May 2009

From Croydon Birders

Archived sightings for 2009 [NB. This page can only be edited by the site administators]

May

• 28th - Heard a strange "caw" at 10: 20 a.m., looked up to see a crow circling about 150 feet up with a buzzard much higher. The crow gave up as the buzzard continued to gain height above Court Hill and Montague Avenue. It sailed above the house to the golf course where it continue to circle to gain height until it headed west and I lost sight. (Piers Hubbard)
• 28th - South Norwood Lake 10:00hrs, pair Great Crested Grebe, 1 Grey Heron, 4 Jay, 1m Sparrowhawk, c 20 Swift, (John Watson)
• 27th- South Norwood Lake - 10:00hrs pair Great Cresteed Grebe, pair Common Tern, 2 Great Spotted Woodpecker + 3 juv, 30+ Swift, 4 House Martin,(John Watson)
• 25th - South Norwood Lake - 08:00hrs pair Common Tern,1Lesser Black-backed Gull, c12 Swift (John Watson)
• 24th - Chapel Bank - Cuckoo calling (Ted Forsyth)
• 20th - Selsdon Wood LNR: Male & Female Sparrowhawk, Common Buzzard soaring overhead, Many Blackcaps singing, Long Tailed, Coal, Marsh, Great & Blue Tits, (per London Birders = Ernie Thomason)
• 20th - South Norwood Lake - 08:10hrs 1m Mandarin on Lake, Swift,3 Great Spotted Woodpecker ,Returned to SNL at 10:00 no sign of m Mandarin,(John Watson)
• 20th - Pittville Gardens SE25 (7.30am) 1 male House Sparrow in garden (1st in years!) (Gavin Hawgood)
• 19th - South Norwood CP. No sign of the Common Tern from Brickfields when I arrived around 19.00 - 19.15. One Whinchat present, also one Great Crested Grebe on Lake and one Garden Warbler singing. (John Birkett)
• 19th - Brickfields Meadow. One Common Tern flying round lake at 18.30 until it flew off in the direction of South Norwood CP. (John Birkett)
• 17th - Hutchinson's Bank - Sparrowhawk mobbed by two Crows (Ted Forsyth)
• 17th - Addington Hills. (0700 - 1000) - Monthly count on standard route included 3 Stock Doves, 2 Green Woodpeckers, 6 GS Woodpeckers, 1 Swallow, 21 singing Wrens, 39 singing Robins, 17 Blackbirds, 3 Song Thrushes, 6 singing Blackcaps, 7 Chiffchaffs (2 carrying food), 4 Jays (John Parish)
• 16th - Selsdon Wood - Garden Warbler, 16 Swifts, Swallow, Sparrowhawk, TreeCreeper (Ted Forsyth)
• 16th - South Norwood Lake- 2 LesserBlack-backed Gull, c15 Swift, Garden Warbler with nesting material, Blackcap Chiffchaff, (John Watson & Gavin Hawgood)
• 15th- South Norwood Lake- pair Great Crested Grebe, 18 Ring-necked Parakeet, 2 Swallow, 6 Swift, Great Spotted Woodpecker & Nuthatch at nest holes feeding young,(John Watson)
• 13th-Pollards Hill-5 Swift , 2 Swallow feeding above garden oaks before moving NE (Mike N.)
• 12th - Waddon Ponds. No sign of the wader reported from there yesterday. At least two Little Grebe territories, 50+ Coots (some with young or nest building), Grey Wagtail, Ring-necked Parakeet, Great Spotted Woodpecker, 10+ Swifts, dozens of Herring Gulls over. (John Birkett)
• 12th - Coulsdon: starlings nesting in my eaves, house sparrow colony at Woodmansterne station going strong. Max 8 swift and only 2 house martins seen this year, a dramatic drop from last year. 1 sparrowhawk 07.10 at station. (David Hayes)
• 12th - South Norwood Lake: pair Great Crested Grebe displaying, 1 Common Sandpiper, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull, c20 Swift, c6 Swallow, 12+ House Martin, 2 green Woodpecker, 3 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 1m Sparrowhawk,(John Watson)
• 11th - Tawny Owl heard calling from Croham Hurst at 22.20. (John Birkett)
• 10th - Hutchinson's Bank - Garden Warbler (Ted Forsyth)
• 10th - South Norwood Lake: pair Great Crested Grebe courtship display.(John Watson)
