14 March 2009

I have been suffering all week of a head cold which manifested itself mostly by 'cant-be-ask-itis' and I almost couldn't be asked to go and check my patch this morning. As it happened, I had a nice walk and forgot my headache for 2 hours. Lots of birds were singing, with a dunnock to start with in my street. I could hear the sparrows by Frank Banfield Park as soon as I had crossed Fulham Palace Road, and they seemed to be making a lot of noise for the 3 I managed to spot.
When I reached Hammersmith Bridge, tide was low, and since there were also far less rowers, there were a lot more birds:

• starling: a few flocks, some of them bathing
  
• mallard: 16
  
• teal:74
  
• tufted duck: 10
  
• gadwall: 25
  
• shelduck
  
• black-headed gull: lots, very mobile
  
• common gull: 2 adults and 1 1stW
  
• lesser black-backed gull: 1 pair (no streaking left)
  
• great black-backed gull: 2 (I think 1 3rd and 1 1st winter), one of them had a fish head, stolen by a carrion crow
  
• another young gull I am not too sure about
  
• pied wagtail: 3
  
• grey wagtail: 2
  
• cormorant: 2 on the foreshore, 4 on the pontoon; there also seemed to be a lot of them high up in the air
  
• moorhen: 2
  
• coot: 3
  
• sparrow: heard in the usual bush

Later on, I noticed that leaves are just starting to unfurl on the pink chestnut tree in Margravine Cemetery, and spotted a mistle thrush right at the top of the black poplar.