Latest wildlife reports

Photo: Firecrest in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park (Max Whitby/BirdGuides)

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May 2013 wildlife reports

21 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: 1 Little Ringed Plover (John Archer).

21 May 2013, Mudchute: a Reed Warbler singing in dry scrub (rare here becasue of the lack of reed beds), 2 singing Blackcaps, 1 Ring-necked Parakeet (John Archer).

20 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: 30 Swifts and 2 Swallows flew north, 1 Collared Dove (the first record this year), the female Tufted Duck with a Portuguese nasal saddle is back again among 38+ Tufted Ducks, the Great Crested Grebe and drake Teal still present, 4 Shelducks, 4 Common Terns (with another 5 flying past on the Thames), 1 Reed Bunting, 2+ singing Reed Warblers, 1 female Blackcap (Gary James & John Archer).

Great Crested Grebe at East India Dock Basin (photo: John Archer)

17 May 2013, Limehouse E14: 50+ Swifts flew north at 3.30pm (Paul Hyland).

17 May 2013, Limehouse Basin: an adult Mute Swan with 6 cygnets (no sign of the other adult), 2 Sand Martins entering holes in the wall, 6 Tufted Ducks (John Archer).
Mute SWan with cygnets
Mute Swan family at Limehouse Basin (photo: John Archer)

17 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: 20 Swifts flew south at lunchtime (the first here this year), 2 Egyptian Geese, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 1 drake Teal, 2 Shelducks, 56 Tufted Ducks, 6 Common Terns (including a pair apparently nesting on a raft), 4 singing Reed Warblers, 1 male Reed Bunting (John Archer & Jo Dowle).

17 May 2013, Cable Street: 40+ Swifts screaming overhead mid-morning (John Archer).

16 May 2013, Limehouse Basin: a pair of Mute Swans with 6 cygnets, 1 Common Tern (Richard Harrison).

15 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: the Great Crested Grebe still present, 1 singing Reed Bunting, 1 drake Teal, 2 Greylag Geese, 4 Shelducks, 2 Mute Swans, 47 Tufted Ducks, 2 pairs of Common Terns, 2 singing Blackcaps, 3 singing Reed Warblers (John Archer).

14 May 2013, Mile End: a Red Kite flew over Burdett Road (Steve Stride).

13 May 2013, Limehouse: a Common Porpoise swam up the Thames at 5.20pm (Paul Hyland).

11 May 2013, Blackwall Basin: 11 Common Terns on one raft, a Greylag Goose possibly nesting, and 4 Herring Gull and 5 Lesser Black-backed Gull nests on the roof of an industrial building just south of the Basin (Matt Reed).

10 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: 1 Great Crested Grebe, a very scarce bird here since the basin became so silted, and a Great Black-backed Gull eating a large Eel. (John Archer).

Great Black-backed Gull eating Eel at East India Dock Basin (photo: John Archer)

10 May 2013, Isle of Dogs: 2 or 3 Common Terns, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Swift, 1 Swallow, 2 Mistle Thrushes, 2 Long-tailed Tits (Richard Harrison).

9 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: a Common Porpoise swam upriver at 1.15pm, 6 Shelducks, 54 Tufted Ducks (including the female with a Portuguese nasal saddle), 4 Common Terns, 2 Mute Swans, 1 singing Blackcap (John Archer).

8 May 2013, Bow Creek: 2 Common Sandpipers, 1 Shelduck (Nick Tanner).

8 May 2013, Saffron Avenue Pond: a pair of Coots with 3 well-grown young, 1 Common Tern fishing (John Archer).

Common Tern by Saffron Avenue Pond (photo: John Archer)

8 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: 1 Green-veined White butterfly, 6 Shelducks, 66 Tufted Ducks (including the female with a Portuguese nasal saddle), a pair of Common Terns defending a raft, 3 singing Blackcaps, 1 singing Reed Warbler (John Archer & Nick Tanner).

6 May 2013, Poplar: a Green Woodpecker flew east past Newby Place (Nick Tanner).

6 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: 1 Speckled Wood butterfly, 3 Shelducks, 44 Tufted Ducks, 5 Common Terns propsecting the rafts, 1 Sand Martin, 1 singing Reed Warbler, 5 singing Blackcaps, 1 female Whitethroat (Nick Tanner).

6 May 2013, Bow Creek: a pair of Canada Geese with 6 goslings, 2 Greylag Geese, 3 Shelducks, 1 Common Sandpiper, 2 Stock Doves, 1 singing Reed Warbler, 1 singing Blackcap, 1 Speckled Wood butterfly (Nick Tanner).

5 May 2013, West India Docks: 1 singing Black Redstart (Nick Tanner).

5 May 2013, Victoria Park: about 50 newly-emerged Large Red Damsleflies all over East Lake (Sulka Haro).

5 May 2013, Bethnal Green Nature Reserve (St Jude's): 1 singing Blackcap (Ingrid Chen).

5 May 2013, Mudchute: 1 singing Chiffchaff, about 10 singing Blackcaps, 1 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1 Jay, 2 Mistle Thrushes, 1 Monk Parakeet, 4 Ring-necked Parakeets (John Archer and 7 participants on the Dawn Chorus Walk).

4 May 2013, Victoria Park: 1 Red-crested Pochard, 1 Mandarin, 1 Pochard, 2 Little Grebes, 20 Tufted Ducks, 4 Mute Swans, 2 Greylag Geese, 5 Stock Doves, 3 Ring-necked Parakeets, 1 Green Woodpecker, 3 Jays, 1 Swallow, 1 Reed Warbler, 2 Blckcaps, 1 Goldcrest, 3 Large Red Damselflies (David Darrell-Lambert and participants on the Bird Barmy Army walk).

Large Red Damselfly at Victoria Park (photo: David Darrell-Lambert)

4 May 2013, East India Dock Basin: 3 Shelducks, 57 Tufted Ducks, 6 Common Terns, 2 Reed Warblers, 1 Lesser Whitethroat (David Darrell-Lambert).

3 May 2013, Victoria Park: 6 Large Red Damselflies around East Lake, including several recently-emerged and one emerging (Sulka Haro).

emerging Large Red Damselfly at Victoria Park (photo: Sulka Haro)

3 May 2013, East India Dock Basin/Bow Creek: 3 Whitethroats, 3 Blackcaps, 8 Reed Warblers, 1 Little Ringed Plover, 5 Common Terns, 1 Sand Martin, 1 Great Black-backed Gull (Paul Hyland).

Archive of earlier reports
January - April 2013
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2011