• 10th - Farthing Downs 10am to noon. 3+ Yellowhammers, 6+ Skylarks, many Whitethroats singing, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Kestrel mobbed by Jackdaws, several Linnets, Swallows flying through, a few Swifts. Brief snatch of Cuckoo calling. (John Birkett)
• 10th - Sparrowhawk high over Purley Oaks station at 08.35, Heron mobbed by Crows over Purley station at 08.55. (John Birkett)
• 10th - extreme eastern edge of Mitcham Common (just o/s Borough: TQ301677) - (9am) 1 singing Garden Warbler in lilac tree (Gavin Hawgood)
• 9th - Markfield - 2 Grey Herons flew N mobbed by Crow at 7.25am (Ted Forsyth)
• 9th - Waddon - Whitethroat feeding on insects on the netting over garden pond. Also Sparrowhawk caught Starling on Duppas Hill Park - (Simon Harris).
• 9th - South Norwood Lake - 08:10hrs Great Crested Grebe with 1 Juv on back (John Watson) 11:40hrs pair Great Crested Grebe 1 Juv missing (John Watson & Gavin Hawgood)
• 9th - South Norwood Lake: Great Crested Grebe, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 4 Black-headed Gull,2 Green Woodpecker, 1 Common Whitethroat, Great Spotted Woodpecker at nest hole feeding young, 3 Common Swift,
• 9th - Selsdon Park. Tawny Owl mobbed by Jays and Mistle Thrushes before relocating to another area (and being mobbed again, by Jays and Magpies).
• 8th - South Norwood Lake - 20:25hrs c50 Common Swift over lake (John Watson)
• 8th - Park Hill Park 0730 hrs. Female Peregrine low over treetops, male & female Sparrowhawks visiting their nest. (Johns Birkett & Parish).
• 8th - Kestrel floating low over Norbury High Street 2.45pm today. First swifts arrived over Virginia Road on 2nd May. (Linda & Terry Osborn)
• 6th - Swift over Purley Oaks station in the morning and one over Briton Hill Road in the evening. Now clearly returning to breeding sites in Croydon, so keep your eyes open. Also, hopefully, House Martins are back at breeding sites - info always useful. (John Birkett)
• 5th - Swifts over Heavers Meadow (1), Woodside Green (1) and South Norwood CP (4) in the evening. Also Reed Warbler singing at South Norwood CP. (John Birkett)
• 5th -returning Swifts (4) over Pollards Hill-( Mike Netherwood)
• 5th - Park Hill: re John P's note of 30th April, a pair of house sparrows was sighted last week at the junction of Chichester Road/St Bernards/Alpine Close and we had a pair on our feeders just 50m away 3 weeks ago, so it seems that the colony persists at least for now. (Tansley)
• 3rd - Pollards Hill-Pair Mistle thrush defending nest/young from various passing corvids .Grey Wagtail at nearby garden pond(Mike Netherwood)
• 3rd - Riddlesdown. 2 Whinchats (m&f) near Warlingham Court Farm, 10+ Skylarks, 2 singing Yellowhammers, 6+ Meadow Pipits (some singing), 4 Linnets 1 Swallow, c10 Blackcaps, 3 Whitethroats singing, 6+ Chiffchafs, 1 Willow Warbler 4 Stock Doves, 1 Pheasant. (John Birkett)
• 3rd - South Norwood Lake:pair Great Crested Grebe, pair Lesser Black-backed Gull, 1 Common Sandpiper, 12 Tufted Duck, 4 Cormorant, 1 Grey Wagtail, Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker,1 Grey Heron, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Nuthatch, 1 Kestrel,2 Swift, 1 House Martin,(John Watson & Gavin Hawgood)
• 2nd - South Norwood Lake: pair Great Crested Grebe, pair Lesser Black-backed Gull, pair Common Tern, pair Grey Wagtail, 1 singing Common Whitethroat, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Collared Dove, Nuthatch, Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, House Sparrow (John Watson & Gavin Hawgood)
• 1st - South Norwood Lake: pair Great Crested Grebe, 2 Common Tern, 5 singing Blackcap, 4 singing Chiffchaff, 2 Green Woodpecker, 3 Great Spotted Woodpecker,, 3 Song Thrush, 1 Pied Wagtail, 3 Collared Dove, 2 Long-tailed Tit, 1 Coal Tit, 9 Ring-necked Parakeet, 4 House Sparrow (John Watson)