Recent sightings at Titchwell

Tide Times

Titchwell sightings provided by Natalie Hands

For the latest news from the reserve, check out our blog at http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/t/titchwellmarsh/blog.aspx

TITCHWELL COASTAL BULLETIN - Final Issue November 2011

RSPB Ouse Washes Monday 9th January 2012 :
We have just had an extremely busy weekend with lots of people coming to visit the washes, many thanks for those who visited and entered records into the sightings book. The water levels on the washes are exceptionally good resulting in many thousands of birds on view from most of the hides. An orchestrated wildfowl count was undertaken last week, which, despite the wind proved to be very fruitful for those involved. Highlights were as follows –

Wigeon 25989
Pink-footed goose 1
Teal 1587
White-fronted goose 3
Mallard 1745
Greylag goose 223
Pintail 1025
Canada goose 547
Shoveler 223
Barnacle goose 7
Pochard 242
Goldeneye 11
Marsh harrier 2
Goosander 2
Sparrowhawk 1
Crane 6
Buzzard 1
Golden plover 2188
Merlin 1
Lapwing 10537
Peregrine 3
Temminck’s stint 1
Dunlin 2
Ruff 33
Black-tailed godwit 725
Curlew 12

As you can see, there are plenty of birds about and they produce some quite spectacular sights when they are trying to avoid being something’s dinner. The raptors were very prominent this weekend with all of those mentioned above being recorded plus the added bonus of hen harriers. The Temminck’s stint was providing excellent viewing for those who came to see it (Grose hide) and another otter has been seen from Churchman’s hide in the early morning. Tree sparrows are feeding outside the visitor centre but not yet in the numbers that appeared last year, a sure sign that we haven’t really had a winter yet.

RSPB Ouse Washes Tuesday 22nd November 2011:
After a short delay due to heavy fog, we were able to complete another complete survey of the washes yesterday, giving us a fuller picture of what and how many birds are currently out there. The highlights were as follows:

Mute swan 247
Greylag goose 1202
Canada goose 1314
White-fronted goose 16
Pink-footed goose 2
Egyptian goose 6
Barnacle goose 2
Wigeon 10490
Gadwall 16
Teal 1624
Mallard 870
Pintail 26
Shoveler 256
Pochard 74
Golden plover 1023
Lapwing 2528
Dunlin 8
Ruff 63
Snipe 66
Black-tailed godwit 111
Curlew 7

The whooper and Bewick’s swans are always present at dawn and dusk but no full count was made this morning due to more heavy fog. However, we do know there are in excess of 1500 roosting on the washes towards the railway bridge.
Birds of prey were very noticeable again yesterday with up to 4 marsh harriers, 1 hen harrier, 3 sparrowhawks, 4 buzzards, 7 kestrels and a peregrine being seen, along with 5 short-eared and 3 barn owls

RSPB Ouse Washes Monday 7th November 2011:
Yesterday was the first wildfowl count for this autumn / winter and the figures below represent a quick summary of what was about.

Mute swan 206
Whooper swan 116
Greylag goose 262
Canada goose 783
Egyptian goose 12
Wigeon 7142
Teal 997
Shoveler 123
Pintail 32
Lapwing 2189
Golden plover 352
Ruff 5
Snipe 24
Black-tailed godwit 17
Curlew 9

With so much potential prey, raptors were very prominent too with 5 marsh harriers, 3 sparrowhawks, 1 buzzard, 2 kestrels, 1 merlin, 2 peregrine falcons and a barn owl. While this many ‘hunters’ can make counting the birds very difficult it provides an almost constant view of spectacular swirling flocks trying to evade becoming dinner for something else.

A count of the roosting swans was undertaken early this morning from 6.30 onwards to ascertain how many were actually here, before they flew off to the surrounding arable fields. The whooper’s have returned with just under 5000 being recorded but there were only 2 Bewick’s. However, nice as the swans are the highlight of the morning and the reward you get for dragging yourself out of bed while it is still dark and dreary was that of 3 otters playing in front of one of the hides. My first ever sighting of them in the wild and it was worth the 40-year wait. Amazing!

RSPB Ouse Washes Tuesday 25th October 2011:
I’ve just had a quick view from all the hides this morning to see what is currently out on the reserve and was quite pleasantly surprised. Although we are still flood–free, the bottom washes, which are closest to the hides, are in the process of being lightly flooded now that the tides are in our favour.
As for birds, there are several thousand wigeon, several hundred teal, Canada and greylag geese, smaller numbers of shoveler, a few whooper swans, flocks of lapwing and golden plover (mobile between the arable fields and the washes), 50+ ruff, kingfishers along the River Delph and several marsh harriers.
There are greater numbers of swans than I have mentioned but they only tend to roost on the washes overnight, disappearing onto the surrounding farmland during the day to feed. The best time to see them in large numbers is early morning as they leave as they often don’t return until after dusk. It is always spectacular!

