Reservoir Logs - November 2025 round-up

 

                                          The Bittern enjoying the sun after a freezing night pic @DD           

      November brought a showy Bittern , the first since 2012, the fourth ever Yellow-browed Warbler and a remarkable one-day passage of Brent Geese. Both the Bittern and Yellow-browed were found on the same morning from the same spot by the same observer - CF - to rescue what had been, up to then, a pretty dull month.  In all, 84 species were seen across November, four fewer than than last year while the two additions mean the annual total so far stands at 145 compared to 2024's record 147.   

                          The Yellow-browed remained into December pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social 

       Brent Goose are annual at the reservoirs but usually just single birds which drop in for a brief time during migration to rest. So the flocks picked up high going south down the Lea Valley on the 16th were very unusual. The first grouping of 70+ over the Wetlands were seen by LB to be followed by more following the same track over the next 90 minutes. As different flocks were seen by different observers, it is difficult to say the number of birds involved but it is possible that as many as 200 Brents passed over the reservoirs.  

                         Brent flocks headed south over the Wetlands pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

       It was a slow month for ducks. A single Shelduck made a one-day appearance on the 19th. The young drake Goldeneye, which first arrived in late October, stayed around until the 8th but no others were seen. Goosander are no longer regular visitors with the only records on the 12th and 13th while, unusually, no Wigeon were seen at all. 

                                The Bittern put on a good show early morning @chris-farthing.bsky.social                                                               

       There have been plenty of discussions in recent years about the probability that Bittern - not seen since 2012 - are passing through the Wetlands undetected. Discussions always centred on the No 1 reedbed which is where CF was rewarded for regularly scanning the reeds when he found one sunning itself out in the open on the 21st. It caused considerable excitement among birders, LWT staff and visitors as it stayed in full view for a couple of hours before disappearing back into the reeds. It partially re-emerged in the late afternoon but was not seen again. Great White Egrets continued their late run with records on both the 8th and 18th. 

                  Two Great Egrets visited the reservoirs in November pic@ samodonnell25.bsky.social

       Only four species of waders were seen - three down on last year's total. The most unusual record was the second Grey Plover of the year which made a brief stop on High Maynard on the 19th during the cold snap. The same conditions also saw two additional Common Sandpipers join the wintering bird on the 17th & 18th  while as many as 34 Lapwing arrived the same morning as the Brent passage on the 16th. Pairs were also seen on the 17th, 21st and 27th with another on the 13th. Roosting Common Snipe were seen regularly in the pond in the middle of the East Warwick island across the month.

                                         Lapwing arrived during the cold snap pic@samodonnell25.bsky.social 

       Birds of prey, apart from regular appearances by the local Peregrines, Sparrowhawks and Kestrels, were scarce with just a single Buzzard on the 17th and Red Kite on the 28th.  A Rook, which remains very uncommon at the Wetlands, was seen by SD on the 21st while the largest number of Jackdaws was a flock of 25 going west on the 16th. Wood Pigeons also passed over in good numbers in the first half of the month with an estimated 1000+ going south on the 5th. Passage was also seen with Skylarks on the 8th, 9th and 12th. 

                    The Yellow-browed very occasionally showed well pic @samodonnell25@bsky.social 

        The first Yellow-browed Warbler was only seen at the Wetlands in October 2020 with just two more records, including one caught by the ringing team, last year. CF heard the fourth calling near the Dragonfly Pond on the 21st as he was watching the Bittern he had found just an hour before. Unlike the Bittern, the Yellow-browed was reported until the end of the month although remaining elusive and easier to hear than see. Two Firecrest were seen on the 1st including presumably a bird rung in October with a Siberian Chiffchaff the next day. Both male and female Blackcaps, which usually go missing in the winter months, were reported occasionally.

                                         Firecrest are becoming more regular pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social  

       Stonechats are again wintering with a maximum count of five on the 7th. Winter thrushes remain scarce. The odd one was seen bird feeding around the reservoirs but the highest count of Redwing was 15 on the 5th with 25 Fieldfare on the 22nd. Nor was it a particularly good month for winter finches with four Redpoll on the 10th and a single on the 16th with the only Siskin a fly-over on the 28th.  

DB @davidbradshaw1952.bsky.social 

Reservoir Logs - October 2025 round-up

              The first Water Pipit since 2021 arrived with Rock Pipits pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social
 

      The first Water Pipit since 2021 as well as the first Jack Snipe of the year were among October's highlights. There was also a good passage of winter finches along with records of Garganey, Marsh Harrier and Mediterranean Gull. The 97 species recorded is six more than last October but, unlike in 2024, the month lacked any out-and-out rarities. The two additions take the year list at the end of October to 143, just one behind last year.  

