October 2016

London's October highlights
London’s star bird in October 2016 has to be the DUSKY WARBLER found near the stone barges at Rainham Marshes on Saturday 29th October. Since it was just before sunset when Shaun Harvey came across it, the bird was hardly twitchable that day, but luckily it was found again in much the same place at 7am the next morning and hung around into the afternoon, allowing other birders to catch up with it. Unfortunately, there was no sign of it on the Monday.

On average about half a dozen Dusky Warblers reach the UK each year, but they rarely penetrate the Metropolis. In fact, there have been only two previous London records: a twitchable bird at Walthamstow Reservoirs from 14th–21st February 2010 and a bird reported in Southwark in February 2015 but seen only by one observer. Let’s hope the Rainham bird reappears and stays long enough for more birders to enjoy it.

More sizzling seabirds
Even a Dusky Warbler cannot compete with September’s cracking record of London’s first ever Cory’s Shearwater. But early October did manage to clock up some other good inland seabirds, beginning with four Great Skua circling Lonsdale Road Reservoir on the 2nd, a Gannet buzzing Chiswick on the same day, a Shag over Barnes on the 4th, a Guillemot riding the tide as far as Waterloo Bridge on the 5th, a Kittiwake at Purfleet on the 6th and an Arctic Skua in the same place on the 8th. Then on the 14th another Guillemot — or more likely the same wayward bird — was found at Teddington Lock, which is the limit of the tidal Thames. It was seen again slightly downriver the next day.

Wandering wetland birds
Early in the month, flocks of up to 25 White-fronted Goose were reported from various East London sites. Then, on the morning of 19th October, 23 Barnacle Goose circled the London Wetland Centre, landing briefly to say hello to the site’s menagerie Barneys before flying on to who-knows-where. Brent Reservoir’s popular drake Ferruginous Duck hung around into October but was not seen after the 2nd.

London has hosted just a handful of Cattle Egret since its first accepted record in 1992, and one at Rainham Marshes from 23rd to 25th October was the first twitchable bird since another at the same place in August 2010. (The only other recent record was of two flying over Isleworth after dark in April 2014.) Other notable October sightings at Rainham included a Spoonbill from 5th to 8th October, a Great White Egret on the 7th & 8th and three more Great Whites on the 23rd.

A Wood Sandpiper at Brent Reservoir from the 21st to the 23rd was London’s first since August. Single Curlew Sandpiper were seen at King George V Reservoir on the 8th and Purfleet on the 28th & 29th.

A plethora of birds of prey
It was Rupert Kaye who spotted the four Bonxies at Lonsdale Road Reservoir on 2nd October, and on the same day he also recorded migrating raptors of no fewer than six species — 2 Marsh Harrier, a Hen Harrier, a Goshawk, 2 Common Buzzard, an Osprey and 2 Kestrel.

Other October birds of prey included three Honey Buzzard (over Tottenham Marshes, Brent Reservoir and Totteridge Valley), five Merlin (at Raynes Park, Barnes, Brent Reservoir, Barking Bay and Rainham Marshes) and a second Goshawk (over Pinner).

Oodles of ouzels
And so to passerines. Although not in the same league as Rainham’s dusk-found Dusky Warbler, noteworthy passerines in October included the first Ring Ouzel of the autumn at Chelsham on the 5th. After that, oodles of ouzels were reported elsewhere, with records from about 20 sites during the month.

The single Yellow-browed Warbler that reached Regent's Park at the end of September was followed by birds throughout October at a couple of dozen London sites. And after just two records in late September, Firecrest appeared at a similar number of sites, with no fewer than six birds at Wanstead Park on the 18th.

A report of a Wood Warbler at Banstead Woods on the 24th was a surprising three weeks later than London’s previous latest date. A Great Grey Shrike at Wanstead Flats on the 29th was London’s first since the spring’s long-staying bird at Bury Farm, Edgware, last seen on 29th April.

A Tree Sparrow in Hyde Park on the 5th was the first since Feb 2014 at any London site other than its regular haunts (Tyttenhanger and Beddington).

A Serin at Leyton Flats on the 12th was London’s fourth in the past 12 months. Formerly a very rare vagrant in London, this species has in the 21st century become a near-annual visitor in autumn or spring, with several birds famously overwintering at Rainham Marshes in 2008–09 and 2009–10.

London’s first Hawfinch since April was at Fryent Country Park on the 1st, the first Snow Bunting since March was at Rainham Marshes on the 29th and the year’s first Lapland Bunting (a near-annual passage migrant seen more often in October than any other month) passed over Barnes on Oct 19th.

(Contributed by Andrew Haynes, who accepts full responsibility for any errors. Historical information is based on earlier reports on this wiki and on ‘The Birds of London' by Andrew Self.)