Bird Deaths at Alexandra Lake, Wanstead Flats

Alexandra Lake on Wanstead Flats was cordoned off from Tuesday 9th March following the discovery of a number of dead crows. It was thought that poison may had been administered in the feeding area adjacent to the car park.

Epping Forest staff and vehicles, 9th March

Epping Forest staff wearing protective clothing were collecting dead birds on Wednesday 10th. It was reported that many crows and pigeons as well as Canada geese, a greylag goose, coots and moorhens had been found dead. A dog - reputedly a German shepherd - is also reported to have died after a walk by the lake.

A statement dated 11th March from The Warren, Epping Forest, read:

"There have been unexplained bird deaths on and around Alexandra Lake and we have also received details of the death of a dog that was taken for a walk in the area of the Lake on 8th March. The area has been cordoned off and warning signs have been erected. Natural England, in association with the Environment Agency is leading on an investigation. Epping Forest Keepers are on site to give out advice and the public are urged to stay away from the area and keep their dogs on leads. Post mortem examinations of some of the dead birds are being carried out by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency. The City of London, the Environment Agency, DEFRA, Met Police and LBR Environmental Health will all take appropriate actions following on the results of these tests."

Carrion Crow found dead on the playing fields on 12 MarchTests at the lake were carried out on Thursday 11th by officers from Natural England, the body which advises the Government on the natural environment, but it was necessary for tests to be carried out on specimens of dead birds by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency before the cause was known.

On Saturday morning "London Tonight" conducted interviews at the lake with Keith French - the Forest Services Manager from Epping Forest, Jonathan Lethbridge - a local birdwatcher who was one of the first to notice the dead birds, and John Smith of the Wanstead Historical Society.

Up to Saturday morning 87 dead birds had been collected by Forest staff. The crow pictured above was recovered from the playing fields that morning, and another crow and a moorhen were found dead by the lake. Whilst we were there, we watched a pigeon staggering about and then ultimately dying - a distressing sight which was reminiscent of scenes in 1992 when a build-up of toxins in the lake caused by excessive feeding resulted in the deaths of many birds and fish. (see here) The suspicion is that although that incident was accidental, the present situation may well be deliberate. It is known for example that some local residents are not happy about the pigeons that roost on their property, and people using the Flats for recreation have been heard to comment on the large numbers (up to 200 at times) of Canada geese that tend to leave their droppings around the lake. Whether or not it is found that this time the poisoning was deliberate, it may be that steps should be taken to limit the amount of food that is put down for the birds; I am sure that most of the people that bring food for the birds would be horrified to realise just what problems arise from their benevolence - be it accidental or deliberate.

"Biohazard" warningA news release issued by the City of London on Wednesday 30 August 2006 read as follows:

"Please do not feed the birds in Epping Forest.

The City of London, the conservator of Epping Forest, is today asking visitors to stop feeding birds on all of the ponds throughout the Forest.

Over 40 waterfowl (swans, ducks and geese) have died at Eagle Pond in Snaresbrook in the last week alone. The cause of death is confirmed by Animal Rescue organisations to be poisoning, due to food in the water.

Kevin Garten from The Swan Sanctuary said: “A fantastic amount of discarded food is being put into the ponds and this is extremely harmful to the waterfowl, resulting in poisoning and death of the birds.”

The feeding of birds, particularly people leaving large quantities of waste food, throughout Epping Forest is highly detrimental to both the health of the birds and the local landscape. Discarded food also encourages vermin, which causes problems for residents who live near to Forest land.

Epping Forest Superintendent, Mat Roberts, said: “The problem experienced at Eagle Pond last week is not isolated and we would urge people to stop feeding the birds at all of the ponds throughout Epping Forest.”

Another dead bird - a Coot by the lake on 16th March

I hadn't received any such releases or statements until the one relating to the present incident on 11th March, although there are clear signs regarding feeding birds at places such as Alexandra Lake. Maybe some on-the-spot fines could be imposed that may act as a deterrent? Notices often appear to go unheeded these days - those at the entrances to Wanstead Park that state "No Cycling" are an example  - but it was particularly worrying to see that during the afternoon of Sunday 14th - Mother's Day - people were beyond the taped-off cordon at the lake-edge, feeding the birds. This included two families with children, one of whom I judged to be about four years old. Although the Epping Forest statement of Wednesday stated that Epping Forest staff were on site to give out advice, this was not the case on a sunny Mothering-Sunday afternoon - just the time when families might take their children to "feed the ducks"!

