User blog comment:Malcolm Riddler/Morden Hall Park 2010/@comment-92.6.211.221-20100312112223

Hi Nick

Unfortunately I have been Bogged down with work and sorting out summer contracts so have not been able to get down to the parks as often as I wanted too over recent months.

but It is Very pleasing that you are interested in making Morden Hall Park your local patch. It is worth the time and effort. I have had some excellent birds from the park over the years. and would be very interested in any of your bird sightings.

Just Log them on this page or post them on the Forum.

BIRDS TO LOOK OUT FOR I would be very interested in sightings of the following....

Blackcap, Numbers of singing (males) Chiffchaff, Numbers of Sighting (Males) Willow Warbler, (Any sightings and Dates and Singing) Garden Warbler, As above Whitethroat, As Above Lesser Whitethroat, As Above Sedge Warbler, As Above Reed Warbler, As Above Cetti's Warbler, (First bred in 2006) Grasshopper Warbler, Nightingale, Lesser Spotted Woodpecker.

All are Recorded annually (Some all be it in very small numbers).. Also keep a look out for Golden Oriole and Pied Flycatcher both are rare but annual visitors to MHP typically favouring the Poplar Trees around the wetlands.

Coming Back to your Question. The ring-necked parakeets you are seeing are most likely Breeding Birds or birds with a strong affiliation to the parks for foraging and breeding purposes.

These birds arrive at dawn or soon after and depart at dusk for communal roost sites. At Present the roost sites that MHP and Ravensbury park birds traval to/from are not known, but observations suggest that birds are commuting in from the Southwest & Southeast, as well as potentially also from the north (Complex).

Beddington Park, Mitcham Common. Morden Park, Wandle Park and the local Cemetery there at Weir Rd as well as Nonsuch Park further Afield and the Croydon and the South London centres generally could all well be roosting destinations for the c(50) or so birds that breed at Morden Hall and Ravensbury Park.

A visit to MHP at this time will see Ring-necked Parakeet's in numbers Prospecting for nest locations. This is a significant part of the parks ornithology at this time of year, with birds stationed in and around trees containing suitable nesting cavities. Accurate counts can be made of breeding numbers with the First, confired Breeding pair recorded in 1999). From this date numbers have increased rapidly.

Furthermore Its has been confirmed that no regular roosts are present at either park. The roosting birds in your garden probable are Lazy Birds :) so to speak. That is to say birds that for one reason or another can't be asked to fly to communal roost sites. These are probably breeding birds at this time of year but it would be interesting to known whether they are Adult (m)or(f) or indeed immatures. I suspect these are immatures and may be important / contribute significantly to the complex social structures and loose breeding colonies that you can see in and around the parks at present, possibly even assisting with feeding Young? such is the very complex social structures RNP's have. This I speculate, but nevertheless I am really pleased that you have found the park and are considering making it your local patch.

I hope I will at some time in the near future see you at Morden Hall.Look forward to that. I tend to use the Cafe down the road at lunch time. :)

Keep posting your sightings

Best Regards Malcolm