Old Friends And A New Hawk

It was unusually quiet when I arrived at the lower Vicar's Hill gate on 27 June for our monthly bird survey. Not a single bird could be heard - a strange experience after so many months of listening to constant calls and song. Then, faintly in the distance, I heard a Dunnock start up and after a few elegant notes from a Blackbird and a short outburst from a Wren, we were in business. Certainly, the birds seen were fewer in number as Sue and I wandered around the park but by stopping, looking and listening, by waiting for the birds to break cover, we had a list of 20 different species by the end of the morning. And that doesn't include the new species of hawk (Falco plasticus) seen on the bowling green.

We heard Blackcaps singing around the wood and upper Eastern Rd, while down on the north field, it was great to come across our old friends the Mistle Thrush pair who haven't been too visible in recent months. When seen, it is usually on grassland where they forage for worms and other invertebrates. Apologies for the poor quality of the pic below but it is at full zoom.

Meanwhile, on the nearby cricket pitch, a pair of Feral Pigeons were busy gobbling up the grass seed put down by Glendale on the bare patches which, needless to say, are still bare. Their ex-country cousins, the Woodpigeons were feeding on the grassland too - fifteen in total, the highest number of any species seen. For a while, we watched a lone Goldfinch singing from Keith's TV aerial on Cliffview Rd, visible from the park. And then just as we turned to the cafe, a Great Spotted Woodpecker zoomed across the east field in its familiar dipping flight. Other birds seen and/or heard were Starlings (7), Robins, Great Tits, Blue Tits, Chaffinches, Greenfinches, a Ring-necked Parakeet, Crows, Magpies, House Sparrows and 2 Swifts circling above.

Meanwhile, in other nature news, the leaves of the horse chestnut trees are once again being ravaged by the micro moth, Cameraria Ohridella. This tiny little creature eats away the leaves from the inside creating a brown staining effect (called 'leaf mines') which gets worse as the summer goes on. What a contrast to their green vigour and white-blossomed glory of only a few weeks ago.

27 June

21 April

Hilly Fields Big Birdwatch 2014: The Results

It rained. Not heavily but fairly persistently throughout our Big Birdwatch event on 26 January. Were we downhearted? No. After all, we're British and used to it, especially this winter. We set out our stall under the sheltering roof of the cafe, stiffened our upper lips and got on with it. And thankfully people came along, many bringing their children to experience that unique phenomenon known as 'the outdoors'. Lard and seed were moulded into fatballs and hung from nearby trees, bird badges were made and, as always, people either took a survey sheet and went round by themselves or came round on one of the guided tours. And by the end of the event, we'd seen 20 species, only one less than last year which considering the weather is a bloomin' miracle.

Bird badge making

Two species tied for highest number present: the Starling and the Black-headed Gull at 50 each. When it comes to ranking them though, I'm going to put the Starling first because there were so many flitting through the trees around the playground (and some on the ground as well) that I'm sure 50 was an underestimate. Next came the Common Gull with 16 being the max count, then a wonderful flock of 12 Goldfinches outside the school which, at one point, rose up together from the ground with a spectacular 'whoosh!'. There were also a pair of Greenfinches with them which are always nice to see (their numbers have fallen in recent years) and we had some very clear views of a Great Spotted Woodpecker just outside the wood and 2 cute little Long-tailed Tits in the garden next to the bowling green.

Starlings [Stock photo]

The full list is as follows:

1. Starling - 50+
2. Black-headed Gull - 50
3. Common Gull - 16 
4. Goldfinch - 12 
5. Feral Pigeon - 7 
6. Wood pigeon - 5 
7. Blue Tit, Crow - 4 of each
8. House Sparrow - 3
9. Blackbird, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Robin - 2 of each
10. Chaffinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Mistle Thrush, Ring-necked Parakeet, Wren - 1 of each

The gulls are a major presence in the park at the moment and we're still being asked how you tell Black-headed and Common apart. There are various distinguishing features but the simplest details to remember are as follows:

• Black-headed Gull - red legs and bill, black spot next to the eye
• Common Gull        - yellow (or greenish-yellow) legs and bill, slightly bigger

The Black-headed Gull has a white head in autumn and winter and a dark chocolate brown head in spring and summer when it's breeding. From a distance that can look black, which is how it got its name.