 

                                 A Garganey spent the day mid-month pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

         An early - or late - Shelduck passed through on the 19th. A Garganey was an unexpected find on the 12th on No 4. Wigeon were commoner than in 2024 when there were records on only two days with sightings on seven days in the first half of the month. A flock of seven on the 18th was the highest count. The same day saw six Pintail pass over after a single on the 6th.  Low water levels on Lockwood proved attractive to Teal early in the month with around 80 counted on the 3rd. The first Goosander of the autumn was on No 5 on the 22nd.

                           Seven Pintail were seen across the month  pic @chris-farthing.bsky.social

           Great White Egret, which had been very scarce so far this year, were seen on 1st, 14th and 19th. The second Marsh Harrier of the year was picked up, like the first, by SD on the 30th. Single Red Kites were seen on three days and Common Buzzards on two. 

                    Great Egret pic @MLP and Ringed Plover (below) pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

        Seven species of waders  - one more than last year but one behind 2023- were recorded across the month. Lapwings were the commonest with birds seen on five days with 21 on the 13th the highest counts. Just like last year, a Ringed Plover turned up in October this time on the 15th, ten days later than in 2024. A single Dunlin was seen on the 5th.

                                  Common Snipe are regular visitors but rarely show this well pic @MLP

       Common Snipe were seen on at least 13 days with four on the 18th the highest total. The same day also saw the first Jack Snipe of the year, found by SD, on No 5.  A Common Sandpiper looks as if it is settling in for the winter again, usually on High Maynard, with the regular bird joined by a second from the 20th to the 23rd.  

                                      Jack Snipe made a brief stop on No 5 pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

             The adult Yellow-legged Gull remained on the warehouse roof overlooking High Maynard until the 27th when it seemed to depart with the other large gulls. A 1W Caspian Gull turned up on  Lockwood on the 12th & 13th while a very smart adult Mediterranean Gull was seen on the 15th.

                     A  1W Caspian Gull dropped in mid-month pic @chris-farthing.bsky.social ........

                  .... as did a rather smarter adult Mediterranean Gull pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social 

        Our celebrity Kingfishers, after starring yet again on television, continued to live up to their billing to delight visitors. If they looked up at the pylons this month, they had a chance of seeing Ravens as well which continued their rapid transition from mythical rarity to semi-resident, There were regular sightings of a pair across October at the Wetlands and on nearby Walthamstow and Tottenham Marshes but they may now have relocated to Alexandra Palace, October as usual saw a passage of Jackdaws including a flock of 60 over on the 13th. 

                                   Ravens were regular visitors pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

           As usual, October sees a passage of Skylarks with records on at least seven days with three on the 19th the highest day total. Both Coal Tit and Nuthatch, while still scarce, appear to be getting commoner with another Coal Tit on the 25th and the third Nuthatch of the year on the 9th.  A Swallow was seen on the 5th - four days later than last year - with the final six House Martins on the 6th, one day before 2024's last sighting.

                                              Firecrests enlivened the regular ringing sessions pic @ MLP

         A ringing session on the 2nd saw a very late Garden Warbler caught as well as both Common and Lesser Whitethroat. None of them was recorded into October last year and the Garden Warbler may be the latest in London since 2018. Reed Warblers usually linger a little longer with the last sighting this year on the 5th. Ringing also suggests Firecrests may be passing through regularly with one caught on the 1st and a pair on the 22nd. Wheatears were scarce with records only on the 5th and 8th while last year there were records on seven days until the 27th. Stonechats were seen across the month with at least five on the 23rd

                          A late Garden Warbler was a surprise find in the nets pic @wheresryhs.bsky.social

        As the warblers left, the winter thrushes began to arrive. The first Redwing was seen on the 7th with 100 over on 13th. Fieldfare were, as has been the case in recent years, fewer in number with the first on the 18th and the highest count just seven on the 28th. This was at least better than last year when there were no records until the last day of the month. 

                            Rock Pipit (above) and Water Pipit  pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

        It was a good month for the scarcer pipits with Rock Pipits seen on eight days with two on the 2nd and 19th. The 19th also saw the first Water Pipit for five years found by SD  on Lockwood. While Rock Pipit are expected visitors in early Spring and late Autumn, Water Pipits have been seen at the Wetlands in only three of the previous ten years. 

