To be honest July was another quiet month for the valley with very little seen during the poor weather that ended the month or the sweltering weather that started the month. 2 good birds were recorded just outside the valley with a Great White Egret mid month along the Dollis Brook at Brook Farm open Space and also a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker spending 2 days in a Finchley garden at the beginning of the month, suggesting that this species still attempts to breed in the area and isn't completely lost. For the valley my bird of the month is hard to chose from since nothing much of interest was recorded. I will however give it to the 8 Hobby that were seen over Belmont Farm on the 17th which came as a surprise to me and many others as this included 3 very early juvenile birds. Tufted ducks were still present at Long pond all month with 2 on the 2nd, 1 on 10th, and 1 on 14th. This is an unusual record as most years they only arrive for spring and depart before the beginning of June. perhaps local breeding will soon exist? Bullfinch were also present throughout the month with 2 on 2nd, 1 on 10th, and 1 on 14th. Barn Swallow had some very good high counts this month with 60+ on 9th, and 100+ on the 17th suggesting a good breeding season for them this year especially as there are still some pairs with youngsters in the nest as I write this. Red kite had a very good month with 3 on 9th, 1 on the 10th, 1 on 14th, and finally 4 on 17th. Chiffchaff count peaked on the 10th with 20 seen, however this number was starting to pick up again towards the end of the month with migrants now moving through. Rook were still around during the month which will make it one of the only July's on record that has recorded this species before. 9 were seen on the 10th, with 4 seen on 12 and 6 on the 18th. Darlands lake suffered 2 extremes during the month. On the 10th it was officially noted as bone dry, but by the 12th July its banks were bursting and the lake had returned in force with above average water levels. Common Buzzards were present throughout the month with a max count of 8 being seen on the 17th. Also on the 17th a max count of 8 Hobby were seen with some unusually early Juveniles around as well suggesting a good year for them. 2 more Hobby were seen the next day on the 18th, but that was the last time they were recorded in the month. Swift numbers built up throughout the month to at least 64 on the 17th before numbers started to recede as their migration season started. The most interesting sighting of the month were the 8 unidentifiable Geese that flew over in v formation very high up on 18th. Linnet sightings were very scarce during the month with only one record of 2 on 18th. It was clear that migration had started towards the end of the month with Willow Warbler numbers starting to build. The first one was seen on the 20th, with 3 following on the 31st with one even deciding to give a brief snippet of their song. This was a pretty average July looking back at the records, however as I look towards writing the August round up i can already see that the migration season for the valley this year has been amazing and well above the yearly average. Contributed by Samuel Levy 14/09/17 Above: Bone Dry Folly Brook Below: Bullfinch Above: Mandarin Family on Bone Dry Darlands Below: Almost Bone Dry Darlands Below: Kestrel
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What can I expect from this blog?A Monthly summary will be written each month starting from May 2017, with photo's and reports of interesting species that have been found, as well as an update on the bird life in the valley. Sightings can be contributed via uploading to London Bird Wiki under the heading Totteridge Valley. Any pictures that have been taken can be submitted by email (This can be found on the contact us page)!!! We thank everyone for their contributions so far! Good Luck! Archives
December 2018
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