July 24th - Beardies & stork at Rainham

This was my second visit to Rainham Marshes since the reserve reopened last week. It was a very cloudy morning when I started out at Rainham West. There were still plenty of Reed Warblers in the reeds and I managed to see a Sedge Warbler as well but it took a lot longer today to catch up with Common Whitethroat, Blackcap and Chiffchaff. The only Mute Swan of the day was still on the channel where I saw it last week but otherwise the marshes were fairly quiet. There was a regular commute of Stock Doves flying over heading towards the river.

Mute Swan

Rather than take the longer river route I cut up the path alongside Coldharbour Lane hoping, but failing, to connect with the mega-elusive Corn Buntings. A couple of Rooks flew over to the tip but the large flock that had been on Wennington Marsh had disappeared, along with all the Jackdaws. I had a scan from the Serin Mound and located a single immature male Marsh Harrier. This was the only one I saw all day which was surprising as there were two family parties around last week.

With waders being reported in Aveley Bay I decided to head down there as it was now low tide. Small groups of Black-tailed Godwits patrolled the shoreline, resplendent in their summer plumage while the young Avocets had grown up and were starting to resemble their parents. Three Curlews completed the collection of long-legged waders but the only shorter-legged ones were a pair of Oystercatchers. A scan through the gulls on the foreshore produced a single adult Yellow-legged Gull but there were hundreds more gulls in the bay that were a bit too far to check through.

Black-tailed Godwits

Oystercatcher

adult Yellow-legged Gull

As the reserve had just opened I decided to do a circuit. I stopped just past Purfleet Hide and suddenly noticed a large bird up high. Through the bins it was clearly a White Stork so I had few more seconds to enjoy watching this great bird circle slowly slowly around before putting the news out. This was the seond White Stork I'd seen at Rainham in two years. By the time I'd finished on the phone I'd lost the bird and couldn't relocate it. This may have been the same bird that was seen yesterday over the tip but, weirdly enough, about the same time I was watching it, three White Storks were seen just across the river over Crayford Marshes. 

As I couldn't refind the bird I continued round to the dragonfly pool to look for the Bearded Tits. There were a couple of young birds feeding on the ground and a few more flew in and two landed on the grit tray and gave fabulous views.

Bearded Tit

As I walked towards the Butts hide, a Clouded Yellow flew past, the first one I've seen this year and I had another near Aveley Pools. From the hide I saw a few Little Egrets and a Yellow Wagtail flew over. The Target Pools had dried out again so there were no waders on show so I made my way round to Aveley Pools. A flock of Black-tailed Godwits were roosting on the pools with a couple of Lapwing. At the Ken Barrett hide there was no sign of the Garganey that had been present since last weekend but I did see a Little Ringed Plover and a Hobby flew over. The woodland held a few Chiffchaffs but was otherwise quiet so I decided to call it a day.

Little Egret

June 12th - midsummer at Rainham

After missing the entire spring at Rainham Marshes due to the Covid-19 lockdown I finally managed to get in a visit on June 12th, almost three months since my last visit. I got up in the middle of the night (or so it seemed) to travel ahead of the rush hour and arrived at Rainham West at 06.30. It was great to be back and there was a lot of catching up to do.

All the summer visitors were in but the passage migrants had already gone through as it was now that short period between spring and autumn. The first warbler I heard singing was Blackcap, but that was the only one I heard. Common Whitethroats were abundant and as I walked along the path I began to hear the occasional Reed Warbler. I also heard a couple of Sedge Warblers but there was no sign of any Groppers so that might be one I’ve missed this year. Despite the long drought during spring, the verges were luxuriant so there must have been more rain here last week than where I live.

Common Whitethroat

Linnet

Giant Hogweed

I passed the new bridge to nowhere and then headed down to the Concrete Barges where I heard my first Cuckoo of the year, my main target bird today. The tide was pretty much in so there were lots of gulls on the jetty but they all seemed to be Herring Gulls of various ages. A few Common Terns flew past on the river and a Peregrine bombed over towards Kent but otherwise it was fairly quiet. Some of the pirate signs have fallen to bits but Captain Red was looking rather resplendent.

It was quite misty looking down the river beyond Aveley Bay but on the near bank I found a Ringed Plover, presumably a very late north-bound migrant. There were a few Avocets and Redshank around and I heard an Oystercatcher. I headed round to Serin Mound to look over Wennington Marshes where a pair of Marsh Harrier were flying around as well another female.

I then walked eastwards along the river wall so I could look over the reserve. Three distant white blobs eventually revealed themselves as Little Egrets and a Common Buzzard circled over one of the pylons. Huge flocks of Starlings gathered in the bushes but I couldn’t find any pink ones amongst them. Normally by the time I reach the visitor centre I stop for a coffee and a rest but with the reserve still closed I headed off home instead before the rain that was forecast started.

Summer or Winter at the Welsh Harp?

