Taking the gloss off

Bouyed up by yesterdays Glossy Ibis sighting over Leytonstone, I arrived at EIDB early to coincide with the rising tide. Clear skies and a keen NW wind are not usually conditions that are productive in this area, and that was the case. The Thames was very quiet with just four Oystercatchers moving downriver the only sighting of note on the river. Overhead was quiet as was the copse (1 Willow Warbler) and the northern scrub. There were three Common Sandpipers on Bow Creek and a singing Linnet at Orchard Wharf. A singing Reed Warbler at the Ecology Park gave brief views and a Blackcap was in song. Wildfowl are gradually decreasing in numbers, with 30 Tufted Ducks and seven Teal. The Thames usually comes to life in the 2nd week of April so things should start moving soon.