Monthly ornithological summary for: February 2009

GREAT NORTHERN DIVER - Stoke Newington Reservoirs, 4th - 15th;

Firecrests - Abney Park Cemetery, singles on 3rd, 11th, 14th, 20th, with two on 17th, 18th, 22nd & 27th;

Common Buzzard, Stoke Newington Reservoirs, 27th.

February, like January and December before it, traditionally constitutes part of the quietest period for local bird-life; however, like the preceding January and December, the month managed to confound all (low) expectations and then some, providing yet another stunning and wholly unexpected five-star bird for Hackney.

The month began with the borough receiving it's heavest snowfall in decades, with a thick white coating deepening through the night of the 1st and well into the 2nd. The conditions produced a significant arrival / movement of winter thrushes, with at least 60 Fieldfares and 30 Redwings pitching down or moving over Abney Park Cemetery on the latter date.

Counts of Fieldfare continued to impress, with a further 24 along the New river on the 3rd, 12 at Stoke Newington Reservoirs on the 6th, 25 over Stamford Hill on the 8th, and 18 low over Clissold Park on the 10th (with ones and twos seen regularly thoroughout the month).

With the snow gradually thawing, the aforementioned star bird appeared as if by magic on the 4th, at the West Reservoir - a stunning juvenile Great Northern Diver. The reservoirs were evidently much to the bird's liking, staying for twelve days, and often seen enjoying the plentiful supply of fish on offer.

Spending much of its stay on the West, but relocating onto the East for odd days towards the end of its tenure, the Diver was enjoyed by dozens of visitors, and despite its habit of disappearing underwater for long periods and resurfacing randomly some distance away, often provided amazing views from the New River path and the cafe / visitors centre.

It seems likely that the bird had relocated from nearby Walthamstow Reservoirs, where a juvenile had been present for about ten days, up til the 3rd; our prayers for that bird to cross the border and visit Hackney appear to have been somewhat miraculously answered.

Eventually departing on the 15th, presumably having had enough of disturbance from boating activities, a diver species was reported flying back over Walthamstow Reservoirs on the same day, and only a couple more days passed before a juvenile Great Northern was found further up the Lea Valley, on the huge William Girling Reservoir.

The Diver's arrival coincided with a noticeable upsurge in wildfowl numbers, with 90 Tufted Ducks on the 4th and 57 Shovelers on the 6th being peak counts. The latter date also yielded a female Teal on the West.

A huge flock of small finches flying around Clissold Park on the 10th consisted of at least a majority of Lesser Redpolls, a record number for the area. The same day saw an adult Tawny Owl discovered at a traditional day-roost in Abney (and was seen regularly to the month's end), encouraging observers to look out for the young in the coming weeks.

The 12th brought a particularly large and striking Scandinavian Herring Gull to the East Res, where it returned on the 16th; an adult female Peregrine circled low over Stamford Hill on the 13th; and a Chiffchaff began visiting a garden in Stoke Newington from the 15th to the emd of the month. Another local garden hosted not one but two Blackcaps throughout February, proving the attraction of garden feeders to scarcer wintering species.

A male of the same species was in song in Abney on the 17th, when another 25 Fieldfare flew over Clissold Park; the same day saw the park's peak count of Common Pochard for the month, 19. A quiet period followed, before the month ended on an unexpected high - at least five Lapwings were heard low over Clissold Park shortly after midnight on the 26th, followed the next day by the borough's first large raptor of the year.

In mild sunshine and mainly blue skies, a Common Buzzard flew in low from the south-east over the East Res, and spent almost twenty minutes circling and thermalling the area before eventually drifting north-west.

Mark Pearson

We're very happy to report that records and sightings are now coming in from an ever-growing number of local observers, more than justifying the efforts for the latest news reports and providing a fantastic resource for naturalists from the borough and beyond. With Spring fast approaching, we look forward to even more reports and an increase in coverage across Hackney.