St. Nicholas Church local patch site. Very quiet for birds this summer but exceptional for butterflies. But today, my first site record of Red Kite! Plus Common Buzzard, Sparrowhawk, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Green Woodpecker, Muntjac ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/08/visi... #essexbirding

RPSB Canvey Wick >>> www.theguardian.com/environment/... markavery.info/2025/08/09/c... #essexbirding

RSPB Vange Marshes, RSPB Bowers Marsh and RSPB Wallasea Island featured in this video >>> www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6KG... #essexbirding

Today is International Dawn Chorus Day. I set my alarm for stupid o’clock and left home at 4 a.m. for a walk around my St. Nicholas Church local patch site. 13 species recorded, most notably the usual male Lesser Whitethroat plus at least 8 singing males of both Blackcap and Chiffchaff.

My first 5 Swifts of the year "screaming" past Basildon railway station at 12:00 whilst waiting for my delayed train. I wouldn't have seen them if the train had been on time. Thank you c2c! #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch yesterday. Lesser Whitethroat, 5 each of Chiffchaff/Blackcap, Green and G/S Woodpecker plus first Wall, Holly Blue, Orange Tip, Peacock, Red Admiral and Speckled Wood of the year at the site. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/04/visi... #essexbirding

www.edp24.co.uk/news/2511306... …. 40+ year old Oystercatchers! This further demonstrates the value of ringing (such as that undertaken regularly by x.com/SouthEssexRG) and projects such as Nightingale tracking supported and sponsored by @essexbirdnews.bsky.social #essexbirding

…. 5 Cetti's Warbler, 4 Marsh Harrier, 4 Mediterranean Gull, 1 Little Egret, 2 Egyptian Goose, 1 Green Woodpecker plus loads of common residents 2/2 #essexbirding ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/04/trip...

Superb spring/summer migrant festival at RSPB Canvey Wick yesterday: 1 Cuckoo, 11 Nightingale, 9 Lesser Whitethroat, 22 Common Whitethroat, 8 Blackcap, 12 Chiffchaff, 4 Reed Warbler, 1 Sedge Warbler, 4 Swallow plus >>> 1/2 #essexbirding

Very quiet visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning but singing male Lesser Whitethroat again seen after first record on BCBW Sunday plus 7 Chiffchaffs, 1 Blackcap, Sparrowhawk, Green and “drumming” G/S Woodpecker. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/04/visi... #essexbirding

Butterfly season has also arrived at Noak Bridge NR …. 2 each of Orange Tip, Speckled Wood, Green-veined White, Small White #essexbirding

Visit to my Noak Bridge NR local patch yesterday. 10 Chiffchaffs, 6 Blackcaps, 1 each G/S and Green Woodpecker, 1 Stock Dove, Moorhen pair plus 4 juveniles ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/04/visi... #essexbirding 1/2

Even a short walk to Asda has its birding opportunities 😊 My first Garden Warbler of the year. Unfortunately, I didn’t see it but the much more rapid and continuous song compared to Blackcap was diagnostic …. and Merlin agreed 😊 #essexbirding

www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/people/... At least in Essex we have a lot of knowledgeable and experienced birders 😊 …. unless someone wants to quietly share that they have “penguin” on their Essex list 🤣🤣 #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning. 4 singing male Blackcaps, 11 singing male Chiffchaffs, 2 G/S and 3 Green Woodpeckers, unidentified silent pipit species flying high over and 1 Reeves’ Muntjac ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/04/visi... #essexbirding

Just when we thought that Turtle Doves were beginning to recover, including in Essex, we have this >>> www.theguardian.com/environment/... 😠🤬😠🤬 .... FFS!!! .... GIVE NATURE A CHANCE! #essexbirding

Visit to my Noak Bridge NR local patch this morning. First Stock and Collared Doves at the site for the year plus 8 singing male Chiffchaffs, 4 singing male Blackcaps and a female, 1 Moorhen, 2 Mallards. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