I understand that - after watching a pigeon dying by the lake-side just before the film-crew arrived on Saturday morning - no more dead birds were found. However in the morning on Tuesday 16th there was a dead Coot near the feeding area by the lake. What was also evident was that much of the tape was now broken and streaming from the posts, and in some cases detached and finding its way into shrubs and trees.

Feeding Hazard at Alexandra Lake

By Monday 15th March morning, a number of local newspapers had also taken up the story, including the Newham Recorder and the Wanstead and Woodford Guardian. The London Evening Standard had an article in their Monday edition, and BBC News reported on the incident on Monday as well. I have to say that I haven't seen birds "dropping out of trees" as has been reported, but the sight of dead and dying birds near the feeding area (pictured above) was distressing. The water appeared to be in good condition, and those birds that would more typically not take much of the food offered by humans - such as shoveler ducks and little grebes (dabchicks) so far seemed unaffected. That said, even shoveler sometimes waddle on their short legs out of the water to take food from the ground (a difficult process, given the shape of their bills), and the dead coot on Tuesday morning seems to indicate that there is still a problem.

If the water was toxic in some way, this might have caused problems to the nearby Alders Brook - a concern expressed to me by the Manager of the nearby City of London Cemetery - because some of the outflow from Alexandra Lake is thought to be an important source of the brook. (see here)

On Tuesday 16th, a press release was issued stating that two men aged 35 and 27 had been arrested by Metropolitan Police 's Wildlife Crime Unit in the Forest Gate area at about 8am on suspicion of breaching pesticide control regulations.

Another poison-scare at Alexandra Lake on the 19th MarchWednesday morning showed no more dead birds, but a very sad notice had been put up by the owner of Russett, the five-year-old male German Shepherd cross that died on Monday evening after a walk past the lake. On Friday March 19th an Epping Forest keeper found a plastic bag containing a sugar-like substance by Alexandra Lake. The police and fire services were called, and by 3.15pm there were police and seven fire service vehicles on scene. Thankfully this turned out to be suger - perhaps some practical joker? - but the saga continued!

On Saturday morning, there was again the sad sight of a bird dying as I watched - this time a Carrion Crow with vomit from its mouth, hardly moving at first, but then struggling to open its wings as it lay on the gravel by the lake. The poison was still having an effect, and by now the tape cordon was being renewed apparently each morning.

Early on Thursday 25th, a metal security fence was erected at the west end of the lake, encompassing that area most used for feeding, adjacent to the car-park. Up until then, the tape cordon had been renewed apparently daily by Epping Forest staff (subsequent to the Mothering-Sunday incident!), but it seems that the main concern - as was originally suspected - was in the feeding area. I have not heard of any further deaths since the Carrion Crow on Saturday 20th, and still the water-birds that do not normally feed on land seem to have been unaffected.

Security barrier at Alexandra LakePossibly because of the fact that people had been arrested, and maybe with the possibility of criminal investigations, I received no further updates on what was happening. I have only heard second-hand that many more birds have been found dead than have been reported in the newspapers, and that at least one fox is also said to have died.

I received a call from the Newham Recorder on 1st April asking if I knew of any previous instances of deliberate poisoning like this, and I pointed out that previous problems with birds - and other creatures - dying on Alexandra Lake was the result of build-up of toxins in the lake caused by an excess of decaying food-material. I was told that the police had informed them that the poison has been identified as an agricultural pesticide of a group called Carbamates. The usual cause of death from poisoning by carbamate compounds is - apparently - respiratory depression combined with fluid accumulation in the lungs. This latter agrees with the crow that I saw dying with a foamy vomit coming from its mouth. Some of the pesticides available are highly toxic to birds, although apparently the toxicity varies from one bird species to another, let alone from one animal species to another.

The cordon and the security fence were taken down on the morning of 1st April, as it was felt that it was now safe for people and dogs.