The month got off to a spectacular start when two great white egrets flew over on the 1^st. This species was rare in London around ten years ago but in recent years we have tended to get one or two sightings here every year. The following day saw a visit from four common sandpipers. This species is one of our most common passage migrants but a count of four is unusual.

We didn’t have to wait long for another highlight, when on the 4^th the first spotted flycatcher (above) of the year was found in a tree along the New River. A few days later two birds would be seen together in an Oak along the woodland trail. On the same day as the first spotted flycatcher, we had another rare sighting, when a flock of twelve sandwich terns was seen passing-by southbound to the east of the site. The flock had been seen a few minutes earlier at Walthamstow.

The next rarity was on the 11^th when a female pintail (below)  was found on the open water near the water outlet.  Whilst this species is known to overwinter in the London area, they aren’t often found far away from the Thames. This was the first record here of this elegant duck.

The flock of around thirty house martins (below) which had been seen through August were still frequently seen in September, witht the flock being boosted to around seventy on the 27^th, with two swallows being amongst them.

Meadow pipit is a species which is expected to be heard flying over in autumn and our first of the year was on the 14^th, with a few more in the remainder of the month. The first water rail of the winter was heard in the reed-bed on the 16^th and seen a few days later near the water outlet. This was also the location of the first snipe of the winter, which was seen on the 19^th. The latter two species will be here until next spring now, although both can be difficult to see. Other returning winter birds were two teal on the 21^st and the first common gull of winter on the 28^th, around a week earlier than usual.

The total number of bird species seen here in September 2024 was 63, two higher than last September although still a few below the recent historical average for the month.