Sunday June 7th dawned a bright but cool day, at least the weather was better than yesterday when it felt like winter and we had a thunderstorm. It was still cool enough to warrant a fleece when I left home early to do the monthly wildfowl count (WeBS) at the Welsh Harp. I paused to photograph a bench and wishing well structure that has recently appeared on Neasden Rec. They seem to have been built using recovered scrap items and look really good.

The count doesn't normally take long in June and offers very few surprises as there's usually just a few breeding water birds to count. Today wasn't one of those days as I found a female Goldeneye asleep in the middle of the reservoir; this is a scarce visitor here and typically occurs in winter so it is a mystery why this bird was here today. 

Goldeneye

Once the count had been done (the only other thing of note was a brood of Egyptian Geese in North Marsh), I had a look around the flowering brambles bushes for some hoverflies and located a few I'd not seen so far this year. 

Volucella pellucens - Pellucid Fly

Parhelophilus versicolor 

Lurking in a patch of stinging nettles I found over 100 caterpillars that will soon be ready to pupate and turn into Peacock butterflies. If I manage to get stung by these nettles I always remind myself that without them we wouldn't have these stunning butterflies. There weren't too many other butterflies around today because it was a bit cool, just a handful of Meadow Browns and single Small Tortoiseshell and Holly Blue.

Peacock butterfly caterpillars

In the grassy field just north of Cool Oak Lane bridge I found my first Burnet Companion of the year, a day-flying moth. 

Burnet Companion

On the dump, a Kestrel was hovering over the path in front of me and a Common Whitethroat was singing in the Cow Parsley which was now turning to seed. I finished my route and returned home.

Kestrel

Common Whitethroat

Summer insects at the Welsh Harp

With June 1st being the first day of summer I headed over the Welsh Hap after work. It was hot and sunny so looked good for insects. I particularly wanted to check Silver Jubilee Park for Small Heath butterfly as they were seen there last year after having been absent for several years. I climbed up the hill and very quickly found half a dozen on the bee highways that Brent Council started last year and planted with wildflowers and grasses.

Small Heath

I walked back down the hill and cut across West Hendon Playing Fields looking for more butterflies. I saw my first Meadow Brown of the year but it didn't hang around, unlike a newly emerged Black-tailed Skimmer so I walked along the north marsh towards Cool Oak Lane. It was good to see that the bridge construction workers were back on site for the first time since lockdown so hopefully they'll finish the new footbridge shortly.

Black-tailed Skimmer

I bumped into a Red Admiral and spent some time looking through the bumblebees before walking along the North Circ via Staples Corner.

Red Admiral

Over on Neasden Rec I found a more cooperative Meadow Brown and a few Large Skippers.

Large Skipper

Large Skipper

Meadow Brown

Brent Reservoir on the last day of spring

May 31st is officially the last day of spring according to the weather forecasters so I was out nice and early around the Welsh Harp to try and beat the throngs of people expected later as the forecast was for another hot and sunny Sunday. I didn’t linger much while walking through Neasden Rec apart from to admire the squadrons of screaming Swifts feeding in the skies as I wanted to get over to East Marsh early. The drought is having quite an effect on the reservoir with low levels leaving a lot of silt exposed in both marshes and the toxic Blue-green Algae warning signs have already gone up although this didn’t prevent one idiot illegally paddle-boarding on the reservoir.

On a favoured sunlit hedge there were a few Dock Bugs around and dozens of bumblebees on the newly emerged bramble flowers while on the path was a superb male Broad-bodied Chaser. It flew up onto the brambles and showed off its flattened shield-like body.

Dock Bug

Hoverfly sp, still looking to identify this one

Broad-bodied Chaser

I saw a pair of dozing Great Crested Grebes and snuck up close in case they decided to wake up. One of them did for a minute then decided to resume its nap. 

Great Crested Grebe

If you're lucky you may see them displaying which can be mutual head-shaking which may then culminate in a 'weed-dance'. This involves them diving underwater to get a bill full of weed then rearing up out of the water facing each other and paddling furiously to stay upright while shaking their heads from side to side. Clearly this pair weren't in the mood for such vigorous exertions so, in true Blue Peter fashion, here's a photo of a pair at it from earlier this spring.

Great Crested Grebes doing the weed dance

A little further out a female Mute Swan was gathering food for one of its new cygnets. When a flotilla of Canada Geese swam by she made sure to shield the cygnet from them.

In North Marsh a pair of Shoveler were dozing with a pair of Mallard. And over on the far side a new brood of Cootlings were being fed.

Mallards and Shoveler

Male Shoveler

Coot with young

In the grass I found the first Large Skipper of the year; there were very few butterflies around, possibly due to the very dry conditions. Over on the North Bank I located a Chimney Sweeper (a day flying moth) in the usual location and finally caught up with a Common Blue Damselfly to add to the Blue-tailed I’d seen earlier but surprisingly still no Azures. I heard the mobbing call of a Crow and looked up to see it have a go at the resident Buzzard, named Nick as it has a gap in its left wing.

 

Large Skipper

Chimney Sweeper

Common Blue Damselfly

Nick the resident Buzzard

By now, the area was already busy with people walking, running and cycling so I made my way home to some peace and quiet.