Summer in the city - June 2007
Cormorant
Up to 5 birds were recorded on the 5th.
Canada Goose
There were very few reports this month.
Mallard
The odd sighting persisted with a couple of drakes seen over Chats Paddock on the 17th and a further 3 flew over on the 20th.
Sparrowhawk
The couple of sightings reported became our sum total for this month.
Kestrel
The odd bird was noticed during the month, usually around the embankment area.
Black-headed Gull
A moulting adult flew north over Lester's Embankment on the 20th.
Herring Gull
As usual, these large gulls were a regular sight over The Scrubs during June. The 15th saw over 35 birds initially on the pitches closest the prison take off and fly past the prison buildings in 1 flock.
Lesser Black-back
This majestic gull was in short supply during the month with the daily maxima being no more than 5.
Woodpigeon
Numbers were fairly constant with around 100 birds present.
Stock Dove
The only record was of 1 bird that flew over Martin Bell's Wood on the 20th.
Collared Dove
The usual sparing sightings were recorded during June.
Swift
Consistent flocks were swirling overhead with upwards of 40 seen most days. Over 50 birds were counted on the 17th. The constant rain may affect these birds breeding successes, as the insect numbers will be down. If things worsen, they have been known to up sticks and basically head back to Africa early.
Rose-ringed Parakeet
It's pretty hard to ignore these colonists even when we try to walk past them with our fingers in our ears! At least 30 presented themselves to us on the 20th. The large roost at Central Copse still exists though has not been counted recently.
Green Woodpecker
A bird was heard at the month's end in Martin Bell's Wood.
Great Spotted Woodpecker
The occasional bird was heard calling from Martin Bell's Wood towards the end of the month.
Swallow
A couple of late birds passed through on the 4th and were the only records for the month.
House Martin
A singleton was observed drifting over the grassland feeding on the 27th. This was probably the first recent June record.
Meadow Pipit
Our now famous colony (or infamous - depending on what side of the sign post you sit on) seem to be thriving with birds seen carrying food, displaying and singing from the bushes that dot the grassland. A lot of local people were really getting into spotting our new celebrities.
Pied Wagtail
Away from their stadium stronghold, a male was watched feeding on the pitches near the north east corner of The Scrubs.
Grey Wagtail
A female was discovered feeding on the concrete picnic area by Old Oak Common Lane on the 5th. It or another was seen in flight in the vicinity a little while later.
Wren
This diminutive songster was most noted along the northern edge of the site.
Dunnock
As usual, no counts were made but they seemed to be pretty prevalent.
Robin
Juveniles were noted from all over The Scrubs.
Song Thrush
This shy common thrush continued to be seen ferrying food to and from their hidden nests. Juveniles were seen throughout the month.
Mistle Thrush
A singleton flew through heading east towards the stadium on the 17th.
Blackbird
Plenty of juveniles were seen during the month.
Blackcap
The breeding season was well underway with several pairs raising broods. Perhaps the most visible of these was the family near the north west corner.
Lesser Whitethroat
As usual for this time of the year, our birds have hushed up and slipped undercover as they raise their broods. They will probably surface again in July as they feed their ever-hungry fledglings.
Flaming June!
This was a term used as an expletive as opposed to the usual connotation of hazy lazy summer days. Our colleagues in Metrological Office have mooted that June 2007 was the wettest ever on record. Boy, did it rain! And why always in the mornings? The weather succeeded in keeping us tucked in our beds staring at raindrops running down our windowpanes instead of logging the avian delights down at our beloved Scrubs!
Granted, June is historically a dull month with the resident birds quietly indulging in raising families. But to quote the urban birder daily chant: Anything can turn up any where at anytime - and if you're not there to see it, then you won't see it.
This mantra was borne out with the discovery of 2 separate singing Reed Warblers, a complete rarity here this time of year. Nationally, this summer visitor is normally a denizen of riparian haunts, so to find singing birds in bushes situated near busy roads, miles from any suitable habitat was pretty surprising.
The second oddity of the month was the discovery of a singing male Reed Bunting in the grassland. Again, during the summer this is a bird more associated with reedy areas (hence the name) through prone to wandering during the winter. At best, this attractive bunting is usually a very scarce winter visitor here. Alas, our June bird only stuck around for an hour or so.
Following on from the feral Barnacle Goose that flapped over during May, a pair of Bar-headed Geese was discovered loafing on the football pitches by our ever-vigilant groundsmen. Bar-heads hail from high altitudes in Central Asia. These birds probably came from no further than Regents Park!
Finally, following the success of May's Dawn Chorus Walk there will be a Summer Bird Walk on Sunday 29th July starting at 10am. Download the leaflet at http://www.scrubs-online.org.uk
See you then!