RSPB Ouse Washes Thursday 15th September 2011:
Sightings this week
1 bittern, 175 ruff, 15 golden plover, 5 green sandpiper, 1 curlew sandpiper, 1 spotted redshank, 2 ringed plover, 2 greenshank, 12 snipe, 3 marsh harrier, 2 hobby, 2 sparrowhawk and 5-6 wheatear.

RSPB Ouse Washes Tuesday 23rd August 2011:
Just a very quick note to let those who may be interested that the 3 common cranes have returned and are currently favourFemale seen froing the scrape in front of the Stevens Hide.

RSPB Ouse Washes Tuesday 16th August 2011:
Recent highlights include an ever-increasing number of waders – 63 ruff, 13 black-tailed godwit, 12 green sandpipers, common sandpiper, wood sandpiper, 8 curlews, 2 spotted redshank, 6 little ringed plover, 2 ringed plover, 2 dunlin and 4 greenshank. Also extremely visible are the large numbers of juvenile yellow wagtails, most notably on the banks and around the cows. Raptors making regular appearances are sparrowhawk, hobby, kestrel, buzzard and marsh harriers.

The creation of the new scrape in front of the Kingfisher hide is currently underway and should be completed by the end of the week. However, ‘Murphy’s law’ comes in to play then as we begin a week of low tides that will prevent any water being put onto it. Patience is the key! In lieu of that, Stockdales Pool, viewable from the Stockdale and Grose hides, will be ‘wet up’ again.

RSPB Ouse Washes Monday 1st August 2011:
Just a quick line to let you know that the 3 cranes are still on the reserve and are currently favouring the pool in front of the Cottier hide. The two adults were practising their courtship display this morning. Other birds seen were 30ish black-tailed godwit and ruff, 3 common sandpiper, 6 greenshank, 2 marsh harrier and 6 kestrels. Juvenile yellow wagtails seem to be everywhere you look now. Maybe they had a better breeding season than the surveys suggested.
An update on the dry scrape situation for those of you who may be concerned. The scrapes in front of the hides to the south of the visitor centre and the scrapes viewable from the furthest three hides to the north will be kept wet, whereas stockdales pool and spoilheaps pool (viewed from the first few hides to the north) are currently dry to allow necessary habitat management to take place. In addition to this there will be two new scrapes created between the Kingfisher and Grose hides. Your patience and understanding is greatly appreciated while this work is ongoing.

RSPB Ouse Washes Monday 25st July 2011:
A recent and pleasant arrival was of 3 common cranes, currently viewable from the Stevens and Cottier hides. While watching them there were also 24 ruff, 2 garganey, 2 dunlin and 2 hobbies

RSPB Ouse Washes Wednesday 15st June 2011:
From Mike Burdekin.
News that many of you will look forward to hearing is the imminent completion of the work on the pumping station. A few stragglers remain putting the final additions to a project that seems to have dragged on forever but in essence, they have finished.

As some of you who have visited recently may already know, getting water onto the site and into the scrapes has been an issue due to the complete lack of rainwater and the lack of high tides. This has now been rectified with all scrapes having water except Stockdales Pool. This scrape is being kept dry for the near future, allowing cattle to graze areas that would otherwise be too wet and inaccessible. Grazing is a management tool used to achieve the varied sward structure preferred by wetland waders. The viewing from the hides overlooking the scrape will be less productive while there is no water there; for those who are not familiar with these hides they are numbers 5 and 6 on the trail guide, also known as Grose hide and Stockdale.

I apologise for any inconvenience this may cause but the other hides, especially those to the South of the visitor centre, are currently very productive. There are also lots of butterflies, dragonflies, chasers and damselflies about, both on the banks and along the river edges as you walk to the hides.

Recent unusual bird sightings include bittern and tawny owl but this is really the time of year to watch the youngsters. Lapwing, redshank and little ringed plover chicks are feeding on the scrapes under the careful supervision of their parents and many of the swans and ducks have cygnets and ducklings to tend. Marsh harriers, sparrowhawks and kestrels all have young too, all timed to coincide with the abundance of young birds about now.

