May 19th 2010

Aldersbrook, Empress Avenue:

• 9 Ring Necked Parakeet over this evening (flock of 8, and another loner) (SHammond)

Collier Row, Cold Blow Farm:

• 2 Whitethroat
• 3 Swallow
• Skylark (singing)
• Chaffinch (DEH)

Collier Row, Car Boot Field:

• 64 Wood Pigeon
• 55 Starling, 4 Carrion Crow, Magpie
• Blackbird, Song Thrush, 2 Chaffinch
• 3 Blackcap
• 5 Skylark (4 singing)
• 17 Linnet (DEH)

Fairlop Waters:

• Cormorant, Grey Heron, Mute Swans,
• Canada geese including 2 broods (10 and 5 goslings), Greylag Geese with 8 goslings
• pr of Gadwall, Mallrd with ducklings, Tufted Ducks, Coot, Morohens
• Feral Pigeons, Woodpigeons, Colalred Doves
• Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, Song Thrush
• 2 Lesser Whitethroat displaying
• 7 Chiffchaff
• Blue Tit, great Tit, Greenfinch, Chaffinch,
• Reed Bunting (U3A walk)

Ilford, garden:

• There seems to have been a Greenfinch explosion here. Hardly been any in the garden all year and now there are 5 at once on the feeder and a constant noise in the trees around. I noticed someone else had seen the same thing - wondered if its a general spring movement? (BarbaraJ)

South Woodford, garden:

• remaining Blue Tit chick is still alive after losing all its siblings yesterday...
• Cormorant (over) (pGordon)

Wanstead Flats:

• Twenty-one Canada Geese goslings with this pair; now that's impressive! I guess it must be a creche, but these are quite young for that, apparently the same age and with no other interested possible parents nearby. These were by Alexandra Lake. Incidentally, the Lesser Black-backs are patrolling Alexandra Lake and the Shoulder of Mutton Pond quite frequently, and with a lot of attacks on - particularly - cootlets. Looking at the small numbers of surviving goslings attached to some pairs of geese on Alexandra Lake, I suspect that these too are falling prey to predators. There are and for long have been foxes around, of course, but in my perception the Lesser Black-backs are a new addition. In previous years, the Conservators of Epping Forest have culled the geese, but did not do so this year. Perhaps we are now seeing a more natural culling taking place. Let us hope that species such as Little Grebe fare better than the geese, Coots and, doubtless, Mallard. (PFerris)
• Wanstead Flats 07:00-11:00: So little going on I counted things; 100 Carrion Crow on playing fields west of Alex pond, 40 Cormorant, 6 Lesser Black-Backed Gull (the coots survived today),
• 3 Ring Necked Parakeet,
• 3 Swallow,
• couldn't count the Starlings they were so numerous,
• 1 Grey Heron (no trouble there!),
• 1 Stock Dove,
• 5 singing Meadow Pipits,
• 1 female Kestrel and other stuff.
• Yesterday someone emptied a bucket load of ornamental fish into the Alex... (Nick Croft)
• Turtle Dove (heard) purring from the copse nr Long Wood (JLethbridge)

Wanstead Park:

• Reed Warbler singing by Shoulder of Mutton Pond again. (JCharter)

Woodford Green, garden:

• At least 2 breeding pairs Jackdaws hovering up all food and around 14 fledged yesterday
  On a brighter note;
• 2 families of house sparrows (absent for the last 5 years at least)
• Both nesting boxes have breeding blue tits (usually only one facility gets occupied if at all)
  We have a local pair GSWP and suspicions they are breeding nearby (will look out for young)
• Greenfinches in abundance
• Pair of dunnock have reared family
• Robins have bred and juv pic is attached
• Great tits are breeding and beginning to look very ragged
• Blackcap pair visit early morning but disappear around 9am
• Goldfinches (2-3 at a time) are daily visitors
• And finally, the swifts have returned to our roof. (PWarne)