Despite the grim weather, it appears Spring has definitely sprung.

A cuckoo has been snapped in Erith, bringing joy to local bird-lovers, as the species is declining rapidly.

Experts have blamed a reduction in the large caterpillars which the cuckoos feast on with a loss of habitat in their African wintering grounds.

Twitter user @MikeFRobinson, who records wildlife sightings across south east London, posted the snap of the beautiful bird today (May 27) after originally seeing it on Friday.

He said: “The cuckoo, first seen on 23 May, still on the Erith Marshes four days later.”

The adult birds normally arrive in late March or April and depart in July or August and the younger birds leave a month or so later.

The Erith Marshes - near the Crossness Sewage Treatment Works - contain a huge and varied wildlife including the threatened water vole, birds, plants and invertebrates.

Visit rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/c/cuckoo/

Have you captured any great pictures of wildlife in the News Shopper patch recently? Email them to hwood@london.newsquest.co.uk