Sunday, November 11, 2007

11th November 2007

Stoke Newington Reservoirs 1320-1540 MJP
o/c, mild. light to mod NW.

Cetti's Warbler - 1
Siskin - 7
Chiffchaff - 2
Water Rail - 1
Common Gull - c25
LBB Gull - c30
BH Gull - c250
Herring Gull - 12
Gadwall - 29
Little Grebe - 5

An afternoon session on patch, and well worth it. After Laurence (Pitcher) heard and briefly saw what he strongly suspected to be a Cetti's Warbler on the north bank of the ER four days ago, Paul (Robinson) and I spent the afternoon (til dusk) staking out the spot in the hope of a vocal burst or glimpse, but with no luck; likewise the following morning, when Laurence and I tried brief luring with phrases of call and song via an MP3 player and speakers.

So it was a pleasant surprise (having temporarily forgotten about it) when the bird rattled out an unmistakable call, the first of three phrases within half an hour (between 1415 & 1445). A brief view was a bonus, albeit in flight and for no more than a couple of seconds, thanks to one of the resident foxes darting into the reeds where the bird was hidden. Evidently pretty mobile (the bird was present on the other side of the ER, 180 degrees from Laurence's initial suspected record), hopefully it'll stick around for a while.

A new species for the site and the area, and a nice bonus in these dark and tempestuous days.