A passage of Sand Martins

Speckled Wood at East India Dock Basin, 17/9/11

Fruiting Currant and Sloe bushes add some

early autumn colour at Bow Creek Ecology Park

The late brood of seven Mallard ducklings are still on the basin, they are the size of Common Teal now and for a moment I counted them as such as they were silhouetted in the morning sunshine, they seem to have lost their mother as well but appear to be doing fine; Common Teal numbers continue to rise with at least ninety counted this morning but only two Tufted Duck were present, the nasal-saddled Portuguese female was not one of them, she is probably en route to Portugal via northern France. A Peregrine was on the Millennium Dome and was the only raptor encountered today until I got on to a high-flying Sparrowhawk moving north about a quarter of a mile west of the patch. Plenty of gulls were feeding in Bow Creek on the falling tide, including at least 130 Black-headed Gulls, several juvenile Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls and a juvenile Great Black-backed Gull, but, surprisingly, no Common Gulls. Migrant interest seemed to be limited to a single Meadow Pipit heard calling as it flew over the basin, until there was a late morning passage of Sand Martins moving west totalling 23 birds including a group of ten. The only warbler species today was Chiffchaff, at least six were present fairly evenly scattered throughout the patch and all very vocal; two Linnets were in the ecology park along with a single Goldfinch and finally, the Speckled Wood in the photograph was in the copse at the basin, the only other butterfly species noted was a single Small White in the ecology park and on the odonata front several Migrant Hawkers were noted throughout the patch.