Visit to St. Nicholas Church and surrounding areas – 8th August 2024

Date: 8th August 2024

Time: from 8 a.m.

Weather: dry, sunny, light wind, 17°C to 20°C

The main purpose of my visit this morning was to again record and photograph butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies.

However, it was less productive than my recent visits. The somewhat cooler temperatures maybe explained that although it was still warm enough for butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies to be on the wing.

This morning, I visited the complete site and recorded the following:

Grassland and hedges bordering St. Nicholas Lane and “Hilly Road” – butterflies: Gatekeeper (at least 10)

Grassland and hedges bordering St. Nicholas Lane and "Hilly Road" – dragonflies and damselflies: Ruddy Darter (4), unidentified hawker species (1)

Church cemetery – butterflies: Gatekeeper (at least 30 including around 20 together at a single small patch of ragwort), Meadow Brown (1), Speckled Wood (1)

Church cemetery – dragonflies and damselflies: unidentified hawker species (1)

Northern section – butterflies: Gatekeeper (at least 20), Meadow Brown (at least 10)

Northern section – dragonflies and damselflies: Brown Hawker (1), unidentified hawker species (1)

As noted previously, Marbled Whites and “golden” skippers (Large, Small and Essex) are still conspicuous by their absence from the grasslands bordering St. Nicholas Lane and in the northern section of the site.

Generally, but as expected during the summer months, birds continue to be more difficult to see and hear.

However, I did record the following: Chiffchaff (single birds heard calling in the cemetery and in the northern section of the site), Green Woodpecker (juvenile seen in the northern section of the site and single birds heard calling in the southern and northern sections of the site), Great Spotted Woodpecker (single bird seen in the area behind the church)

Rather unexpectedly, it proved to be a good visit for mammals with a sighting of a Red Fox in the central area of the cemetery (it walked up the path towards me but then did a quick U-turn when it saw me and ran off) and a Reeves’ Muntjac in the northern section of the site (which wandered off more slowly in to the dense woodland when it saw me). These are my first records of these 2 species since 23rd June 2024 and 12th May 2024 respectively. Unfortunately, I failed to get a photo of either of them.

Finally, the emergence of autumn fruits has started to occur in recent weeks and it does appear that there will be an abundance this year.

Species recorded during this visit were as follows (heard only records in italics):

Chiffchaff

Blue Tit

Great Tit

Robin

Dunnock

Blackbird

Green Woodpecker

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Jay

Magpie

Carrion Crow

Woodpigeon

Red Fox

Reeves’ Muntjac

Speckled Wood

Gatekeeper

Meadow Brown

Brown Hawker

Ruddy Darter

Here are some photos from my visit ….

Photo: female Ruddy Darter

Photo: Gatekeeper

Photo: Gatekeeper

Photo: Gatekeeper

Photo: Gatekeeper

Photo: Gatekeepers

Photo: Gatekeeper and Meadow Brown

Photo: Meadow Brown

Photo: Speckled Wood

Site totals for 2024 to date (2023 totals in brackets):

Birds = 40 (47)

Mammals = 3 (3)

Butterflies = 17 (23)

Dragonflies and damselflies = 10 (12)

Reptiles = 0 (0)

Amphibians = 0 (0)

Total species list for the site

Birds = 65

Mammals = 7

Butterflies = 25

Dragonflies and damselflies = 14

Reptiles = 1

Amphibians = 0

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Trip away from SS15 - RSPB Vange Marsh, Vange, Essex

This morning I visited RSPB Vange Marsh which is only 4 miles from my home and easily reached by local buses.

RSPB Vange Marsh is a mosaic of wetland habitats with fresh and saltwater lagoons attracting many breeding birds in spring and summer, passage migrant waders especially in late summer and autumn and large numbers of ducks in winter. There are no specific facilities in the way of a visitor centre or hides but nature trails and public footpaths allow viewing over the wetland areas.

The principal issue at RSPB Vange Marsh is that the views are towards the south so bright sunny days are problematic. In addition, birds are always very distant requiring a telescope (which on warm and sunny days creates even worse problems with heat haze) and photography opportunities are extremely limited.

I decided to visit RSPB Vange Marsh this morning due primarily to recent reports of at least 4 Spotted Redshanks and a single Ruff, both species which I have not recorded this year.

I was successful in seeing the Ruff, albeit it did its best to hide away behind the large flock of Black-tailed Godwits, but I failed to see any Spotted Redshanks despite repeated scanning of the lagoon with my telescope.

The notable sightings from my visit with regard to birds were as follows (heard only records in italics): Wood Sandpiper (1), Green Sandpiper (1), Common Sandpiper (1), Ruff (1), Black-tailed Godwit (at least 200), Lapwing (at least 20), Curlew (10), Avocet (20 including 2 well-grown juveniles), Great White Egret (1), Little Egret (20), Grey Heron (2), Mallard (at least 200), Gadwall (at least 20), Shoveler (at least 20), Teal (at least 20), Great Crested Grebe (1 well-grown juvenile), Little Grebe (3), Mute Swan (5), Canada Gosse (at least 100), Greylag Goose (at least 20), Egyptian Goose (2), Coot (at least 100), Moorhen (3), Lesser Black-backed Gull (at least 20), Black-headed Gull (at least 100), Common Buzzard (1), Marsh Harrier (1), Cetti’s Warbler (2 singing males heard)

In addition, I recorded the following butterflies and dragonflies and damselflies: Ruddy Darter (at least 10 males and 2 females), Common Blue (4), Small Heath (1), Speckled Wood (1), Peacock (1), Small White (1), Gatekeeper (at least 10), Meadow Brown (at least 5)

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We have a new UK Government .... what do we expect and demand from it?

