April 27th 2010

weather: luvli - 21C max

Claybury Park:

• several singing Willow Warbler @noon (JMartin-Ellis)

Fairlop, Aldborough Riding School:

• Little Owl in the usual tree
• Green Woodpecker
• male Wheatear (DEH)

Fairlop Gravel Works:

• 6 Mute Swan, and another 6 over
• 6 Gadwall, 23 Tufted Duck, 6 Shoveler, 5 Pochard (3m, 2f)
• 5 Little Grebe, 2 Great Crested Grebe
• 8 occupied Canada Goose nests (2 north side, 6 south side of Painters Road)
• Mallard with 4 young (north side)
• 8 Lapwing, 2 Redshank, Common Sandpiper, 3+ Litte Ringed Plover
• 7 Sand Martin, Swallow
• 4 Blackcap (north side), 2 Sedge Warbler (north side - male singing)
• 3 singing Skylark, 6 Linnet, female Reed Bunting (DEH)
• 2 Yellow Wagtail (Alan Bell)

Fairlop Waters:

• Cuckoo active from 6-8pm on the scrub area south of the boating lake
• 4 Chiffchaff, 5 Willow Warbler,
• 2 Pheasant on the plain, 2 more on the field by the scrape
• 4 Meadow Pipit, 8 Skylark (DEH)

Hainault, Forest Farm Community Garden:

• 2 Blackcap, Whitethroat, 2 Chiffchaff
• Green Woodpecker
• 2 Blackbird, Robin, 2 Wren
• Great Tit
• 10 Woodpigeon (DEH)

Hatch Plain:

• 3 Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat (IWoodward)

Redbridge, Beal School:

• 2 Mute Swan (over) TLachhar)

Roding Valley Park, central:

• Mute Swan on the privale fishing lake near Roding Lane North
• Whitethroat, 2 Blackcaps (both male, shadowing each other warily in the same territory), Chiffchaff, pr Long-tailed Tits
• 2 Swift, Sparrowhawk, Green Woodpecker (Alan Hobson)

Roding Valley Park, north/Ray Park:

• Little Egret, north of Chigwell road, (Alan Hobson)
• later: 2 Little Egret,
• 6 Mallard, 3 Moorhen
• Woodpigeon, Collared Dove
• Blackbird, Robin, Wren, Dunnock, 5 Song Thrush, 2 Mistle Thrush
• Grey Heron (over)
• Kestrel
• 3 Whitethroat, 5 Blackcap, Chiffchaff
• Great Tit, Blue Tit, Long Tailed Tit,
• Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Magpie, Starling,
• Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Goldfinch (IWoodward)

Valentines Park:

• 20 Coots nests! (10 on the boating lake, 7 on the fish pond, 3 on Long Water area)
• (2 of these nests have hatched young (3 and 4 chicks, both on the boating lake near the island)
• Mute Swan still on nest (3rd swan on long water)
• 14 Tufted Duck, male Shoveler,
• Mallard brood 1 (on long water) - 1 duckling
• Mallard brood 2 (on boating lake) - 7 ducklings (3 light brown, 4 darker)
• Mallard brood 3 (on boating lake nr swans nest) - 9 ducklings (week old)
• Mallard brood 4 (on baoting lake nr swans nest) - 14 ducklings (few days old)
• Great Crested Grebes still on nest.
• Little Grebe (heard trilling)
• Lesser Black Backed Gull looking at ducklings with hunger!
• 4 Egyptian Geese doing well (2 adult, 2 juv)
• Grey Heron on nest, tending to juvenile
• 3 Pied Wagtail
• 3 Chiffchaff,
• Greenfinch,

Wanstead Park:

• 2 Little Egrets,
• 8 Song Thrush,
• 2 male Willow Warbler (T Harris, J Lethbridge)
• Cuckoo heard on 27th April from Wanstead Golf Course/Wanstead Park area at 10am (via Jennifer Charter)
  

Wanstead, Windsor Road:

• singing Willow Warbler (WREN)

Wanstead Flats:

• Yellow Wagtail
• 2 Hobbies (over) (T Harris)

Woodford Green:

• Buzzard, 2 Hobbies (KM)