Common Gull left, Black-headed Gull right  at Hilly Fields

Thanks are due to Rachel from the Friends of Hilly Fields and Judith from Glendale who ran the stall, to my fellow bird champions Sue, Keith and Terry, to Rachel Hale for bringing the badge making kit, to Fred and Ruth from the cafe and to our ever helpful parkie, Lee. Our next bird event will be the famous Hilly Fields Dawn Chorus Walk (oh, stop groaning) on a date yet to be fixed in late March/ early April. See you all then!

November Bird Survey

What a difference a month can make. At the end of October, I was moaning about the "dense foliage" hiding the small birds from view. By 27th November when we did this month's bird survey, the trees were almost bare, having been helped by some strong autumn winds to shed their leaves. As a result, the small birds were much more visible, even through the drizzle that splattered our optical aids. Walking around the park, we saw and/or heard at least 8 Robins, a couple of Wrens moving around tree trunks looking for insects, Chaffinches, Blue Tits, plenty of Great Tits (with a couple calling but not yet in full voice) and a small number of Long-tailed Tits alongside them. Close up, the Long-tailed Tit is an excessively cute little bird as can be seen in this recent photograph by Dave Bushell from the Kent Wildlife Trust page on Facebook.

Winter flocks are building up as well. At one point on Eastern Road, we saw about 20 Goldfinch suddenly rise en masse from a single tree, startled by a Mistle Thrush flying nearby. And at least 20 Starlings were making a communal racket in a tree near the playground. On the lower field, the Black-headed Gulls had returned in force, having been absent for most of the month. Perhaps they'd heard that the weather was about to turn cold. We counted 40 in total with a pair of Common Gulls among them. And along the path that borders the Cliffview Rd back gardens, we found 7 House Sparrows lurking in the hedgerows - which almost does constitute a "flock" these days for what was once the commonest bird in London.

In addition, we saw Wood Pigeons, Feral Pigeons, Blackbirds, Crows, Magpies and our old friend or enemy, the Ring-necked Parakeet. A respectable tally of 18 different species in all.

August Bird Survey

The upper half of Eastern Road and the adjoining wood/nature reserve could almost be designated an AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Birdwatching) within Hilly Fields. Apart from the winter Gulls (and, come to think of it, the House Sparrow), almost every bird that frequents the park can be seen there at some time or other and it's particularly favoured by the smaller birds such as Tits, Finches, Blackcaps, Robins, Wrens and by Blackbirds. Obviously the number of trees is a big attraction, as is the cover provided by the sheer density of foliage, particularly the hawthorn scrub on the western side of the road. And at this time of year, the bright red haw berries provide a food source.

Blackbird in Hilly Fields Wood

Eastern Road also contributes one of the few sources of water for birds on Hilly Fields. On this month's survey (24 August), we watched a small flock of adult and juvenile Goldfinches along with a couple of Greenfinches swoop down from the roadside trees to drink from puddles in the gutters and little potholes - a sight we've often noted before. In the wood, we heard a couple of Robins singing for the first time since late spring - a sure sign that they're emerging from the summer moult. Wrens were singing there too. And flitting among the trees on the eastern side of Eastern Road was our old friend the Great Spotted Woodpecker, not seen since early June. In this full zoom photo, you can just about make out its black, white and red colouring.

