3 chiffchaff 2 lesser whitethroat (first of the year; better late than never) 1 reed warbler, carrying faecal sack from noisy nest 1 Cetti's warbler heard 40+ sand martin 1 house martin 1 swift 1 great spotted woodpecker 2 stock dove Lots of moorhen and coot with youngsters at all stages of development 4+ teal 15+ gadwall 4 shoveler 43+ tufted duck, with at least three broods of very young chicks 2 shelduck 7+ mute swan, with three large cygnets 4+ little grebe, a couple being full-grown juveniles c15 lapwing 1 common sandpiper 3 grey heron 1 or 2 common tern 2 great black-backed gull 1 kestrel 1 hobby 1 sparrowhawk
PHIL GREENWOOD said
Mon Apr 24 7:21 PM, 2017
Long weekend family visit, so Friday, April 21st visit.
Lucky chance to get to the Wetlands Centre for the first time on Sunday (13th) for a couple of hours meant I was able to catch up with quite a few birds, the highlights being 3 Jack Snipe and a Water Pipit from Peacock Tower overlooking the Grazing Marsh .
Quite a pleasant compact reserve. And it was sunny!
Shannon Llewellyn said
Tue Jun 28 11:39 AM, 2016
A brief visit here on Saturday; no more than a couple of hours, but still noted 42 species just in that time, which included:
Goldcrest, chiffchaff, blackcap, reed warbler (one with nesting material), Cetti's warbler, sand martin (lots), house martin (one). Kingfisher Shoveler Pochard Lapwing Common tern
Also a couple of green woodpecker spied in nearby Mortlake Cemetery.
Shannon Llewellyn said
Wed Oct 14 5:21 PM, 2015
Down in London this weekend, so took the opportunity to have a look around this place. Not a huge amount around, but a cracking reserve, and a good day had nontheless.
At least 3 Cetti's warbler heard 5+ chiffchaff Plenty of goldcrest and long-tailed tit c50 carrion crow and c20 jackdaw 3 jay 1 green woodpecker 1 great spotted woodpecker c40 wigeon Good numbers of shoveler, teal, gadwall and tufted duck, and a handful of pochard 1 little grebe 1 great crested grebe 15 cormorant 30+ lapwing 1 snipe
PHIL GREENWOOD said
Mon Feb 16 7:25 PM, 2015
Another family visit to London and another little trip to the Wetland Centre, on Thursday, February 12th.
Highlights included:
Bittern 2 seen clinging to reeds. One climbed down and disappered but the other went up to the top and had a quick fly about...great. Green Woodpecker 1f. Cetti's Warbler 1 seen and another heard singing. Peregrine 1 rather distant, as usual. Ring-necked Parakeet 11 Snipe 5+ Water Rail 1 heard. Lapwing 50+ Pintail 3 Little Grebe 3 Great Crested Grebe 1 All 5 regular Gull species. Teals Wigeons Tufted Ducks Gadwalls Shovelers
etc.etc.etc.
Charles Farrell said
Fri Apr 4 3:31 PM, 2014
PHIL GREENWOOD wrote:
Belated report for Saturday, March 29th, during weekend family visit.
Crow 50+...yes, 50+ and not a Rook in sight. They also have large numbers on Clapham Common. Is this just a London phenomenon? Ring-necked Parakeets.
Peregrine 2 flying around Hammersmith Hospital.
re Crows - London is full of them and you will generally have to drive outside the M25 to see a Rook - or a Raven - although 1 or 2 have started encroaching from the Essex side. You are also more likely to see a Jay in Central London than a Jackdaw, although a couple of pairs have started preparing to nest in Hyde Park, just recently.
re the Peregrines, that'll be Charing Cross Hospital, which is in Hammersmith, while Hammersmith Hospital is in East Acton (Confusing eh?), several miles to the north. :)
PHIL GREENWOOD said
Thu Apr 3 4:27 PM, 2014
Belated report for Saturday, March 29th, during weekend family visit.
Cetti's Warbler 7 heard, of which 1 gave very good views. Blackcap 1m 1f. Chiffchaff 3 singing. Sand Martin 2 Green Sandpiper 1 Redshank 4 Oystercatcher 1 Crow 50+...yes, 50+ and not a Rook in sight. They also have large numbers on Clapham Common. Is this just a London phenomenon? Ring-necked Parakeets. Sparrowhawk 1 Peregrine 2 flying around Hammersmith Hospital. Wigeon 3m 2f. Shovelers. Pochards. Teal. Tufted Ducks. Cormorants. Lapwings. etc.etc.etc.
