no sign of the female.
Along the Old Road were 43 Redwings, 13 Goldfinches with at least two more of the latter in amongst some Greenfinches, Chaffinches and Tits on the concrete road.
The ringers were on site early morning when a Tawny Owl was heard, ten Fieldfare and approximately 100 Redwings flew over and the ringing total, mostly from the back gate copse, comprised nine Long-tailed Tits, three Blue Tits, two Wrens, four Goldcrests, two Redwing and 17 Redpoll.
19th October 2016
Sun and showers, northerly wind.
The juvenile male Pintail was on site again along with five Little Egrets and the returning Brewers Duck. Two Common Gulls were amongst the Black-headed Gulls and 20 Fieldfares flew south behind Siden Hill Wood.
At the northern end of the flood plain, the pair of Stonechats were still by the mobile phone mast, a Grey Wagtail by the farm and 300 Jackdaws and 20 Rooks on the flood plain.
An immature Peregrine made an appearance during the morning and flying over were ten Skylarks, ten Goldfinch and two Siskins.
18th October 2016
Overnight rain, slowly clearing, sunny intervals, westerly wind.
There was a Chiffchaff calling in the Old Road hedge by the Car Park at 8 am and three Meadow Pipits, two Pied Wagtails and two Song Thrushes went over at around the same time along with eight Goldfinches and a Linnet. There were a further six Goldfinch, along with two Siskin and two Red Admirals along the concrete road. A Little Egret on Car Park Pool and a Fox by Oak Hide.
17th October 2016
Mostly sunny, some brief showers, south, south-westerly wind
A Green Sandpiper was feeding on the margins of the Dragonfly Pool this morning and there were ten Goldfinches in the adjoining Alders. The juvenile male Pintail remained on Car Park Pool, with a single Drake Pochard and on the edge of the crop field, what was presumably last week’s female Stonechat had reappeared. There were four Little Egrets roosting in front of Oak Hide and a Peregrine went over. In the later afternoon, two female Goosanders came in to roost.
16th October 2016
A female or immature Goosander joined the juvenile male Pintail on Car Park Pool this morning and there were again a number of Song Thrushes on site with at least four in the back gate compounds, four together on the railway embankment, where one perched obligingly (showing its continental traits with a grey head and back) and two further birds on the causeway. There was little movement overhead although six Pied Wagtails went south along with three Skylarks. There was a Meadow Pipit perched on the car park bird table and around the back gate, two Lesser Redpolls joined two Goldfinches and three Bullfinches in the Birches there. Eight further Goldfinches were in the Alders by Oak Hide. In amongst the Black-heads there were two Common Gulls and seven adult Lesser Black-backs.
The pair of Stonechats were again on the flood plain by the mobile phone mast and other counts today included six Mute Swans, the Black Swan, 302 Greylags, one Farmyard Goose, one Canada, 230 Wigeon, 34 Gadwall, 177 Teal, 23 Mallard, 46 Shoveler, a single drake Pochard, 11 Tufteds, five Little Grebes, one juvenile Great Crested Grebe, five Herons, one Little Egret, 20 Cormorants, 14 Moorhen, 35 Coot, 89 Lapwing, 14 Snipe and 225 Black-headed Gulls.
15th October 2016
Mild, sunny and warm, with temperatures up to 15 C. Cloud building from late afternoon, rain early evening and overnight.
A Raven was perched in the top of the dead tree in Siden Hill Wood during the morning and there were two Little Egrets on Railway Pool. The juvenile male Pintail remains and in the late afternoon, a Peregrine came over, putting most birds up from the pools. Ten Snipe were flushed from the Work Party on Railway Pool where the invasive Crassula was being sprayed off on the margins of the islands. Also further strimming was undertaken on Railway Pool islands and the container was tidied up. Many thanks to all those who attended.
14 October 2016
At mid day, Glen Giles had four Bearded Tits flying over the Reedbed and Railway Pool, calling all the time, but they did not land and appeared to fly off. Possibly the presence of a male Sparrowhawk in the channel in the Marsh did not help. These represent the 201st species for the Reserve.
Two female Goldeneyes appeared on Car Park Pool in the morning, but did not linger, and a new female Stonechat (the pair remain on the flood plain east of the mobile phone mast) showed well, perching on the Reedmace stems in front of Car Park Pool until late afternoon at least. There was a single Little Egret on Railway Pool and a Raven flew over.
13th October 2016
Sunny a.m., some cloud p.m., light showers. North-easterly wind.
A juvenile male Pintail was on Car Park Pool again today, along with 147 Wigeon. There were 15 Siskins in the Alders by Oak Hide, two Treecreepers on the Old Road and a pair of Kestrels hunting the flood plain. Other birds included a single Little Egret, ten Snipe and moving overhead, 20 plus Redwings and a Siskin.
