Come and join us for a walk through the Park and the Old Sewage Works listening out for bird calls and their songs. Learn how to identify different species, including some newly arrived migrant birds establishing their territory for the summer
Wren Window Watch
For those people not able to join the Wren Dawn Chorus walk on 25th April (starting at the Tea Hut in Wanstead Park at 6 o’clock in the morning) we are proposing a Wren Window Watch. The idea is to note down all the birds seen from a window, or in the garden if the weather is good, at about the same time as the walk. (You can of course have a cup of tea or coffee to hand!)
We would also like to try an experiment. If you have a smart phone, you can download the Merlin Bird ID app., available for Apple or Android. Some of you will know this app., but for those that don’t, it allows the recording of bird songs and calls. When Merlin is on, press the Sound ID (microphone) button and leave the phone on the windowsill or outside (unless it’s raining!) – it will list all the birds it hears. Press the save button at the end and the list is there for you to look at. You can focus on seeing the birds, Merlin will record what it hears. The experiment is to see what the difference is between what’s seen and what’s heard (by AI) during the Window Watch.
If those taking part can send their list of birds seen (date, time, and length of recording, please) to bob.wvaughan@gmail.com I will put the data together.
If we have enough members willing to try out Merlin and send those lists in with their sightings, we will have some interesting comparisons. Merlin isn’t 100% reliable, but then neither are my eyes sometimes these days.
I will write up some conclusions for the Newsletter.
There will be an extra session of practical work to plant Yellow Rattle in the OSW on the 23rd April from 10-12 Meet at the Stables Gate, Empress Avenue Leader: Penny Evans
All welcome, tools and gloves provided but come dressed for work and the weather.
Happy Easter!
The Wren 2026 Spring Newsletter is here to bring nature news with a promise of summer: Newsletter_54_Spring26 :
Lepidoptera report 2024: Butterflies and Moths
A comprehensive, well-illustrated report on the Butterflies and Moths found in the Wanstead area in 2024. Compiled by Tim Harris
Save our Skylarks
Several pairs of the iconic ground-nesting Skylark breed on Wanstead Flats. These birds represent the closest population of breeding larks to the centre of London but for how much longer? Nationally, the population of Skylarks has been in decline for decades so the Wren Group – in conjunction with the City of London Corporation – is determined to do all it can to protect their numbers locally. In 2021, and each year since, temporary fencing has been erected around two areas of the Flats. Between March and early September, this has meant that the birds – whose eggs and chicks are particularly vulnerable to disturbance – were protected from heavy human and canine footfall during the nesting season. This protection paid off handsomely last year with at least four young raised – the best breeding success for quite a few years.
We hope the larks repeat that success this year, and that we will begin to see the recolonisation of more areas of the Flats. In order to reduce the use of single-use plastic fencing, the City of London Corporation is this year experimenting with blue rope to demarcate the two areas people are politely being asked to keep out of. Please respect this fencing, the future of our larks may depend on it. If you see the rope being vandalised, please report to the police 101.