Around the visitor centre recently fledged families of the finches, tits and sparrows can be seen harassing mum and dad to keep feeding them and even more vocal are the young woodpeckers using the whole area as their new playground.
All in all, a lot to see and a pleasant day out

RSPB Ouse Washes Thursday 5st April 2011:
I hope everyone is well and enjoying this extended period of nice weather. It feels as though spring started months ago but it is only within the last week or so that we have started to see any real migrant waders passing through. The lapwing and redshank have been here for quite a while now and many are already busy looking after their chicks; early evening on most scrapes is an excellent time to see them.

Greenshank and spotted redshank are currently using most of the scrapes to the south of the visitor centre along with several little ringed plovers. Other waders present include bar-tailed godwits, avocets, golden and grey plovers, although these are more mobile and less predictable.

Everybody’s favourite, garganey seem to have returned in favourable numbers and could pop up anywhere but some of their favourite haunts are Welches Dam and Rickwood scrapes. Marsh harriers are displaying, putting on some spectacular aerobatics above Welches Dam and there seems to be a pair of very hungry peregrines currently using the washes as their preferred ‘restaurant’.

The yellow wagtails have wasted no time in settling down and pairing up since their return, and most hides will reward you with good views of them. It may just be me but the males seem exceptionally bright yellow this year and very keen to show themselves. Their call should alert you to their presence and then it is the simple task of finding the bright bundle of yellow. Easy!

Swifts put their first appearance in over the weekend and along with swallows, house and sand martins are busy feeding over the washes, taking advantage of the abundance of little insects appearing at this time of year.

I should also mention that the refurbishment work on the pumping station is beginning to wind down and there is now an end in sight. The new footpath should be open very shortly, which will begin a return to normality.

I would also like to thank everyone who has visited and taken the time to sign the visitor and sightings book. All comments are read, good and not so good. The good ones remind us of how many people appreciate and enjoy the results of our work and the not so good ones just make us try that little bit harder.

RSPB Ouse Washes Friday 1st April 2011:
It’s been a little while since you last heard from me; not a bad thing I can imagine some of you thinking; so I’ll quickly bring you up to date with the condition of the washes and what has been going on recently.

The water level in the River Delph is now at 0.77. This level is sufficiently low to allow us to turn down the outlet pipes and drain the excess water from the washes into the river system. The scrapes are now visible again and should reach ideal conditions within the next week as the water drains away.

Lapwings and redshank are returning, displaying over potential territories in the hope of attracting a partner. Many of the poor female ducks are being harassed, or should I say displayed to, by up to 5 males at once, all of them hoping to be the one that catches her eye and the first spring migrants are returning. Garganey, a must see on many a birders list, are back with recent sightings from Welches Dam Hide.

The most recent wildfowl count took place on Monday and rather than reel off a list of figures, suffice to say there was a fantastic diversity of ducks and waders, albeit the waders can be very mobile and not always play ball. The wildfowl especially are in fantastic plumage and should be admired rather than taken for granted, as many of us tend to.

I am working this weekend and will be visiting the hides throughout the day so should some stranger happen to start talking to you, it may well be me. I think the weather is supposed to be good so hopefully, I may meet a few of you.

RSPB Ouse Washes Friday 25th February 2011:
What a difference a week makes! With the recent rainfall, the washes are once again bank-to-bank with water. There is still plenty to see, all the usual ducks and swans but the waders may well have moved to areas where there is less water; keep an eye out on the surrounding farmland. Current highlights on the water would be the swans in the morning and late afternoon, viewable from the southern hides and the mid-late afternoon gull roost which must be somewhere in the region of 20000-30000 birds.

The visitor centre still has a tremendous flock of birds visiting with recent sightings of up to 25 reed bunting, 13 yellowhammer, 12 tree sparrow, 3 brambling, 25 greenfinch, 60+ goldfinch, 30+ chaffinch and numerous stock doves.

RSPB Ouse Washes Wednesday 16th February 2011:
An excellent day producing just over 70000 birds. Unfortunately, there were no records broken for individual species counts, but when the peregrine puts the wind up this many birds, that alone produces spectacular viewing. Some of the main highlights were as follows:

Bewick’s swan 251
Whooper swan 1287
Egyptian goose 24
Shelduck 226
Wigeon 26321
Gadwall 729
Teal 4795
Mallard 2107
Pintail 1187
Shoveler 637
Pochard 1697
Tufted duck 1000
Goldeneye 9
Smew 1

That’s the wildfowl and now for the waders:

Golden plover 2131
Lapwing 19530
Dunlin 165
Ruff 73
Black tailed godwit 3820
Redshank 85

Just in case you thought that the swans were low in numbers, the following day produced an eye-boggling flock of approximately 8000 birds feeding on a recently harvested field adjacent to the washes.

