Osprey getting the usual warm Wetlands welcome pic @samodonnell25.bsky.social
Osprey, Little Owl and, perhaps best of all, the frequent sound and sightings of Cuckoos were the May highlights at Walthamstow Wetlands. The month also saw the first Ringed Plover and Yellow-legged Gulls among the 89 species recorded, two more than last year while the annual total at 126 also remains two ahead of 2024.
Calling Cuckoos delighted visitors to the Wetlands photo @samodonnell25.bsky.social
Three Barnacle Geese pairs produced young this month - again likely to be the only breeding in London - with the first family seen swimming across from the No 5 breeding island on the 8th. But as in the breeding efforts of the previous two years, survival rates as very low with only one young having escaped the crows, gulls and foxes by the end of the month.
The first Barnacle Goose brood leaving their nesting island pic @davidbradshaw52.bsky.socialDespite all the predators, the Wetlands still had plenty of young geese and ducks around. They included the first Pochard brood spotted on the 22nd, one day later than last year, with the first Tufted Duck young appearing on the 30th. Two Shoveler had returned by the 9th, earlier than last year, with at least one seen regularly across the month.
Ringed Plover on Lockwood pic @samodonnell25.bsky.socialEight wader species - one less than last year - were recorded this month. Oystercatchers continued to be seen regularly until the 21st with three on the 1st. Single Lapwing appeared on the 10th and 16th. Unlike last year, neither Turnstone or Sanderling turned up this month but Ringed Plover, the third of the high Arctic breeders, did. CF found the first on East Warwick early in the morning on the 15th and another - or perhaps the same - was on Lockwood in the afternoon. The only Little Ringed Plover, in what has been a poor Spring, was on the 11th.
Common Sandpiper (pic samodonnell25.bsky.social) passage was stronger but shorter than last year with a peak count of nine on the 9th, four more than the highest count last May. There were still six moving through on the 20th but none were recorded after the 22nd while last year late migrants were seen into June.
This Greenshank spent seven days on Lockwood pic @HarringayBirderThe only Whimbrel was heard flying over in the early hours of the 2nd and the sole Dunlin was seen on Lockwood on the 12th. Waders in Spring are supposed to be in a hurry to reach their breeding grounds but no one had told the tame Greenshank which was found on the 11th. It stayed, usually in the north-west corner of Lockwood for seven days.
Little Gull and Yellow-legged Gull over Lockwood pics @samodonnell25.bsky.socialIt continued to be a good Spring for terns and gulls. A 2cy Little Gull was found by SD on Lockwood on the 15th and four days later he photographed a similar aged Yellow-legged Gull over the same reservoir which was seen irregularly until the 24th. The Lockwood rafts continue to be attractive to Black-headed Gulls with the first young spotted on the 24th - a week later than last year - with young Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls also appearing on the islands on the south side. The small island on No 5 played host again to what again may be London's only nesting Great Black-backed Gulls who had two young by the end of the month.
While it was a reasonable Spring for larger migrants, it remained very poor for smaller birds. No Whinchats or Common Redstarts were seen and only two Wheatears with single birds on the 1st and 3rd. This compares to records on six days last year when the the last bird on the 28th. Yellow Wagtails were also scarcer - although 2024 was an exceptional passage - with one on the 1st and 5th and the last on the 18th.
DB @ davidbradshaw52.bsky.social