Here are a few actions to start ....

Wildlife Trusts .... The election results are in! So, what’s next for nature? 

RSPB .... We have a new UK Government – here’s the top five actions they need to take for nature to recover and thrive

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“The lack of butterflies this year is a warning sign to us all”

“Nature is sounding the alarm and we must listen. Butterflies are a key indicator species. When they are in trouble we know the wider environment is in trouble too.” - Dan Hoare - Director of Conservation at Butterfly Conservation.

Butterfly numbers are the lowest on record in the UK after a wet spring and summer. 

The Guardian - "Warning sign to us all" as UK butterfly numbers hit record low 

Love nature .... act now

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Trip away from SS15 - Wat Tyler Country Park, Pitsea, Essex

This morning, I had a visit to Wat Tyler Country Park in Pitsea, just a few miles from where I live.

The purpose of my visit was to attend a bird ringing session undertaken by the South Essex Ringing Group facilitated by the Essex Birdwatching Society, of which I have been a long-standing member of for many years.

Many thanks to David Wilkinson from the former and Matt Turner from the latter for an amazing morning.

This was my first ever bird ringing session and it was very enjoyable watching and listening to the team of qualified and trainee ringers as well as seeing so many familiar birds so close.

My personal highlights were the 2 Willow Warblers (a species becoming increasingly scarce in Essex although I did see a singing male on both my St. Nicholas Church and Noak Bridge Nature Reserve local patch sites for several days in mid-April 2024) and the single Lesser Whitethroat (a not uncommon species although relatively difficult to see due to its skulking habits but again a bird that I recorded on both my local patch sites this spring as expected).

Our time observing the ringing session started at around 8:15 a.m. and concluded just before 11 a.m. but the ringers had been recovering birds from their mist nests and processing their biometrics for several hours prior to this.

In total, 111 birds were processed during the morning session. See here for the species list and counts ....

https://x.com/SouthEssexRG/status/1820082569896988909

Plus here for a post by the Essex Birdwatching Society ....

https://x.com/EBwSTweets/status/1820200388496076857

The small number of people privileged to attend the session were able to take photos of some of the birds after they had been processed and prior to release.

Photo: Willow Warbler

Photo: Willow Warbler

Photo: Willow Warbler

Photo: Lesser Whitethroat

Photo: Lesser Whitethroat

Photo: Sedge Warbler

Photo: Sedge Warbler

Photo: Sedge Warbler

Photo: Reed Warbler

Photo: juvenile and adult Goldfinches

Photo: Robin

Photo: Wren

Photo: Wren

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Save our Swifts!

The UK's Swifts are in serious trouble.

It is estimated that their population has deceased by 57% between 1995 and 2017, primarily due to the application of pesticides and habitat destruction which has affected their insect food supply. The modernisation of many buildings has also resulted in the loss of roof nesting sites. More information can be found at Swift Conservation.

After seeing the inspirational Hannah-Bourne Taylor speak recently at the Global BirdFair, I was motivated to write to Matthew Pennycook MP, the new Minister of State at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government following the election of a Labour Government.

This is what I wrote in my e-mail to him ....

"Dear Matthew

Firstly, congratulations on retaining your seat at the General Election and your appointment as Minister of State at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Your brief is a particular interest and passion of mine having spent my entire professional career in the field of housing management, housing policy/strategy and the delivery of affordable housing. I sincerely hope that the very welcome election of a Labour Government will at last see significant progress being made in the building of much needed affordable housing.

However, the main reason for me being prompted to contact you is in respect of my other interest and passion, namely the environment and nature.

In my view, the last Government did very little to address the biodiversity crisis (let alone the climate emergency) and, as you may be aware, the UK is now one of the most nature depleted countries on the planet with so many of our wildlife species suffering huge population losses and potentially extinction.

The Swift is one of many bird species that is showing an alarming steep decline in its summering and breeding population in the UK. In just 25 years, more than 50% of our Swifts have vanished and the loss of nest sites in the roofs of residential and other buildings appears to be at least partly responsible for this. This bird’s UK Conservation status is now designated as “Red”.

In just the last few years, Swifts have disappeared from the skies over my neighbourhood in Laindon, Essex and flocks of up to 50 birds wheeling around St. Nicholas Church are now just a memory.

There is a simple solution to help Swifts …. an addition to Building Regulations to make “Swift bricks” (to provide nesting sites) a mandatory requirement for new-build housing.

Whilst I understand that the Netherlands implemented such a requirement recently, I also believe that less than 10 out of around 450 Local Planning Authorities in the UK have implemented “Swift brick” planning conditions.

