October 2nd 2010

Eagle Pond:

• Nr Eagle Pond this morning I saw a Kestrel and a Magpie sitting on the same post - the Magpie was irritating the Kestrel and the Kestrel flew to another post - the Magie followed and, after more squabbling, the Kestrel flew off again to another post. The same process was repeated four times before the Kestrel flew to a tree. The Magpie followed again before the Kestrel flew off.
• Also lots of Jays, Lots of Carrion Crows and Jackdaws too. Moorhens, Coots, Canada Geese, Mute Swans (with juvs), Black headed gulls & starlings. (PGordon)

Fairlop Gravel Works:

• 3 Grey Heron, 13 Cormorant (mostly, if not all juvenile)
• c80 Teal, 33 Pochard, 11 Tufted Duck (including 5 juv which are still flightless), 4+ Little Grebe, Mallard, Coot, Moorhen, (No Swans, Geese, Gadwall or Shoveler?)
• 97 Lapwing, 5 Snipe feeding together on the north side, (oops i just got butter on the keyboard, do not type and eat at the same time), 4 Green Sandpiper (3 south side, 1 north side)
• Stock Dove (over), 5 female Pheasant (3 south side, together, 2 north side), 2 Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker
• Kestrel
• female Sparrowhawk playing with a flock of c70 Meadow Pipit on the field to the north of the Gravel Works, also about 10 Skylark there
• 3 Swallow (over, south)
• Dunnock, 3 Linnet, Reed Bunting (heard)

Five Oaks Lane Scrubland:

• Wryneck - a huge releif for me, as i didnt venture to Wanstead Flats last week, and was regretting this as i have never seen a Wryneck before. It was in the same small tree as (but not moving along with) a tit flock, unusually eating berries (as well as insects).
• Kestrel
• 2 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Green Woodpecker
• 5 Pheasant (1m, 4f, together)
• 4 Skylark (south), 7 Meadow Pipit, 1 Yellow Wagtail (south), 1 Swallow (South)
• 1 Stock Dove (over)
• flock of c100 Rook circling on a thermus, with about 50 Jackdaws, a few other Jackdaws moving east in small groups.
• Also: Dunnock, 16 Goldfinch, 3 Jay, (DEH)

Roding Valley Park, central:

• Sparrowhawk,
• 2 Swallow
• Chiffchaff
• 2 Song Thrush
• 6 Jay
• Little Egret
• Common Gull
• Flock of Long Tailed Tit
• Pied Wagtail (Alan Hobson)

Valentines Park:

• 2 Little Grebe, 3 Great Crested Grebe (2 ad, 1 juv) boating lake
• 11 Mute Swan (only 7 cygnet, i wonder if the 8th was hiding on the island?)
• 2 Hybrid Greylag Goose (1 on each lake), 2 Egyptian Geese on long water, Mallard, Tufted Ducks, 2 Pochard, Canada Geese, Moorhens, Coots.
• 1 Kestrel flying low toward Gants Hill
• nuff Black Headed Gulls
• 1 Stock Dove, Woodpigeons, Feral Pigeons, Collared Dove
• 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker
• 2 Pied Wagtail on the cricket pitch, 1 Grey Wagtail on Cranbrook Cut
• Wren, Robin, Blackbird, Mistle Thrush, 2 Coal Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Magpie, Carrion Crow, 1 Jay, Starling, 8 House Sparrow (Brisbane Road), 5 Chaffinch, 5 Greenfinch, 3 Goldfinch. (MCondon)

Wanstead Flats:

• 2 Yellow Wagtail
• at least 2 Ring Ouzel in wooded area east of Alexandra Pond 10:35 at least, 3 Stonechat,
• 4 Goldcrest,
• 146+ Swallow and 153+ House Martin through,
• 3 Reed Bunting SE,
• Willow Warbler, Coal Tit
• 4 Grey Wagtail (s), 2 Pied Wagtail, 15+ Meadow Pipit, c.20 Skylark, 3 Kestrel, 2 Sparrowhawk, Grey Heron, Yellow-Legged Gull (in large evening feeding flock on the footy pitches and north of Long Wood, + Lesser Black Backed Gull, Great Black Backed Gull, Herring and Common Gull, but mainly Black Headed Gull, 10+ Chiffhcaff, 3 Blackcap, 1 Whitethroat (S Fisher, Nick Croft, Tim Harris and Birdguides).

Wanstead Park:

• Short Eared Owl over early morning (NCroft) (seen a few times, lastly going off east)
• 2 Spotted Flycatchers in the Old Sewage Works (THarris)