Contributors: David Jeffreys, David Lindo, Franko Marovich, Roy Nuttall et al.
If you have details of any sightings or observations of unusual behaviour please sent them on no matter how trivial they may seem to: david@theurbanbirder.com
Common Whitethroat
This common warbler was particularly noticeable along Lester's Embankment and in the grassland. There appears to be a general decrease in our population though with very few frequenting Martin Bell's Wood.
Sedge Warbler
A late bird was heard quietly singing on the 3rd. This bird constituted our first ever June record.
Reed Warbler
Our first record for the year occurred on the 15th when an elusive singer was located in Martin Bell's Wood. This bird had a few hearts racing as 'Reed Warblers' found in non-watery habitat at this time of year can sometimes turn out to be the much rarer though extremely similar Marsh Warbler. A second bird was heard singing the hedge next to the cottage by Old Oak Common Lane at 6am on the 20th.
These birds were the first to be reported here since the mid nineties when a male was found singing in the 'Back Passage' east of Chats Paddock.
Chiffchaff
A couple birds were heard singing throughout the month.
Great Tit
There seemed to plentiful amounts of Great Tits during the month, but of course nobody counted them! At least 15 birds were encountered on the 20th, most of which were juveniles.
Blue Tit
As with its larger cousin there were no counts done, but on the 20th there was a grossly under estimated count of at least 10 birds - again most of which were juveniles.
Long-tailed Tit
The nicest image of this adorable species this month was of a large family party of 12 birds preening and sunning themselves, decorating the hedge alongside the cottage by Old Oak Common Lane.
Magpie
This cheeky bird was plentiful during the month with at least 20 birds encountered during our daily visits.
Jackdaw
Reports were far and few between with 2 passing over on the 5th and another 2 singles on the 15th.
Carrion Crow
The usual array of crows was to be seen dotted around the fields or patrolling the skies. 'Choco' the aberrant crow with the curious chocolate coloured plumage continued to be reported during the month. This individual has been at large since at least the spring.
House Sparrow
There was a fairly good showing of this once familiar species this month with up to 30 counted on the 20th including a male as far over as near the Linford Christie Stadium.
Chaffinch
The breeding birds in Central Copse became invisible, though this could have been due to the lack of visits. However, a female was discovered lurking in the bushes by Braybrook Street on the 17th.
Linnet
A healthy gathering of over 30 birds was roaming the grassland and Lester's Embankment throughout the month.
Goldfinch
The numbers of this attractive finch began to rise with up to 40 around in the vicinity. The amount of juveniles seemed very low. This time last year up to 200 birds were congregating on the grassland.
Greenfinch
Males were still observed in song flight plus family parties were a frequently encountered.
Reed Bunting
A singing male was discovered in the grassland on the 17th before flying off towards Braybrook Street. It was again heard (though not seen) singing from the grassland later that morning. This represented the first singing Reed Bunting at The Scrubs.
Compartments within Wormwood Scrubs
Martin Bell's Wood - formally known as the Southern Paddock is situated on the south eastern corner close to Scrubs Lane.
Scrubs Lane Wood - the strip of woodland on the eastern edge of the site running the length of Scrubs Lane to the east and along the northern edge to Chats Paddock in the west.
Chats Paddock - will also be known as the main lizard habitat.
Lester's Embankment - marks the north western border of the Scrubs and is also referred to as 'the embankment'. Now named after Lester Holloway who in the 80's unsuccessfully campaigned to stop British Rail developing on the Scrubs.
North West Corner - the western edge of the Scrubs.
Braybrook Woods - the woodland strip running along the southern edge from Braybrook Street up to and including outside the prison along the southern parameter.
2007 Year List - thus far
Cormorant, Grey Heron, Little Egret, Mute Swan, Canada Goose, Greylag, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Sparrowhawk, Peregrine, Hobby, Kestrel, Moorhen, Lapwing, Grey Plover, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-back, Great Black-back, Common Tern, Woodpigeon, Stock Dove, Collared Dove, Cuckoo, Rose-ringed Parakeet, Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Skylark, House Martin, Swallow, Sand Martin, Tree Pipit, Meadow Pipit, Yellow Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Grey Wagtail, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Stonechat, Black Redstart, Northern Wheatear, Whinchat, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Redwing, Fieldfare, Ring Ouzel, Blackbird, Reed Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Common Whitethroat, Blackcap, Garden Warbler, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Jay, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Rook, Jackdaw, Starling, House Sparrow, Chaffinch, Linnet, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Bullfinch, Reed Bunting
75 species thus far