Sarfraz Hayat said
Sat Nov 30 12:26 AM, 2013
I had to make a work-related trip to London and with a few hours to spare I decided to visit the London Wetland Centre. For those who have not been it is a big nature reserve run by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) in one of the biggest cities in the world. From Euston I got a tube to Green Park and then to Hammersmith. At Hammersmith I boarded a bus to the wetland centre. The journey takes less than an hour from Euston to the actual centre. I was tired so first stop was the café for a slice of Victoria sponge with a cappuccino.
There are two routes - the southerly route and the westerly route. I decided to head south first. I stepped outside of the visitor centre and was greeted by a sound which had always transported me to the age of 5 when I visited my parents birth country Pakistan for the first time and a cousin would take us out into the fields. It was the sound of Ring-necked Parakeets but quite loud. I thought it must have been a toy in the hands of a family nearby as it sounded very close. It was not until I looked up I saw something green, slim and long in the bare tree. I had never seen a Parakeet this close. Surprisingly, it allowed me to take photographs and was then joined by three other birds. After ten minutes they all flew off.
On the path out and into the main reserve I noticed a Green Woodpecker in a bush, eating berries? I had never seen one this close. It was aware of my presence but it did not appear alarmed. It was almost upside down, wings spread out and then the green and the red were lit up by the sun which had broken out of the miserable clouds. I had signalled a photographer to come over who I had spoken to earlier and by the time were ready to take photographs the bird flew onto the wall. It looked at us very bemused. I did wonder to myself why I bothered to signal the other guy when I could have taken a good photograph. It decided to fly away although I waited for fifteen minutes hoping it has found a good spot to return too but no luck.
The reserve attracts many nationalities and the staff and volunteers are quite diverse, reflecting London's diverse communities. It was my second visit to the reserve. I wanted to see it in autumn however, it was still quite green. The forecast was wrong. It was supposed to be a sunny and dry day but the reality was cloudy with some showers, one quite heavy.
There were a couple of Great Black Blacked Gulls around the reserve and a Bittern! I was directed to the Bittern but just about saw it. It was very hard to see Bitterns but to see one in the middle of London, well that was a treat! Bitterns wintered here quite regularly and could number to more than two. Conservation was working if a bitter decided to fly over London and spot the reserve and decide it was good enough for the winter. The reserve did attract a wife variety of species some very rare and unusual for an urban area.
Here is a list of birds which I saw within the few hours I was there:-
Bittern
Blackbird
Black-headed Gull
Coot
Coal Tit
Cetti's Warbler
Carrion Crow
Blue Tit
Canada Goose
Chaffinch
Collared Dove
Common Gull
Cormorant
Dunnock
Fieldfare
Gadwall
Goldfinch
Great Black-Backed Gull
Great Crested Grebe
Great Tit
Green Woodpecker
Greenfinch
Grey Heron
Herring Gull
House Sparrow
Jackdaw
Jay
Lapwing
Lesser Black-Backed Gull
Little grebe
Long-tailed Tit
Magpie
Mallard
Mandarin
Meadow Pipit
Moorhen
Mute Swan
Nuthatch
Pied Wagtail
Pintail
Redwing
Reed Bunting
Ring-necked Parakeet
Robin
Shoveler
Snipe
Song Thrush
Sparrowhawk
Starling
Teal
Tufted Duck
Wigeon
Wren
Woodpigeon
-- Edited by Sarfraz Hayat on Saturday 30th of November 2013 12:28:00 AM
After a very heavy week at work I didn't roll out of bed until nearly lunchtime and so I decided to visit the centre at Barnes as it is fairly local and it was about time I used my membership (It was my first visit for 12 months). Somehow I alway manage to visit when it is the school holidays and the place is swarming with families. :(
There was a Raptor Exhibition in the main building with Barn Owl, Buzzard, Kestrel, a pair of Peregrines and a Gyr Falcon. I can't remember having seen a Gyr in the flesh before and this one was huge - considerably larger than the female Peregrine. Very Impressive.
Out on the reserve I went off to the quieter end and thus missed a Bittern that was showing well at the newly re-opened Headley Hide. The Smew that had been present during the week appeared to have left and the local Peregrines didn't show up (too busy mating it seems - https://www.facebook.com/FaBPeregrines?fref=ts )
In terms of birds on the water it was a little disappointing - c20 Canada Goose - c10 Mute Swan - 4 Pochard - 55 Gadwall - c60 Teal - c40 Shoveler - c40 Tufted Duck - c30 Mallard - 1 Little Grebe - 75 Cormorant - c12 Lapwing
Elsewhere - 1 Green Woodpecker - 1 Goldcrest - 1 Cetti's Warbler - small numbers of tits and Chaffinch on the feeders
Nice to see an Astronomy Exhibition though I didn't have time to visit it. Essex Wildlife Trust have also been putting on Astronomy evenings - mind you the skies are probably clearer over Essex than over West London.