          There was a good showing as well from winter finches. Two Brambling were seen on the 18th with a single on the 22nd. Redpoll were commoner than usual with records on nine days with ten on the 15th the highest day count. Siskin were also widespread with sightings on ten days with nine on the 5th the largest total.

                           

DB @davidbradshaw1952.bsky.social

 

Reservoir Logs - September 2025 round-up

 

                                    A juvenile Honey Buzzard battling strong winds pic @eugenedh.bsky.social 

          The first Honey Buzzard since 2022 and the first Grasshopper Warbler for four years were the month's highlights. September also saw a smart summer-plumaged Grey Plover make a brief rest stop and a pair of Ravens make two long-awaited visits. Add in late second records of both Osprey and Great White Egret and September finished more strongly than it started.

                         The Grasshopper Warbler resting after release pic @samodonnell25.bskyb.social 

           Across the month, 98 species were seen which compares favourably to 91 last year. The annual total at 141 is also four ahead of 2024.  Among the species still unrecorded but nearly annual are Mandarin, Scaup, Common Scoter, Woodcock, Short-eared Owl and Ring Ouzel so there is plenty of scope for additions before the year ends. 

                                   The Garganey stayed on No 4 for 10 days pic @chris-farthing.bskyb.social                  

                                                  

         August's Garganey remained until the 4th. Shoveler numbers, as expected, built up during the month but the peak count of around 50 is half the number seen in some years. The first two Wigeon of the Autumn arrived on the 23rd - over two weeks later than last year - with four next day and different single birds on the 29th and 30th. The post-breeding flock of Tufted Duck which still numbered 1385 on the 1st steadily dispersed across the month while it was a struggle to see more than a handful of  Pochard. 

 

                                                                Wigeon were late arriving pic @ivorh.skysb.social

          It was an excellent month for birds of prey. As well as frequent sightings of Peregrine, Sparrowhawk and Kestrel, RE found the second Osprey of the year going north over West Warwick on the 24th. This was beaten in the rarity stakes by the juvenile Honey Buzzard found and photographed (below) by @eugenedh.bsky.social going low in the gale-force southerlies on the 15th. This is the first since September 2022 with the previous record ten years before. 

                 

            Red Kites were seen on four days with Common Buzzards slightly commoner than recently with records on the 7th, two on the 25th and singles again on the 26th and 30th. Hobby continued to make typically brief appearances with sightings on seven days with the last record on the 17th.  

                 This fine summer-plumaged Grey Plover make a brief stop pic @chris-farthing.bsky.social

            Wader of a month in which nine species were recorded was a stunning summer-plumaged Grey Plover on the 3rd which flew past CF and DB on Lockwood before resting at the north end for a few minutes. Grey Plover are just about annual but are usually not in their breeding finery. Three Lapwing also made a brief stop on the 29th on East Warwick. 

                         Three juvenile Ringed Plover turned up on Lockwood @samodonnell25.bsky.social

           Two Common Ringed Plover were seen on the 5th with a single on the 28th, a pair of fly-over Curlew on the 7th with another reported on the 19th. Two very tame Dunlin spent the 3rd & 4th on Lockwood ignoring the passers-by just yards away with another making a much briefer appearance on the 27th. Common Snipe were more infrequent than some years with sightings only on the 19th & 20th and perhaps two on the 27th.

                The pair of Dunlin spent two days right next to the public path @chris-farthing.bsky.social  

           The good Autumn for Common Sandpiper continued with a second pulse of passage mid-month with a peak count of 16 on the 13th and still at least two on the 30th. Green Sandpipers were seen on the 20th, 27th & 28th while what is presumed were the same two Greenshank from August fed in the flood relief channel until the 13th. A single bird remained until the 21st when the sudden drop in temperature presumably persuaded it to end its month-long stay.  

                         Green Sand @samodonnell25bsky.social and Greenshank & Common Sand @YLD          

              The young Caspian Gull was seen again on the 1st and 7th but August's adult Yellow-legged Gull stayed throughout the month rarely leaving the warehouse roof overlooking High Maynard. Terns also found it hard to leave the Wetlands with August's Black Tern remaining until the 4th - a stay of over a week. The juvenile and adult Common Terns continued touring the reservoirs until the 17th when they were joined by a dozen more passage birds. It was again the arrival of colder weather during the 21st which encouraged the young bird finally to leave. This was 18 days later than the last tern left in 2024 which itself was a late date. 