12th October 2016
Mostly sunny, light east, north-easterly wind, light showers pm.
There was, again, little flying over this morning with just a few Redwings (11 north and two west), one Siskin and a Song Thrush (which dropped from high and landed on the railway embankment). There were five Goldfinches along the Old Road, seven Dabchicks on Car Park Pool, a pair of Kestrels working the flood plain together and a further female over Car Park Pool and two Song Thrushes by the car park itself. Two Little Egrets appeared briefly but then flew back to the River
A ringed Greylag seen on car park pool on the 6th October turns out to have been ringed by the Wychaven Ringing Group as a second year bird on the 14th February 2011 at Bredons Hardwick, Worcestershire.
11th October 2016
Sunny, north, north-easterly wind, occasional cloudy periods.
Siskins and Thrushes were in evidence along the Old Road this morning between 8 and 9 am., a flock of 19 Siskins flying low over to the north before heading to Car Park Pool, followed by a single over to the west and then at least a dozen with at least five Goldfinches feeding in the Alders along the concrete road.
By the top gate there were at least 15 Redwings and six each of Song Thrush and Blackbird, with a further five to six Song Thrushes, together, between the car park and the cottages. There were a pair of Grey Wagtails together on the Dragonfly Pool, a Treecreeper and two Chiffchaffs along the Old Road near the top gate, along with three Bullfinches, and a further Chiffchaff near the car park.
There was precious little flying over (aside from two Skylarks) and not even a Meadow Pipit this morning!
As the morning developed, other birds were found, including a first-winter male Pintail on Car Park Pool and a female Mandarin on the Reedbed Pool. The pair of Stonechats were still just east of the mobile phone mast, a flock of 60 Redwings went over, there was a single Little Egret, 20 Common Snipe, a Kingfisher and two Common Gulls.
This relatively poor picture of a Continental Song Thrush taken along the concrete road on the 11th October shows the greyer back and nape of these birds and a better picture taken at Easington, East Yorkshire on the 14th October shows the plumage of a Continental type Song Thrush better.
Photographs by Nick Barlow
10th October 2016
Sunny, light frost, north-easterly wind.
The pair of Stonechats remain on the flood plain and showing well on the double fence just east of the mobile phone mast.
Other birds today included four Little Egrets, three female Goosanders, a Peregrine and a Red Admiral on the concrete road.
9th October 2016
Sunny, north-easterly wind, clouding over later with some rain.
A pair of Stonechats were still on the west side of Patrick Bridge, along the barbed wire fence, with a Chiffchaff occasionally singing along the central stream, one Little Egret on the pool, four Siskins over along with ten Skylarks and a Water Rail called from the car park pond.
8th October 2016
Mostly overcast am., light northerly wind, slowly clearing, sunny intervals pm and then showers early evening.
The first Stonechats for over a year showed obligingly well on the double fence line to the ditch east of the mobile phone mast (the last was seen on the 14th October 2015). The male was bolder and more showy than the female. A pair of Meadow Pipits also showed well in the same place and a scattering were on the move overhead. At least 13 Song Thrushes were favouring the Blackthorns at the north end of Siden Hill Wood. A Green Sandpiper called from the river by Patrick Bridge and there was a Grey Wagtail by the pumping station.
On the pools first thing, there were four Little Egrets, 11 Common Snipe, a Common Sandpiper, an adult Common Gull and, overhead, 50 Redwings and six Swallows moved south.
Other counts were as follows: nine Mute Swans, one Black Swan, 48 Greylags, six Canadas, 186 Wigeon, 13 Gadwall, 100 Teal, 38 Mallard, 79 Shoveler, seven Pochard, six Tufted, 12 Cormorants, three Herons, 15 Moorhens, 32 Coot, 226 Lapwing, a Water Rail from the causeway, 228 Black-headed Gulls, one Lesser Black-backed Gull, 10 Little Grebes, two Siskin along the concrete road and five Skylark over to the north. A single Redpoll and two Chiffchaff were present along the railway line, there were 18 Reed Buntings around the crop field area, two Ravens went over and a Reed Warbler was heard in the small pool by the car park (a very late date).
Male Stonechat on fence-line just west of the mobile phone mast – 8th October 2016
Photographs by Nick Barlow
Meadow Pipit near the Stonechat
7th October 2016
Overcast, east, north-easterly wind.
Visible migration was noticeably thinner this morning and in the period from 8 am to 9 am, the following went south across the flood plain; eight Meadow Pipits, five Pied Wagtails, two Grey Wagtails and two Swallows, with four Redwings following at 9.15 am.
There were 13 further Meadow Pipits by the aero strip, two House Martins fed briefly over the wood then disappeared back to Hampton in Arden, and there was a flock of 14 Goldfinches around the car park.
