This year, on 2nd February 2024, World Wetlands Day highlights the stress-busting superpowers of wetlands
#DefendNature
A new UK record high temperature for January has been set in the Scottish Highlands according to provisional figures from the Met Office. It recorded a peak of 19.6°C at Kinlochewe on 28th January 2023 breaking a record set in 2003 by more than a full degree celsius. It is also the highest winter temperature ever recorded in Scotland.
Meanwhile, Spain has just preliminarily set a European record high temperature for January with 30.7°C recorded in Gavarda in the Valencian Community.
When winter becomes summer, can you imagine what summer will be like?
Humanity is relentlessly trashing our planet, our only home, yet despite this there is seemingly an increase in support for politicians and political parties (including here in the UK) who are opposed to even minor actions to mitigate the climate emergency let alone the radical and imaginative solutions and step changes required to save our species and all the biodiversity that we share our planet with.
#DefendNature
I did not have a planned visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch site today but I did walk up Church Hill as part of an exercise walk.
As I did so, I heard but failed to see my first "drumming" Great Spotted Woodpecker of the year in the wooded area adjacent to the Laindon Park School playing field.
Today, following my last visit on 15th December 2023, I again visited Staines Reservoir, a site that I am able to reach by public transport, albeit requiring a long trip to west London.
Officially called Staines Reservoir (in the singular), the site is actually 2 reservoirs (North Basin and South Basin) separated by a narrow causeway. They lie just north of Staines and Ashford and south west of Heathrow Airport. Open access is provided via the causeway that bisects the 2 reservoirs. There is strictly no access to any other part of the reservoirs.
Staines Reservoir is hardly the most scenic birding location and there is the constant sight and sound of aircraft from the adjacent Heathrow Airport but nonetheless it is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and is particularly noted for its wintering wildfowl. It has also attracted an impressive list of species over the years including a number of rarities.
My most notable sighting at Staines Reservoir is a vagrant American Horned Lark which I saw there on 17th February 2018.
Date: 22nd January 2024
Time: from 9 a.m.
Weather: dry, sunny, moderate/strong wind, 9°C to 10°C
Due to my trip to Lee Valley Country Park on 17th January 2024 and 2 further visits to Heybridge to see and photograph the Northern Waterthrush on 15th January 2024 and 19th January 2024, this was my first visit to my local patch site for some time.
It was a lovely sunny morning and significantly warmer than the very cold weather with sub-zero temperatures that have been evident for some time now. It was also very windy although the worst of Storm Isha had passed through overnight.
I had a full walk around the site including the northern section of the site, the cemetery and the wooded area in the south of the site on my way home.
It was a typically quiet mid-winter day but I was able to record 2 species to add to my 2024 bird site list: Redwing and Wren.
I also added Grey Squirrel and Reeves’ Muntjac to my 2024 mammal site list.
The main highlights during my visit were the 6 Redwings, 2 very vocal and active Green Woodpeckers, a single Red Fox and a single “barking” but unseen Reeves’ Muntjac, all in the northern section of the site.
I also recorded my first Hazel catkins of the year …. spring is coming!
Species recorded during this visit were as follows (heard only records in italics):
Site totals for 2024 to date (2023 totals in brackets):
I returned for a third helping today of the extremely rare Northern Waterthrush at Heybridge Hall sluice and ditch after my visits on 9th January 2024 and 15th January 2024.
Photo: Heybridge Hall sluice and ditch
See here for more information regarding this extremely rare vagrant species and the story behind its discovery in an unlikely spot in my home County of Essex.
Apart from seeing the bird again, my main hope was achieving some better photos.
I arrived at the location at 11 a.m. in sunny and marginally warmer temperatures than my previous 2 visits and I finally left at 4:15 p.m.
The Northern Waterthrush finally appeared at 12:45 p.m. for just a few minutes.
My first efforts constituted record photos at best ....
Photo: Northern Waterthrush
.... but then I managed 2 photos that I am quite pleased with, especially the second ....
My list of
other notable sightings during my stay of over 5 hours was also better than on
my 2 previous visits and included the following: Common Snipe (1), Lapwing (1, 5 and 2 birds flying over), Mallard (male and female), Moorhen (1), Common Buzzard (1 being harassed by a Herring Gull), Kestrel (1 flew over), Sparrowhawk (1 flew rapidly down the length of the ditch), Cettis Warbler (at least 2 singing males), Reed Bunting (1)
The Reed Bunting was my first record of the year, taking my 2024 UK year list to date to 111 species.
Other common birds included the following: Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Robin, Wren, Dunnock, Blackbird, Woodpigeon, Magpie and Herring Gull.
Apart from the Northern Waterthrush, I also managed to get some other photos ....
Photo: Kestrel