                 The Yellow-legged Gull making a rare foray off its roof  pic @chris-farthing.bsky.social

         Two Great White Egrets passed high west over Lockwood early on the 24th - only the second record of the year. Raven has been a genuine rarity at the Wetlands despite a pair nesting successfully for several years only a few miles up the valley. So the pair, first found by RE, on the pylon just outside the southern boundary of the reserve on 7th and then tracked north across the site, delighted those lucky enough to see them. Even better, they put on exactly the same performance two days later to fill a gap in (almost) all the most regular patch birders' Walthamstow life lists.  

                          Ravens made a long-awaited visit to the Wetlands pics@samodonnell25.bsky.social

           It was while watching the Ravens flying north on the 7th that the last Swift of the year was seen going in the other direction - a week later than the last bird in 2024. The final Sand Martin of September was on the 27th and two House Martins were still present on the 30th. The strongest passage of Swallows this year, which have been scarce in both Spring and Autumn, was in the final few days of September with over 20 on both the 17th and 28th. 

        It often takes the regular ringing sessions to confirm how many birds move through the Wetlands. The morning session around the No 1 reedbed on the 6th saw 55 Blackcaps caught along with 12 Willow, six Sedge and nine Reed Warblers but the stand-out bird was the first Grasshopper Warbler since the team trapped one back in August 2021. 

              Only the third Grasshopper Warbler in the last decade  pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

         There were still two Willow Warblers on the 21st with Sedge Warblers present until at least the 14th. This was the same date as the final Common Whitethroat with a late Lesser Whitethroat on the 20th. Reed Warblers lingered in the West Warwick reed bed into October.  

                                                Spotted Flycatchers passed through in small numbers pic @YLD

        Spotted Flycatchers continued in small numbers with  a peak count of four early on the 6th, and singles on the 2nd, 12th and 19th. Wheatears, again usually singles, were seen across the month with records on nine days with a peak count of four on the 27th. The disappointing year for Whinchat continued with no records at all in September compared to ten bird days last year. Stonechats were late arriving with the first returning bird not seen until two on the 22nd - a week behind than last year. Numbers built quickly to seven with still at least five on the 30th. 

                                 
                      This Yellow Wagtail was both late and approachable pic @chris-farthing.bsky.social

           Late Yellow Wagtails included three on the 27th of which two very approachable birds stayed around on No 5 until the 29th. SD found the first two Rock Pipits of the autumn on the same reservoir on the 27th with another heard next day. Meadow Pipits passed over in good numbers with a peak count of 97 on the 20th, the same day that the first Siskins were recorded. CF had the first two Redpoll of the autumn on the 26th.           

                     Meadow Pipit passage included a few which dropped down to feed pic @ivorh.bsky.social                     

DB @davidbradshaw1952.bsky.social

Reservoir Logs - August 25 round-up

   

         This Ruff - a reservoirs' rarity - arrived in a downpour pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

        Ruff, Little Stint and Sandwich Tern - none of which are annual - were among the highlights of an excellent August. The month also saw Pintail, Whinchat and Spotted Flycatcher added to the year list along with second records of Garganey, Marsh Harrier and Caspian Gull. Visitors were perhaps most delighted by the fledging of three showy young Kingfishers.   

      

                    A smart Little Stint spent a couple of hours on Lockwood pic @eugenedh.bsky.social
           

        Across the month, 100 species were recorded which compares with last August's poor 87. The six additions also means the year total has now reached 137, four ahead of last year and just one behind 2021's high total. The strong performance was despite major preparatory work for updating the pylon cables which has sadly seen trees and bushes cut down, considerable disturbance and the closing of paths. 

                      The year's second Garganey stayed into September pic @chris-farthing.bsky.social

         The flock of 14 Barnacle Geese, including this year's youngster, continued to be seen but spent more time away from the Wetlands hunting for fresh grazing. The work around its No 3 home seems to have encouraged the young Shelduck to depart mid-month which was earlier than would be expected. A second Garganey of the year was found by CF on the 25th on No 4 which remained into September.. He also found the year's first two Pintail which sadly only put down for a brief stop on East Warwick on the 20th. 

       The disruption from the pylon work is also likely to be a factor in the sharp reduction in the post-breeding Tufted Duck flock which was down from 2467 last year to 1585. In contrast, breeding numbers continued to bounce back from last year's dismal figures with 40 Tufted broods compared to 23 last year although still behind the 50 counted in 2022.

         

                                The second Marsh Harrier of the year drifted north pic @Callahanbirder

       

       DC picked up a Marsh Harrier drifting north over High Maynard early on the 16th, the second after a bird in March. Red Kites were recorded on at least three days and seem to have replaced Buzzard, with no sightings this month,  as the most regular large raptor. Hobby was seen on at least seven dates, one more than last year, although their appearances were typically very brief. Little Owls continued to be seen occasionally with most sightings early in the month. 