James Walsh said
Fri Jan 25 1:18 AM, 2013
Yesterday
Red-head Smew & Bittern at London Wetlands Centre
chrisdorney said
Tue Jun 12 1:06 AM, 2012
Visit to London at the weekend via harry potter studios tour where incidentally there was a pied wagtail family living in privet drive!red kite also seen over the adjacent grassland. Highlights at wwt included ring necked parakeet reed warbler reed bunting green woodpecker lr plover Egyptian goose pair with 8 young sand martin colony 10 singing cetti's common tern common lizard water vole and some very noisy marsh frogs.
3 chiffchaff
2 lesser whitethroat (first of the year; better late than never)
1 reed warbler, carrying faecal sack from noisy nest
1 Cetti's warbler heard
40+ sand martin
1 house martin
1 swift
1 great spotted woodpecker
2 stock dove
Lots of moorhen and coot with youngsters at all stages of development
4+ teal
15+ gadwall
4 shoveler
43+ tufted duck, with at least three broods of very young chicks
2 shelduck
7+ mute swan, with three large cygnets
4+ little grebe, a couple being full-grown juveniles
c15 lapwing
1 common sandpiper
3 grey heron
1 or 2 common tern
2 great black-backed gull
1 kestrel
1 hobby
1 sparrowhawk
Highlights:
Ring Ouzel 1m.
Yellow Wagtail 3m.
Glaucous Gull 1 imm.
Caspian Gull 1 imm.
Kingfisher 1
Little Ringed Plover 2
Redshank 4
Cetti's Warbler 8+
62 species in total.
Lucky chance to get to the Wetlands Centre for the first time on Sunday (13th) for a couple of hours meant I was able to catch up with quite a few birds, the highlights being 3 Jack Snipe and a Water Pipit from Peacock Tower overlooking the Grazing Marsh
.
Quite a pleasant compact reserve. And it was sunny!
Goldcrest, chiffchaff, blackcap, reed warbler (one with nesting material), Cetti's warbler, sand martin (lots), house martin (one).
Kingfisher
Shoveler
Pochard
Lapwing
Common tern
Also a couple of green woodpecker spied in nearby Mortlake Cemetery.
At least 3 Cetti's warbler heard
5+ chiffchaff
Plenty of goldcrest and long-tailed tit
c50 carrion crow and c20 jackdaw
3 jay
1 green woodpecker
1 great spotted woodpecker
c40 wigeon
Good numbers of shoveler, teal, gadwall and tufted duck, and a handful of pochard
1 little grebe
1 great crested grebe
15 cormorant
30+ lapwing
1 snipe
Highlights included:
Bittern 2 seen clinging to reeds. One climbed down and disappered but the other went up to the top and had a quick fly about...great.
Green Woodpecker 1f.
Cetti's Warbler 1 seen and another heard singing.
Peregrine 1 rather distant, as usual.
Ring-necked Parakeet 11
Snipe 5+
Water Rail 1 heard.
Lapwing 50+
Pintail 3
Little Grebe 3
Great Crested Grebe 1
All 5 regular Gull species.
Teals
Wigeons
Tufted Ducks
Gadwalls
Shovelers
etc.etc.etc.
re Crows - London is full of them and you will generally have to drive outside the M25 to see a Rook - or a Raven - although 1 or 2 have started encroaching from the Essex side. You are also more likely to see a Jay in Central London than a Jackdaw, although a couple of pairs have started preparing to nest in Hyde Park, just recently.
re the Peregrines, that'll be Charing Cross Hospital, which is in Hammersmith, while Hammersmith Hospital is in East Acton (Confusing eh?), several miles to the north. :)
Cetti's Warbler 7 heard, of which 1 gave very good views.
Blackcap 1m 1f.
Chiffchaff 3 singing.
Sand Martin 2
Green Sandpiper 1
Redshank 4
Oystercatcher 1
Crow 50+...yes, 50+ and not a Rook in sight. They also have large numbers on Clapham Common. Is this just a London phenomenon?
Ring-necked Parakeets.
Sparrowhawk 1
Peregrine 2 flying around Hammersmith Hospital.
Wigeon 3m 2f.
Shovelers.
Pochards.
Teal.
Tufted Ducks.
Cormorants.
Lapwings.
etc.etc.etc.
I had to make a work-related trip to London and with a few hours to spare I decided to visit the London Wetland Centre. For those who have not been it is a big nature reserve run by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) in one of the biggest cities in the world. From Euston I got a tube to Green Park and then to Hammersmith. At Hammersmith I boarded a bus to the wetland centre. The journey takes less than an hour from Euston to the actual centre. I was tired so first stop was the café for a slice of Victoria sponge with a cappuccino.