Elsewhere in the park, we saw Great Tits, Blue Tits, Blackbirds, Magpies, Crows, Feral Pigeons, House Sparrows, Ring-necked Parakeets and Wood Pigeons. In addition, Sue intended to listen to her birdsong CDs to determine whether the "chink" (or was it "pink"?) we heard could have been a Chaffinch calling. This makes a reasonably wide range of species, albeit in small numbers apart from the "Woodies". Still no sign of any Starlings. Earlier in the month, I saw a pair of Mistle Thrushes in the Eastern Road hawthorns and a Jay in the poplars along the Stones Field boundary, so it's good to know they're still around.

Meanwhile, in other news, something is coming to fruition along Eastern Road - yes, it's also an Area of Outstanding Natural Blackberrying. If you haven't been along there with your bowl yet, now's the time.

July Bird Survey

Our July bird survey took place on the 31st - a cloudy day with fleeting glimpses of the sun. We began at the lower Vicars Hill entrance and immediately heard and saw some Long-tailed Tits in the trees there - probably no more than three, but a welcome sight. Sue also spotted three Swifts soaring overhead. These  incredible flyers return home earlier than Martins and Swallows and will probably be back in Africa by the time we do our end-of-August survey.

Stock photo: Common Swift

Moving on around the park, we saw and heard a male Great Spotted Woodpecker, heard a Mistle Thrush's alarm call, saw a flock of 7 Goldfinches around Eastern Road (including some juveniles which don't yet have the red heads of the adult - see photo below), a flock of 11 Woodpigeons on the Eastern field and 4 House Sparrows in their usual playground - the hedgerow bordering the back gardens of Cliffview Road.

Juvenile Goldfinch: black and yellow wings but no red face or black crown as in the adult [Photo: Tom]

In addition, we saw and/or heard 3 Blue Tits and small numbers of Great Tits, Wrens, Robins, Feral Pigeons, Crows, 1 Magpie (much sorrow!), Blackbirds and at the very end of the survey...a pair of Coal Tits, one seen and one heard by Sue in the Vicars Hill border trees. The Coal Tit is a quite uncommon bird on Hilly Fields, last recorded on our Bird Track pages in 2010. However, we may have overlooked it in the past as they can sound like Great Tits, hang upside down like Blue Tits and mix with Long-tailed Tits!

Stock photo: Coal Tit

In all, a total of 16 species were recorded which is not bad for the quiet summer months. The most noticeable absentees were Starlings, which seem to have moved elsewhere for a while, and Ring-necked Parakeets though those little darlings/birds/pests (as you prefer) still come and go on a daily basis.

Bird Count Highlights

Bird counts at Hilly Fields have continued on a monthly basis and details can now be found on the Lewisham Nature Conservation website: http://natureconservationlewisham.co.uk/the-parks/

Some of the recent highlights are as follows:

• Two Chiffchaffs were heard calling on 29 September - a first for Hilly Fields since the Bird Champion scheme began. Probably a rest stop on their migratory journey, although an increasing number of these warblers are over-wintering in the UK

• Five Mistle Thrushes were seen on 10 October in the line of trees leading down to Hilly Fields Crescent 

• A Blackcap was spotted in the trees bordering Vicars Hill on 26 October. These are still uncommon on HF although one was heard singing in the wood during our dawn chorus walk back in May

•  Long-tailed Tits - a flock of about 12 seen in the trees bordering Vicars Hill on 26 October. Lovely birds if you can get a close-up view

• Great Spotted Woodpecker - a clear eye-level view of one on 26 October, hammering away at the trunk of a tree near the playground. The GSW has an unmistakeable combination of black, white and red colours and a bouncy flight

• Goldfinches - a flock of about 16 is usually seen and heard in the trees around Prendergast School

 What we haven't seen yet are any Redwings, although they've been pouring into the country from Scandinavia since mid-October. Members of the thrush family, Redwings can be identified by a clear white stripe along the side of the head and, believe it or not, by a touch of red under the wing. They've turned up for the last three winters on Hilly Fields with as many as 40 counted in January 2010. If you see any, please let us know via the comments below.