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SITES
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Greatham, Teesside, United Kingdom Birds Records have been kept for many years and 190 species of birds have been recorded on Tioxide land at Greatham up to summer 2002. These are listed in Table 10. At least 34 species of birds either breed, or have bred in the recent past, and a large number of others are regular visitors. The marsh is an important part of the complex of wetlands around the Tees Estuary and for a number of bird species the Tioxide property holds a significant portion of the whole Teesmouth population. This is particularly so for Shelduck, Teal, Curlew and Redshank. The numbers of these birds occurring on the marsh have been recorded in detail for some years and as shown in Figure 5-8 the numbers recorded represent a significant proportion of the total Tees Estuary population. At times the pools and wet meadows also hold large numbers of Lapwings with up to several thousand birds recorded at one time.
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The
wetlands and meadows on the Tioxide site at Greatham are part of the
internationally important complex of bird habitats around the Tees Estuary.
It is for this reason that they are national and internationally designated
conservation sites (see 
As
well as waterbirds the Tioxide site is also of at least local importance
for a number of other species. Merlin and Peregrine are often recorded
during the winter months and Marsh Harrier occasionally on migration.
Short-eared Owl is a frequent visitor and until recently the Tioxide
mashes were of local, and possibly regional importance, as a wintering
site for this bird. In the past up to 15 owls could be present at any
one time but in recent years only 2 or 3 birds have been recorded.