There are two routes - the southerly route and the westerly route. I decided to head south first. I stepped outside of the visitor centre and was greeted by a sound which had always transported me to the age of 5 when I visited my parents birth country Pakistan for the first time and a cousin would take us out into the fields. It was the sound of Ring-necked Parakeets but quite loud. I thought it must have been a toy in the hands of a family nearby as it sounded very close. It was not until I looked up I saw something green, slim and long in the bare tree. I had never seen a Parakeet this close. Surprisingly, it allowed me to take photographs and was then joined by three other birds. After ten minutes they all flew off.
On the path out and into the main reserve I noticed a Green Woodpecker in a bush, eating berries? I had never seen one this close. It was aware of my presence but it did not appear alarmed. It was almost upside down, wings spread out and then the green and the red were lit up by the sun which had broken out of the miserable clouds. I had signalled a photographer to come over who I had spoken to earlier and by the time were ready to take photographs the bird flew onto the wall. It looked at us very bemused. I did wonder to myself why I bothered to signal the other guy when I could have taken a good photograph. It decided to fly away although I waited for fifteen minutes hoping it has found a good spot to return too but no luck.
The reserve attracts many nationalities and the staff and volunteers are quite diverse, reflecting London's diverse communities. It was my second visit to the reserve. I wanted to see it in autumn however, it was still quite green. The forecast was wrong. It was supposed to be a sunny and dry day but the reality was cloudy with some showers, one quite heavy.
There were a couple of Great Black Blacked Gulls around the reserve and a Bittern! I was directed to the Bittern but just about saw it. It was very hard to see Bitterns but to see one in the middle of London, well that was a treat! Bitterns wintered here quite regularly and could number to more than two. Conservation was working if a bitter decided to fly over London and spot the reserve and decide it was good enough for the winter. The reserve did attract a wife variety of species some very rare and unusual for an urban area.
Here is a list of birds which I saw within the few hours I was there:-
Bittern
Blackbird
Black-headed Gull
Coot
Coal Tit
Cetti's Warbler
Carrion Crow
Blue Tit
Canada Goose
Chaffinch
Collared Dove
Common Gull
Cormorant
Dunnock
Fieldfare
Gadwall
Goldfinch
Great Black-Backed Gull
Great Crested Grebe
Great Tit
Green Woodpecker
Greenfinch
Grey Heron
Herring Gull
House Sparrow
Jackdaw
Jay
Lapwing
Lesser Black-Backed Gull
Little grebe
Long-tailed Tit
Magpie
Mallard
Mandarin
Meadow Pipit
Moorhen
Mute Swan
Nuthatch
Pied Wagtail
Pintail
Redwing
Reed Bunting
Ring-necked Parakeet
Robin
Shoveler
Snipe
Song Thrush
Sparrowhawk
Starling
Teal
Tufted Duck
Wigeon
Wren
Woodpigeon
-- Edited by Sarfraz Hayat on Saturday 30th of November 2013 12:28:00 AM
A somewhat bizarre occurrence
There was a Raptor Exhibition in the main building with Barn Owl, Buzzard, Kestrel, a pair of Peregrines and a Gyr Falcon. I can't remember having seen a Gyr in the flesh before and this one was huge - considerably larger than the female Peregrine. Very Impressive.
Out on the reserve I went off to the quieter end and thus missed a Bittern that was showing well at the newly re-opened Headley Hide. The Smew that had been present during the week appeared to have left and the local Peregrines didn't show up (too busy mating it seems - https://www.facebook.com/FaBPeregrines?fref=ts )
In terms of birds on the water it was a little disappointing
- c20 Canada Goose
- c10 Mute Swan
- 4 Pochard
- 55 Gadwall
- c60 Teal
- c40 Shoveler
- c40 Tufted Duck
- c30 Mallard
- 1 Little Grebe
- 75 Cormorant
- c12 Lapwing
Elsewhere
- 1 Green Woodpecker
- 1 Goldcrest
- 1 Cetti's Warbler
- small numbers of tits and Chaffinch on the feeders
Nice to see an Astronomy Exhibition though I didn't have time to visit it. Essex Wildlife Trust have also been putting on Astronomy evenings - mind you the skies are probably clearer over Essex than over West London.
Red-head Smew & Bittern at London Wetlands Centre
Highlights at wwt included ring necked parakeet reed warbler reed bunting green woodpecker lr plover Egyptian goose pair with 8 young sand martin colony 10 singing cetti's common tern common lizard water vole and some very noisy marsh frogs.