counting coots

Yesterday in the patch, there was a couple of Jackdaws which is uncommon round here and a Sparrowhawk which was being mobbed by a Carrion Crow.  Peristently.  Interestingly there is an almost identical entry on the London Birders wiki which was much the same for the Westfield Centre.  (For those don't know what the Westfield Centre is you'll love it or hate it.  A shrine to the temple of greed and shopping.  Like a ruddy great Arndale centre pumped Ben Johnson like full of steroids). Unfortunately the time of the W12 sighting has not been entered, but I think that it is entirely feasible that the same birds could have been borough hopping during the course of the day.  If a Crow has got enough food inside it for the rest of the day, I can quite imagine it following a Sparrowhawk for hours, just because it can.

Other than that, it is mainly gulls at the moment.  Suprised aren't you?  Elsewhere, near the attentuation pond it looks like a path is being made.  Whether or not this is going to open for public use yet I don't know but if it does it will make following the river much much easier.