New Years Day was a non-event with a gale and heavy rain all day!
My first visit of the year to my St. Nicholas Church local patch site on 2nd January 2025 produced just 12 species!
Fortunately, 3rd to 5th January 2025 was excellent and my 2025 UK year list increased to a more respectable 82 species with 65 of those in Essex.
I booked a rental car for this period for a trip away from home to include visits to a number of sites in Essex and Kent.
During my trip, I visited the following sites:
Stour estuary – Mistley Walls and Quay, Mistley, Essex
EWT Abberton Reservoir, Essex
Copt Hall marshes, Essex
RSPB Dungeness,
Kent
Elmley National Nature Reserve, Isle of Sheppey, Kent
RSPB Capel Fleet, Isle of Sheppey, Kent
EWT Hanningfield Reservoir, Essex
Friday 3rd January 2025
After picking up my rental car at Stansted airport, I drove 45 miles east to Stour estuary – Mistley Walls and Quay at Mistley in north Essex.
The Stour Estuary is a 2523 hectare Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) which stretches from Manningtree to Harwich in Essex and it forms the boundary between that County and Suffolk.
It is also an internationally important wetland Ramsar site and a Special Protection Area and part of the Suffolk and Essex Coast and Heaths National Landscape Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Part of the area is managed as RSPB Stour Estuary and another as EWT Wrabness.
I concentrated on the Mistley Walls and Quay area, a site that I visited for the first time during the Big County Birdwatch 2024 in October 2024.
I didn't stay long since I had mistaken when high tide was and I particularly wanted to spend a lot of time at EWT Abberton Reservoir.
However, my short visit did enable me to see large numbers of various ducks (most notably Red-breasted Merganser and Goldeneye) and waders, Grey Heron, Great Crested Grebe and 5 species of gulls.
After leaving Stour estuary – Mistley Walls and Quay, I drove 25 miles south to EWT Abberton Reservoir.
The huge expanse of EWT Abberton Reservoir just south of Colchester in Essex is one of Europe's top wetland sites. It is of international importance as a safe haven for wild ducks, swans and other water birds, whether resident, passing through on migration or over-wintering.
I recorded an excellent number of species, the only disappointment being failing to see Smew which had been reported in recent days.
The highlights during my visit were as follows: Black-throated Diver (1), Slavonian Grebe (1), Black-necked Grebe (10), Great Crested Grebe (at least 100), Bewick's Swan (2), Mute Swan (at least 20), Egyptian Goose (2), Coot (at least 100), Spoonbill (1), Great White Egret (2), Grey Heron (2), Cormorant (at least 100), Goosander (c.25), Goldeneye (c.20), Pintail (2), Wigeon (++), Tufted Duck (++), Common Pochard (++), Teal (++), Mallard (+), Gadwall (+), Shoveler (+), Black-tailed Godwit (at least 250), Lapwing (at least 50), Ringed Plover (at least 50), Dunlin (at least 10), Common Redshank (3), Ruff (2), Green Sandpiper (1), Greater Black-backed Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull, Black-headed Gull, Peregrine (1), Common Buzzard (1), Rock Pipit (1), Stonechat (1)
Photo: Slavonian Grebe
Photo: Slavonian Grebe
Photo: Slavonian Grebe
Photo: Spoonbill
Photo: Spoonbill
My last visit of the day for the last hour before sunset and darkness was to Copt Hall marshes which is just a short drive from EWT Abberton Reservoir.
Copt Hall marshes is managed by the National Trust and, as a working farm on the remote Blackwater estuary, it balances arable crop production and access with coastal nature conservation. Work involves creating and maintaining a variety of wildlife rich habitats including nectar-rich areas for insects, field margins, scrub and hedgerows for farmland birds and wet grassland and scrapes for waders and wildfowl. The site is an important area for breeding farmland birds such as Corn Bunting, Yellowhammer and Skylark and is also noted for overwintering wildfowl and waders plus various raptors and owls.
The highlights during my visit were as follows: Short-eared Owl (1), Marsh Harrier (1), Common Buzzard (1), Kingfisher (1), Dark-bellied Brent Goose (c.100), Wigeon (c.100), Teal (c.20), Lapwing (c.10), Common Redshank (2), Curlew (heard calling only), Cormorant (c.50), Stonechat (1)
Photo: Copt Hall Marshes
Saturday 4th January 2025
I spent my second day in Kent and my first visit was to RSPB Dungeness.
