Sunday Report

Pete Lambert wrote yesterday:

Out this morning crunching through thick snow on my way to join the monthly bird survey of the Marsh, it was nice to see 2 male goosanders feeding in the channel by the Banbury Reservoir. They were just south of the path leading to the East Bridge, so in Walthamstow Reservoir rather than Tot. Marsh, but nice to see. On Wild Marsh East there were 3 pheasants near the west channel. Two were definitely males (neither with white neck collars), the third one I just saw briefly, so could have been male or female. Distant views from the Green Bridge of what looked like a female shoveler in the channel. Met up with the reduced survey team and as we all set out, found a snipe sitting in Pymmes Brook just south of the bridge. Birds were a bit thin on the ground on Clendish Marsh which I helped to survey with Ray and Peter, but we turned up 4 chiffchaffs along the Brook and 2 goldcrests. The highlight though was a flock of 30 skylarks which went SE calling at 10.10. We then went on to survey Stonebridge Wood which was almost dead until we saw another flock of skylark, about 40 this time, going SE again at 11.04.

After a warming cup of tea, I walked back along the towpath and saw a water rail walking along the edge of the channel east of the Lee Navigation, by the barges. Probably this was the same bird that David Cotteridge and Janice had seen from the Green Bridge earlier. Immediately after a peregrine came SE over Stonebridge Wood and on across the Lockwood Reservoir. When I reached the Green Bridge another 5 skylarks flew SE calling, making 75 in total. Walking out of the Marsh by the East Bridge, 4 ducks came shooting high over WM East – they were wigeon! One male and 3 females, these were my first for this year. So I returned home cold, but glad I’d made the effort.

DMC