July Wetland Bird survey urban River Hull

 The high tide at 7:45 marked the time for my third Wetland Bird Survey count at the urban river Hull stretch. The season is going get interesting soon with returning waders. I walked to Scott Street bridge site, the first view point over the river Hull. A family of Lesser black-backed Gulls was on a roof. The first of several today. Some Black-headed gulls were also on the river. 

A large flock of pigeons feeding on spilled grain on a factory.

Lesser black-back gull juvenile begging.

Next is a section where the river is not visible. I take a quick detour around the Charterhouse cemetery.

A squirrel on a poplar by the Charterhouse cemetery.

The river becomes visible again at North Bridge. Looking North.

I cross the bridge. Early Sunday there is very little traffic. I join the footpath. The blackberries are looking good, still a bit sharp, maybe a couple of days out of being ripe. When I take a photo of them I notice the Vapoureur caterpillar.

Vapoureur caterpillar.

Nothing too exciting on the river between both bridges, but from Drypool bridge I see a Black-headed gull roost or about 30 on the roof of the Royal Mail depot. I'm glad I found this, as the rooftop is invisible once you cross the bridge. Must check it every time I do the WeBS count.

As I walk along the river bank, heading downstream, I regularly scan the rim of the flood defences, hoping to find some Mallard, or Redshank. I scan distractedly their usual roost site by the buoy shed, surely they can't be back yet, but they are! Ten of them in a neat line, looking like they are still settling down, stretching, preening, mostly awake, quiet. I scan their legs and can't see a ring (but Andy Gibson notices one in a photo I later share on twitter). I meet Carol, who walks along the river most days enjoying the wildlife and notices I'm watching with binoculars. We shares the joy of watching the returned Redshank. They must be just back from their summer grounds.

A Black-headed gull checks its feet by the Truelove installation.

I walk by the Dock stage and some faint peeping draws my attention: it's a moorhen chick calling. It's parent dutifully brings it some food. I think it's the first time I see moorhens here.

Moorhen and chick at The Dock Stage.

I always see a pair of Carrion Crows by the tidal barrier (top shot), a few weeks ago they had young, today I found the unusual location for their nest. They must have great views when incubating!

Pair of crows with their nest at the tidal barrier.

A Lesser black-back young recently fledges, still some down on its head.

More LBBG young.

Seventeen Mallard roosting mostly on the saltmarsh south of Scale Lane bridge. Some look like young of the year. This female watched intently as I scanned the saltmarsh.

A final highlight is watching a Peregrine, flushing the pigeons, swerving around a building rooftop, exhilarating!

On the walk back there are sunny spells and I do three butterfly counts on the way home, including on Milky Way. Two Migrant Hawkers hunt at the Artlink, the first I see in Hull this year.