Dungeness is a headland on the south east coast of Kent formed largely of a shingle beach in the form of a cuspate foreland. It shelters a large area of low-lying land, namely Romney Marsh. It is one of the largest expanses of shingle in Europe and is of international conservation importance for its geomorphology, plants, invertebrates and birds. This is recognised and protected mostly through its designations as a National Nature Reserve (NNR), a Special Protection Area (SPA), a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and part of the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) of Dungeness, Romney Marsh and Rye Bay.
RSPB Dungeness is part of the wider Dungeness area and comprises a huge area of shingle, freshwater pits, wet and dry grassland and wildflower meadows. During the winter months, it is particularly important for large numbers of dabbling and diving ducks plus some of the rarer grebes and divers.
The highlights during my visit were as follows: Great Northern Diver (1), Long-tailed Duck (1), Tufted Duck (at least 100), Common Pochard (at least 50), Teal (at least 30), Mallard (at least 20), Gadwall (at least 20), Goldeneye (at least 10), Wigeon (4), Eurasian White-fronted Goose (4), Greylag Goose (at least 200), Canada Goose (at least 100), Mute Swan (1), Coot (at least 100), Great Crested Grebe (4), Great White Egret (2), Grey Heron (1), Lapwing (at least 100), Cormorant (at least 400), Great Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull, Black-headed Gull, Marsh Harrier (2), Common Buzzard (1), Kestrel (1), Red-legged Partridge (1)
Elmley National Nature Reserve covers 3250 acres and is one of the largest nature reserves in England. It is, at its heart, a family run farm with a long-term vision to restore nature and a commitment to the sustainability of the landscape and land.
The vast amount of freshwater habitat alongside the equally vast expanses of salt marsh and mudflats of the Swale (a channel of the sea separating the Isle of Sheppey from the mainland) make the area a gigantic feeding table for waders and wildfowl throughout the year.
Peak number of waders and wildfowl arrive between January to March, especially when there is a cold spell in north west Europe. The grazing marsh is also interspersed with wide fleets, reed beds, rough grassland strips, hay meadows and 5.6 miles of sea walls, all of which provide habitats for a variety of terrestrial and aquatic species.
Conservation and management efforts on the grazing marshes of Elmley National Nature Reserve are also focused on breeding waders, particularly Lapwing and Common Redshank.
Elmley National Nature Reserve is also well known as an area for resident and wintering birds of prey and owls.
I did not undertake the long walk around the reserve but instead concentrated on the approach track from the entrance up to Kingshill Farm and the area around the farm itself, both of which provide good opportunities for birding.
The undoubted highlight was at least 5 Short-eared Owls hunting in the area around Kingshill Farm and a Long-eared Owl roosting in scrub adjacent to the car park. The main disappointment was failing to see the regularly reported Little Owls and Barn Owls to complete 4 UK owl species in a day, something that I have never managed to do.
The Short-eared Owls provided excellent photo opportunities, albeit the backgrounds were very "messy", but the Long-eared Owl proved too difficult (impossible!) given that it was heavily obscured by branches and twigs.
The highlights during my visit were as follows: Long-eared Owl (1), Short-eared Owl (at least 5), Marsh Harrier (4), Common Buzzard (2), Kestrel (3), Cattle Egret (1), Grey Heron (2), Black-tailed Godwit (2), Lapwing (at least 500), Golden Plover (at least 300), Curlew (c.200), Wigeon (c.100), Mallard (c.30), Mute Swan (4), Moorhen (10)
Photo: Short-eared Owl
Photo: Short-eared Owl
Photo: Short-eared Owl
Photo: Short-eared Owl
Photo: Short-eared Owl
Photo: Short-eared Owl
Having missed out on seeing any Barn Owls at Elmley National Nature Reserve, I drove the short distance to RSPB Capel Fleet, another location that is also good for birds of prey and owls during the winter. It was almost dark but I did finally get to see a Barn Owl as it flew across the road.
Sunday 5th January 2025
After 2 fine but very cold weather days, Sunday was very rainy all day.
However, I still visited EWT Hanningfield Reservoir. I scanned the reservoir from my car and there were few birds to be seen although I did eventually locate the very distant Velvet Scoter that had been reported for several days plus a female Goosander, 8 Little Grebes and c.50 Cormorants.
Love nature .... act now
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