The amazing Hannah-Bourne Taylor HANNAH BOURNE-TAYLOR(hannahbournetaylor.com) launched the Feather Speech campaign and her well-supported petition with well over 110.000 signatures resulted in a debate in Parliament where there was evident cross-party support.

However, as with so many issues related to the environment and nature, the previous Government did absolutely nothing.

The requirement to provide “Swift bricks” is an easy, quick and cheap means to provide nest sites for Swifts and halt their rapid decline towards extinction as a UK breeding species.

PLEASE demonstrate that the new Government genuinely cares about the environment and nature and take immediate steps to implement this essential initiative to help our Swifts by adding a clause to the new Planning and Infrastructure Bill announced in the King’s Speech this week.

Many thanks for reading my e-mail and for your anticipated commitment to finally making progress on “Swift bricks”.

Kind regards

Richard"

Please contact Matthew Pennycook and help the campaign to save our Swifts!

https://www.birdguides.com/articles/hannah-bourne-taylor-swift-action

Saving the Swifts | RSPB (youtube.com)

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Trip away from SS15 - EWT Blue House Farm, North Fambridge, Essex

Today, I had my first visit to EWT Blue House Farm since my last on 9th August 2023. 

EWT Blue House Farm is a 242.8 hectare nature reserve and farm in North Fambridge on the north bank of the River Crouch between Burnham-on-Crouch and South Woodham Ferrers in Essex. It is managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust.

Most of EWT Blue House Farm was originally saltmarsh until sea walls were constructed to capture land from the sea. It was then used as grazing pasture for cows and sheep and this practice continues today. Some of the higher, drier fields were used for crops but have now reverted to grassland. The site includes marshland, ponds, creeks and ditches, reedbeds and a 20 hectare field is flooded during the winter to provide feeding grounds for large numbers of wildfowl and wading birds.

The wildlife of EWT Blue House Farm is internationally important, particularly for over-wintering birds (most notably around 2000 Dark-bellied Brent Geese) but also breeding Avocets, Lapwings, Common Redshanks, Skylarks, Meadow Pipits, Yellow Wagtails. It is also an important site for spring and autumn passage waders plus Water Voles, Brown Hares, butterflies, insects and coastal plants.

EWT Blue House Farm is a working farm, managed by maintaining high water levels and balancing livestock farming with wildlife conservation.

Access is only available via a permissive footpath through the farm, which has 3 bird hides along it, or along the sea wall.

The main purpose of my visit this morning was to hopefully see the various sandpiper species that had been reported in recent days, namely Pectoral Sandpiper, Curlew Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper and Common Sandpiper.

Having arrived at North Fambridge railway station, I walked for about a mile down to the entrance to EWT Blue House Farm and then followed the permissive footpath to Round Marsh Hide.

Despite scanning the whole of Round Marsh during my 3 hour stay in the hide, I failed to locate the Pectoral Sandpiper. This was disappointing, given that this North American species was the rarest that had been present at the site (including at 8 a.m. on the morning of my visit!). However, I have recorded Pectoral Sandpiper in the UK on 11 occasions since 1990, including at EWT Blue House Farm on 1st September 2016.

I did manage to locate the single Curlew Sandpiper and 2 Wood Sandpipers, both being additions to my UK 2024 year list and taking it to 183 species.

Unfortunately, I missed the fly-over Osprey which was reported from the next hide along from Round Marsh Hide.

Amongst some very good birds seen, the undoubted highlight was a fledgling Cuckoo being fed regularly by its host Dunnock parent close to the car park. Although, I see Cuckoos every year, albeit with increasing difficulty, I have never seen a fledgling being fed by its host parent so this was an excellent end to my visit.

I recorded the following birds during my visit: Curlew Sandpiper (1), Wood Sandpiper (2), Green Sandpiper (at least 5), Common Sandpiper (3), Greenshank (3), Common Redshank (2), Dunlin (2), Oystercatcher (2), Avocet (at least 10), Black-tailed Godwit (at least 200), Lapwing (at least 20), Spoonbill (8), Little Egret (at least 75 including an odd-looking greyish/blueish bird), Grey Heron (10), Mallard (at least 50), Teal (at least 20), Tufted Duck (2 females each with 7 ducklings), Common Pochard (1), Shelduck (4), Great Crested Grebe (1), Little Grebe (1), Mute Swan (adult and 5 cygnets), Canada Goose (at least 20), Greylag Goose (at least 10), Coot (at least 20), Moorhen (1), Cormorant (5), Common Tern (3), Lesser Black-backed Gull (2), Black-headed Gull (at least 50), Osprey (1 reported flying over hide 2), Red Kite (1), Marsh Harrier (2 females), Kestrel (1 female), Cuckoo (fledgling being fed by host Dunnock parent near the barn), Reed Warbler (male heard singing briefly), Cetti's Warbler (male heard singing briefly), Green Woodpecker (1 flew past the railway station whilst waiting for my return train home)

Whilst not particularly aiming to record butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies, I did see the following: Marbled White (1), Small Heath (1), “golden” skippers (at least 20), Ruddy Darter (at least 20 males)

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