                                     A tame Ringed Plover on East Warwick pic @samodonnell25@bsky.social                                              

        

            Thirteen species of wader appeared in August which is an impressive monthly total for an urban site well within Zone Three of the London underground map, The only Oystercatcher was seen on the 1st and the sole record of Lapwing were two on the 11th. Surprisingly, no Little Ringed Plovers were recorded but two Ringed Plover - usually the rarer of the two - appeared on the 16th with an incredibly tame bird on a busy East Warwick and a flightier individual on Lockwood. 

        

          Two Black-tailed Godwits fed happily on East Warwick pic @londonkingfishers.bsky.social

        Single Curlew, one much tattier than the other, flew over on the 19th and 20th. Two Black-tailed Godwits fed on the East Warwick island, unperturbed by the Saturday crowds, on the 2nd with three more over on the 10th and another fly-over on the 27th. Heavy rain with little wind during passage periods often means good waders at the Wetlands which was the case when SD found a Ruff on the east side of East Warwick on the 29th. It rested just long enough to attract a small if very wet group of admirers before deciding to fly north. Before last July's remarkable flock of five - also co-found by SD - Ruff had only been recorded in just two of the last 15 years.   

                Ruff setting off after waiting for the downpour to ease pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social 

            Single Dunlin were seen on the 3rd, 4th and 25th with three in an unusual mixed flock with three Redshank resting on Lockwood on the 23rd. But the highlight on Lockwood was a tame Little Stint found by EDH which stayed for a couple of hours. There have only been two other records in the last 15 years with a single on East Warwick in 2019 and two again on Lockwood in 2021. The first - and only - Common Snipe flew around Lockwood on the early date of the 11th, 

                                       Little Stint and Greenshank pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social

             

                    Common Sandpiper passage did not reach the heights of July but birds were seen throughout the month with 11 on the 3rd and 25th the highest counts. A single Green Sandpiper was recorded on the 13th with two on the 26th. As well as the three Redshank on the 23rd, another was seen on the 21st. The lack of water in the flood relief channel proved very attractive to Greenshank with up to two seen regularly from the 18th to the end of the month with occasional sightings also on Lockwood and No 4. 

                                    The adult Yellow-legged Gull on its favourite roof pic @Callahanbirder

             It was also a good month for gulls and terns. SD photographed the second Caspian Gull of the year on the 27th which was also seen on the 30th. DC found two Yellow-legged Gulls on the 16th with the adult staying faithful to the same warehouse roof overlooking High Maynard into September. It looked as if the year might slip by without a Sandwich Tern until FT saw one passing through on the 31st. Common Terns may have had a disastrous breeding season but at least three remained into September. They were often accompanied on Lockwood by a Black Tern at the end of the month which had first arrived with two others on the 29th.   

                    

   Caspian Gull and one of three Black Terns seen this month pics @samodonnell25.bsky.social

         Around 100 Swifts were seen on the 16th but numbers fell sharply, as expected, towards the end of the month. What was not expected was the almost complete lack of Swallows passing through with, for some reason, hardly a record although numbers were seen further up the valley. The Kingfisher pair on No 5 island, after false starts, finally fledged three young on the 10th. To the delight of visitors, they stayed around along the Coppermill stream and at the bottom of No 3 for most of the month. 

                                                Adult and demanding young Kingfisher pic @MLP

         There was a solid passage of Willow Warblers throughout August with ten seen or heard, for example on the 17th. Sedge Warblers also quietly passed through with the ringing team catching four on the 23rd, with another Garden Warbler also trapped on the 25th. 

            Spotted Flycatchers finally arrived pics @samodonnell25.bsky.social @ivorh.bsky.social 

     

            

         The first Spotted Flycatcher of the year was found by SD on the 27th - six days later than last year  - with others on the 29th and 31st. After a blank Spring, Whinchat was finally added to the year list when CF pinned down an elusive bird on West Warwick on the 15th with the only other record a smart juvenile from the 29th to the 31st at the north end of Lockwood. 

       The first Wheatear of the Autumn turned up on East Warwick on the 8th, and while not as scarce as last August when there were just five records all month, they were only seen on 10 days with two on the 30th the maximum count. Yellow Wagtails were seen - or often just heard - passing south also in small numbers from the middle of the month onwards. 

                   Whinchat (above) and Wheatear were both scarce pics @davidbradshaw1952.bsky.social  

DB @davidbradshaw1952.bsky.social