RSPB Ouse WashesFriday 4th February 2011:
Just a quick note concerning the water level on the washes.

It is currently standing at 1.7m. I hope that within the next few days this will drop down to somewhere between 1.3 and 1.4, creating conditions which have produced record numbers of wildfowl and waders in the past. The feeding area behind the visitor centre is also attracting large numbers of finches, buntings and sparrows so if you are thinking of visiting, this weekend may well be the perfect time.

A recent wildfowl count produced around 35 – 40000 birds, most of them being wigeon but with good numbers of many other species too. Some of the whooper and Bewick’s swans are present on the washes during the day but the best time to see them is still early morning or late afternoon. With the waters receding, waders are once again able to find areas to feed. Lapwing and black-tailed godwits are present in reasonable numbers and should be easy to find but there are also smaller numbers of ruff, dunlin, redshank, curlew and snipe that may not be so obliging. Who said birding was easy?

RSPB Ouse Washes Wednesday 19th January 2011:
The water depth on the washes has now reached 2.68m, a little too deep for many of the Wigeon that were here a fortnight ago. However, to compensate in some small way the number of diving ducks has increased, unfortunately not to the tune of 27000 birds. The WeBs and dawn swan roost count this week produced the following:

Whooper swan 6382
Bewick’s swan 3678
Pink-footed goose 1
White-fronted goose 1
Greylag goose 98
Canada goose 47
Shelduck 13
Wigeon 16781
Gadwall 63
Teal 2176
Mallard 2282
Pintail 258
Shoveler 22
Pochard 2376
Tufted duck 1358
Goldeneye 11
Ruddy duck 2

There were also 6551 Lapwing and small numbers of dunlin, ruff, curlew, redshank and black-tailed godwit.

On the farmland adjacent to the washes, several thousand golden plover are using the recently ploughed fields to feed.

RSPB Ouse Washes Thursday 6th January 2011:
The washes are flooded bank to bank now with a lot less ice than there has been recently. A wildfowl count undertaken on Tuesday 4th January produced the following figures:

Whooper swan 4835
Bewick’s swan 2132
White fronted goose 23
Pink footed goose 1
Greylag goose 223
Canada goose 616
Egyptian goose 4
American wigeon 1
Wigeon 43010
Gadwall 82
Teal 2808
Mallard 3182
Pochard 808
Pintail 334
Shoveler 105
Tufted duck 494
Goldeneye 3
Coot 569
Lapwing 150
Dunlin 3
Ruff 8
Redshank 17

Other interesting birds seen during the day included a water pipit, 5 stonechats, 15 corn buntings and 2 peregrines.

A brief comparison with the wildfowl count undertaken on the same date in 2010 indicates that with the exception of wigeon, which have increased by over 20000, other species of duck such as gadwall, tufted duck and coot have not returned in significant numbers following the harsh weather during December.

Also a quick mention about the condition of the tracks leading to the hides. The Environment Agency contractors working at the pumping station use these tracks for access to the site for any vehicle other than cars so they are extremely wet and muddy. It is strongly recommended to anyone wishing to visit the reserve to bring with them either stout walking boots or wellies.

Many thanks to Mike Burdekin, Warden

Recent sightings from group members:

At West Acre, Saturday 30th October 2010:-

1 grey wagtail, 1 marsh tit, 1 bullfinch (male), 1 little owl, 3 siskin, 1 water rail and 1 sparrowhawk.

Today, Tuesday 26th October 2010, at 8-45am a single raven just to the north of Flitcham Village, map reference O/S landranger sheet 132 TF 729267, being harrased by crows and rooks. Massive beak, diamond shaped tail and huge size compared with the rooks and crows clearly visible as it passed overhead.

A group of 30 waxwing on Thursday 21st October along the track to the reserve at Holme. On the telephone wires near the gate to Redwell Marsh NOA hide, later around the church in Holme village and lastly in trees along the road near the public toilets in Holme. Sighting made by myself and Rob Gordon.

Sightings of interest at Nar Valley Fisheries, Sunday 18th July 2010:-
1 bar-tailed godwit, 1 common sandpiper, 16 great-crested grebe ( of birds sighted one pair with a single chick and another pair with two chicks), 2 kestrel,
67 tufted duck (of birds sighted one pair with a single chick and another pair with seven chicks).

At Pentney Pits, Sunday 18th July 2010:-
The pair of avocet that I reported on a previous date are still in the area with two chicks. I spotted them today, on the far side of the water, viewing from the usual spot at the side of the road.

Thanks to David Lake