An Archive from the Montgomeryshire Field Society

 

MFS Annual Reports 1947-1973: extracts of bird sightings

An archive of these reports from the National Museum of Wales was recently handed to me. I have extracted the following records and now passed the archive onto MFS, who hope to digitize it in due course. The full archive contains not only bird notes, but records of other fauna and flora in the county. In the earlier years, J.H.Owen was the principal ornithologist, and William Condry contributed records from the west of the county. From 1967 Roger Lovegrove compiled the bird reports. Many records were submitted by Ken Stott.

1948:   Corncrakes calling at Meifod, Welshpool, Deytheur, and Llandrinio. Young were seen at                     Tynllwyn, Welshpool.

             Chough: 1 pair bred successfully.

             Red-backed Shrike: nested successfully at Llanymynech.

             Nightjar : nested successfully at Llanymynech.

1951:    Woodlark nested Llanymynech Hill, juvs. in nest in July.

             Spotted Flycatcher: 127 nests were found and monitored by J. H. Owen.

1952:    Leach’s Petrel was found dead at Aberbechan.

1955:    Little Auk was found dead near Catle Caereinion.

             Golden Oriole: one singing, location not mentioned. This species appears in other years too.

1956:    Corncrakes ‘decreasing drastically.’

             Woodlark: still nesting at Llanymynech.

1957:    Hoopoe: 1 at Plas-y-Court, Middletown, 4 Apr; 2 at Llandysilio (Four Crosses), 25 Nov.

1958:    Woodlark on Long Mountain, probably nested Leighton Woods.

1961:    Crane in a field in Llangadfan, with a full description that rules out Heron: ‘black bushy       tail-like feathers and head markings clearly seen.’

1963:     Turtle Dove: 6 pairs recorded in the county

1964:     Yellowhammer: 100 at Groes near Guilsfield in March. ‘Good numbers in hedgerows                          everywhere.’

1965:     Golden Plover: 20+ pairs nesting on moors near Llanbrynmair.

1966:     Woodcock: several pairs bred Gregynog

               Redshank nested Hem near Forden.

1967:      Black-headed Gull colonies held 700 pairs (Llyn Hir), 650 pairs (Llyn Tarw), Llyn Lort 100   pairs, Llyn Mawr 80 pairs.

               Siskin: not known to nest in the county. Just occasional records.

1968:      White-fronted Goose: 1,080 Leighton in Feb.

               Black Grouse: ‘quite numerous’ in Hafren and Dyfnant Forests.  

               Golden Plover: 40 pairs on one moor in west of county. Numbers vary greatly year to year:                   some years very few found.

               Reed Warbler: first known breeding in county. 4 singing males at Lymore, Montgomery.

               Fieldfare: much more numerous as winter visitor than Redwing.

1969:      Grey Heron: only known heronry in county is at Bryngwyn (Bwlch-y-Cibau), 11 pairs. (22    pairs in 1971).

               Corncrake: probably nested successfully at Aberbechan and Pontdolgoch.

   Woodcock: bred Gregynog; roding (territorial display flight) at Aberhafesp and Moel-y-Garth

   Chough: bred at ‘usual site’: (I assume this is the quarry at Centre of Alternative Technology,                   where I saw them nesting in the early 1980s).

   Sand Martin: 1,300 pairs estimated along the length of the Severn in the county.

   Great Crested Grebe: bred at the following lakes: Gwyddior, Ebyr, Llyn Du, Gwgia,                             Vachwen Pool, Maesmawr, Lymore, Llyn Mawr and Van Pool.  

1970:      Great Crested Grebe: as above, plus Clywedog, Bryngwyn and Glansevern.

               Red-breasted Merganser: nested successfully near Llanwrin on the Dyfi.

               Grey Partridge: many records throughout the eastern part of the county.

               Turtle Dove: still several pairs.

1972:      Arctic Skua found dead near Llanrhaeadr.

1973:      Great Skua found dead near Bettws: first county record.

   Whitethroat: first signs of recovery in numbers after disastrous UK-wide 1967 crash in     numbers after drought in the Sahel.

               Wood Warbler: ‘reasonably common’ throughout the county’s woodlands.

               Ring Ouzel: 4 known breeding sites: Lake Vyrnwy, Carno, Dernol Valley, and Pennant                           Melangell.

In case you feel saddened by the loss or decline of many of the above species, the trawl through these records also reveals that some species such as Stock Dove, Reed Warbler, Stonechat, Redstart, Goldfinch and Siskin are now more numerous than in the post-war period. Now we know about 11 heronries in the county, compared with just one in 1969.