Dock Leave

An early morning visit before I head off for Cornwall for a few days, hopefully to see a few good birds and recharge the batteries. Its still very quiet on the river, the Thames in this area has so far failed to produce, though just a few miles down river at Barking and Creekmouth there have been plenty of good birds. Maybe the "Spanish Plume" will bring some stuff in. The most interesting sighting today on the Thames was a Common Seal hauled out on the 02 mudflats. Four Oystercatchers flew down the river and that was about it. A female House Sparrow was at the Ecology Park, a unusual sight here, though May is the best time to see this species here, and a Lesser Whitethroat was singing at Bow Creek. The Common Swift was as usual elusive, this must be one of the few places where Swifts can be absent from a year list (it has happened).