At least five Song Thrushes were calling and flying around the Old Road, with a sixth by the car park whilst, in the crop field, there were 13 Pheasants and five Reed Buntings. The first winter Common Gull was on the pools with a small group of Black-headed Gulls and on or over the flood plain were 20 Stock Doves and a Rook. A Chiffchaff was in song by the cottages along with a calling Goldcrest and Treecreeper.
6th October 2016
Sunny, blustery easterly wind, periodic clouding over.
A migration watch from the car park between 9.40 and 10.25 am., yielded 104 Redwings, two Song Thrushes, 12 Meadow Pipits, four Goldfinch, two Chaffinch and a Skylark. There was still a scattering of migrant Song Thurshes along the Old Road and across the flood plain. Treecreeper, Yellowhammer and Goldcrest were all calling around the car park and Kestrels were hunting at both ends of the flood plain.
Other birds this morning included two adult and a first-winter Common Gull, two Chiffchaffs, a Common Sandpiper, a Kingfisher and Little Egret.
In the afternoon, the first Jack Snipe of the autumn showed from Oak Hide.
5th October 2016
Sunny, blustery easterly wind.
Migration watch from the car park between 8.45 and 9.45 am., yielded 15 Pied Wagtails, five Meadow Pipits, four Song Thrushes, three Swallows, five Skylarks and a Siskin. Two Thrushes which came overhead called in a similar way to Redwing (but shorter) and appeared to show less red in the underwing and were likely candidates for continental Song Thrushes.
There were at least three Yellowhammers around the crop field with eight Reed Buntings, six Rooks in the air over the wood and eight Dabchick, six Pochard and five Snipe on the pools / pool margins.
Later in the day, five female or immature Goosanders appeared on Car Park Pool and four were still present in the evening. There were also two Little Egrets, a first-summer Common Gull, Peregrine, Raven, Common Sandpiper and two Siskins.
In the evening, about 50 Starlings roosted in the Reedbed and there was at least one Chiffchaff calling around the car park at dusk.
4th October 2016
Sunny, easterly wind.
Birds on the pools included eight Snipe, Common Sandpiper and Little Egret but migration watch was relatively slow with just single figure counts of Pied Wagtail and Meadow Pipits and one Grey Wagtail.
3rd October 2016
Frosty and misty first thing, warming up to about 16 degrees, sunny, light easterly wind.
There was a steady trickle of Meadow Pipits and Swallows this morning, (though unfortunately no numbers were in the book), plus a single Grey Wagtail. On the pools, there was just a single Little Egret whilst, over Railway Pool, a Hobby was hunting late Dragonflies. A number of Red Admirals were still present along the Old Road.
Fox – photograph taken by Jeff Rankin
Fox appeared in the long grasses in front of Railway Hide. It looked fine when viewed face on, but when side on,
the inside legs and belly looked very raw. Possibly suffering from Sacroptic Mange, but we may be wrong.
2nd October 2016
Sunny, clear blue sky, light north-westerly wind.
After yesterday’s rain it was hoped that more birds than were actually seen would be on the move. Visible migration counts against a clear blue sky is not easy. Nevertheless, in an hour from 8.30 to 9.30 am., the following birds were counted, all moving south or south-west unless otherwise stated: 63 Meadow Pipits, five Skylarks, two House Martins (plus a third going north), two Swallows, two Pied Wagtails, one Reed Bunting, one Siskin and one Song Thrush, the latter dropping in to Siden Hill Wood from some height.
Birds moving around more locally included a Green Sandpiper flying up River, a Yellowhammer, five Reed Buntings and two Chaffinches moving up and down the Old Road to the game crop and a Mistle Thrush flying from the north end of the tip field towards Patrick Farm.
Later in the day, a first-winter Common Gull joined 410 Black-headed Gulls on Railway Pool, a Hobby headed over Car Park Pool to the south at 2.10 pm., a Water Rail showed well from the north causeway hide and Yellowhammer, Blackcap and Song Thrush were recorded around the car park, with a Kingfisher on the Reedbed Pool.
1st October 2016
Mostly wet, south-westerly wind.
The wet weather made birding difficult today and those seen were the result of the usual weekly counts by Graham Rowling and Dave Scanlan. Five Mute Swans, one Black Swan, 368 Greylags, one Farmyard Goose and one Greylag / Canada cross, 120 Wigeon, 26 Gadwall, 130 Teal, 20 Mallard, 22 Shoveler, eight Tufted, 12 Cormorants, two Herons, seven Little Grebes, 12 Moorhen, 30 Coot, a Water Rail from the north causeway hide, 118 Lapwing, 20 Snipe, 320 Black-headed Gulls, one Lesser Black-backed Gull and four Chiffchaffs.
One of the Marsh Lane colour-ringed Black-headed Gulls has been reported from Dublin where it was seen on the 27th September, 205 miles away.