Senses Working Overtime

A clear blue sky, little wind and the heat already beginning to rise, and a mighty haze on the Thames. This was early morning at EIDB. There were half a dozen Common Terns on the Thames and four of these started to prospect the rafts on the Dock, an encouraging sign. Apart from this there was little on the river. Two Oystercatchers were on the Dock, an unusual occurance. EIDB can be a noisy sort of place and you need your ears plugged in and your eyes alert to detect sounds or movements from the scrub, A busy road passes behind the Northern scrub, and the Docklands Light Railway shuffles along above it, and the Dock is on the flightpath of the London City Airport. So hearing birds can be difficult particularly if the song is soft. But I thought I heard a Lesser Whitethroat in the Eastern Scrub, it was rattling very softly and also doing some sub-song. It appeared at the top of a small tree before moving to the Northern Scrub. I later heard another along Bow Creek. I was pleased to get this species (first for the year) as they can be difficult here. By 10.00am the Dock was boiling hot and it was time to leave.