Kev @kev07713 and I had considered visiting Blithfield Reservoir last Saturday, but we ended up detouring to Morton Bagot before changing course and heading to Burnham-on-Sea instead. Since we've been members of the West Midlands Bird Club for a few years, we thought it was time to make an effort to explore more of the key reserves. While we’ve visited places like Ladywalk and Belvide, we had yet to make it to Blithfield.
Blithfield Reservoir is a premier birdwatching site in Staffordshire and a key reserve for the West Midlands Bird Club. Covering over 790 acres, it provides a variety of habitats, including open water, mudflats, reedbeds, woodlands, and surrounding fields, making it an excellent spot for a wide range of bird species. Some areas are accessible only to members of the West Midlands Bird Club, with certain locations requiring a key for further access.
We'd seen reports of a white stork (present from 31 August), seen from the Forward Hide in Tad Bay, so set the Satnav and headed off, stopping for breakfast on the way. The bird had been present on multiple occasions alongside other notable species like great white egrets, black terns, and barnacle geese.
The Cotswold Wildlife Park and Knepp Estate are both significant locations in the UK contributing to the conservation of white storks. Knepp has led a successful reintroduction programme, releasing white storks as part of efforts to reestablish breeding populations in the wild. The Cotswold Wildlife Park has been involved by providing storks for the project including our bird (blue ringed GBS4 - a female hatched at Cotswold Wildlife Park and released at Knepp this year).
Storks travel widely in search of food, adapting to various environments. As omnivores and opportunistic feeders, they hunt small mammals, earthworms, snails, crickets, and other large insects. Their preferred feeding grounds include water meadows, grasslands, and cultivated fields, where these food sources are abundant.
We arrived and took a moment to get our bearings, scanning the field between us and Tad Bay. Kev quickly spotted the white stork feeding among the sheep - an unexpectedly fast find! We watched it for a short time until it disappeared over the brow.
We dropped down into Stansley Wood Hide, onto the track, and viewed back up the slope to our bird. The light was improving. We found a couple of birders in the hide and let them know about the pantomime – “it’s behind you” ...
We pushed on to the Forward Hide and found a birder already in residence, watching large numbers of ringed plovers (c. 50) with a few dunlins, and a couple of curlews. There were also 15+ great white egret and as many (if not more) little egrets.
We watched the birds on show and remarked how we were enjoying this spot, only to learn that it’s less frequented by birders, who typically favour Blithe Bay. From the door, we glanced back up the field to watch the stork once more.
We then decided to check out Blithe Bay before heading to Morton Bagot to find the female black redstart, which had been reported again earlier - originally spotted on September 3rd at the Holy Trinity Church.
As we left the hide, we saw a birder photographing the stork along the hedge until it reached the field’s corner. After a few practice wing flaps, the stork took off. Although I was caught off guard, I managed to get some record shots of the bird as it relocated northward, away from easily accessible viewpoints.
We stopped on the far side of the causeway and scanned both sides, eventually encountering a handful of yellow wagtails and a distant tern on a buoy - we suspected it was a black tern but from the distance couldn't be definitive.
We arrived at the church and parked at a spot that wouldn't cause any access issues. As we began walking towards the church, Kev spotted a bird darting from the roof's ridge and disappearing. A few steps later, we saw the black redstart perched on the nearer of the two crosses. To give the bird some space, we moved around to the side of the church but down on a lower level on the tarmacked road. It briefly vanished from view but quickly reappeared.
In the UK, black redstarts are more commonly seen in urban and industrial areas where they can find suitable nesting sites and food sources. They tend to be shy and elusive, so spotting them can be a bit of a challenge. Outside the breeding season, they are more likely to be found in southern parts of the country, especially in areas with good foraging opportunities. The female's plumage is less striking than that of the male; generally brownish grey, with a paler underside and a more subdued appearance compared to the brightly coloured male, who sports a striking black and red plumage. Black redstarts are considered a species of conservation concern in the UK, and their populations can fluctuate.
We waited and soon our bird worked its way down onto the roof and along the gutters; we were really spoilt. We took our time, quietly observing from a respectful distance, making sure not to disturb it. The calm atmosphere of the churchyard made for a relaxing experience as we watched the bird go about its business. It would occasionally disappear behind the church’s ledges and reappear moments later, offering us regular and rewarding glimpses. A memorable encounter, and it felt like the perfect way to wrap up the day.
However, on the way back, we decided to make a quick detour to Grimsbury Reservoir to try our luck at spotting the whinchat reported on previous days (and again earlier today). We scanned the area on the western edge of the site, a cow field, focusing on the patches of scrub and low bushes where the whinchat was likely to be found. It didn’t take long before we caught sight of it — a small, striking bird perched atop a stalk. Try as we might, we couldn’t get great views and the sun/haze prevented any decent photos.
We stayed for a little while, watching it through binoculars and a scope, admiring its distinctive markings and its behaviour as it hunted for insects. Out on the water we also picked out a yellow-legged gull, a first for the year. The stop turned out to be a rewarding decision, adding a final highlight to an already successful day of birdwatching.
Year list: 236.
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