Common Teal pair still hanging on

Common Tern at East India Dock Basin, April 2011

After drawing a blank yesterday, I found the pair of Common Teal going to roost on a rising tide at Bow Creek this morning, my latest spring date for this species; the male looks quite content to hang around but the female is definitely getting itchy wings, leaving the roost after a few minutes and indulging in small flights on the creek, today could well be their last day. No sign of yesterday's Pochard but Tufted Duck numbers were well down with only 12 on the basin, there is obviously a large turnover of birds at this site which is why I always take care to go through them all at least twice per visit. Two pairs of Common Terns were showing interest in the rafts this morning and there was an increase in Black-headed Gulls on the river with 36 mostly 1st-summers floating upstream on the tide. As I was leaving the site I found another singing Sedge Warbler, just outside the patch recording area but audible from inside, had I not scored an unequivocal bullseye on the 17th I would be facing a bit of a dilemma, but I did so I'm not. Other warblers today; seven Reed Warbler, three Blackcap and five Common Whitethroat. I made a return visit late in the afternoon, Tufted Duck numbers had risen to 40 but nothing unusual was with them, the only other notables were four Shelduck and three Common Sandpipers feeding in the same place on the creek as yesterday.