After returning home from my St. Nicholas Church local patch visit yesterday, I then had 3 Common Buzzards soaring and "mewing" in the sunshine but sadly no photos from my window this time. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/reco... #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch yesterday morning. First Blackcaps (2) at the site for the year, 9 singing Chiffchaffs, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Stock Dove, 2 G/S and 3 Green Woodpeckers, 1 Red Fox, 1 Reeves’ Muntjac ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

Back to Benfleet/Hadleigh Downs today for Adders. Success this time 😃 Spring warblers 😃…. Blackcap (5 singing males) and Chiffchaff (at least 15 singing males). Also Sparrowhawk and at least 3 each of Brimstone, Comma and Peacock. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/trip... #essexbirding

I think it is actually spring despite the c.40 Redwings seen today! (2/2) #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning. Spring is here (9 singing male Chiffchaffs) but winter hangs on (c.40 Redwings)! Also 1 Mallard, 3 Green and 3 G/S Woodpeckers, loads of bird song and 1 Muntjac. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding More >>> (1/2)

Visit to my Noak Bridge NR local patch this morning. First Grey Heron, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Starling for the site in 2025 plus 2 singing Chiffchaffs, 3 Moorhens and 2 Mallards. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

Visit to Benfleet/Hadleigh Downs yesterday for Adder photography. No Adders 😞but 3 Common Buzzards soaring on thermals, 10 singing Chiffchaffs, 3 G/S Woodpecker plus 5 Comma, 2 Peacock, 1 Brimstone, 2 Red Admiral and 1 Bee-fly. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/trip... #essexbirding

Words fail me 🤬🤬🤬 www.echo-news.co.uk/news/2501386... At least, southessexwildlife.org provided their usual excellent response and care. Hopefully, the Mute Swan will fully recover and can be released in due course. #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch yesterday morning. Singing male Mistle Thrush (first of 2025 anywhere in the UK), 2 singing male Chiffchaffs, Grey Heron over, 3 Green and 2 G/S Woodpeckers, 1 Red Fox. Still no Blackcap! ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning. First Grey Heron for 2025. Also 5 singing male Chiffchaffs, c.15 Redwings, 2 each of G/S and Green Woodpeckers plus Red Fox. Woody STILL hasn’t read the memo about trees 😀 ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

Methinks this won’t get past the @essexbirdnews.bsky.social Identification Panel and Recording Committee and appear in the Systematic List of the 2025 Essex Bird Report 😀 …. other than relegated to Appendix 2 as a Category E species 😀 www.echo-news.co.uk/news/2499878... #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning. 3 “firsts” for 2025 …. Stock Dove, L/B/B Gull, Starling. Also Hawfinch heard calling again, singing male Chiffchaff, calling Green Woodpecker, Cormorant over and 2 Red Foxes. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning. 3 “firsts” for 2025 …. Stock Dove, L/B/B Gull, Starling. Also Hawfinch heard calling again, singing male Chiffchaff, calling Green Woodpecker, Cormorant over and 2 Red Foxes. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

Visit to my Noak Bridge NR local patch yesterday. First singing male Blackcap and male Chiffchaff of 2025 plus 2 Goldcrest, 5 Redwing, Common Buzzard, Green Woodpecker, Jackdaw also new for 2025. Also 2 Mallard, 2 Moorhen and Red Fox. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

Red Fox showing very well on my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning! ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning. 3 new species for my 2025 site list: Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Collared Dove. Green and G/S Woodpeckers very vocal including “drumming” GSW on church spire. Also Goldcrest. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/03/visi... #essexbirding

EWT Blue House Farm yesterday. Distant view of Ruddy Shelduck (wild bird or “fence jumper”?), Chiffchaff, Common Buzzard, Red Kite, Marsh Harrier, Kestrel, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Reed Bunting, Linnet plus loads of geese, ducks, waders. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/02/trip... #essexbirding

When I wrote my blog post yesterday regarding my Hawfinch sightings in Laindon, I said …. “Given that I have no photos of my own of Hawfinch anywhere ….” I was wrong! …. I completely forgot the photos of Hawfinches that I took in Slovenia in May 2024! What a bird 😀 #essexbirding

Also, first site record of Cormorant in 2025 with 2 fly-over birds, single Common Buzzard, 2 Sparrowhawks, 2 Redwings, 2 Green Woodpeckers, 2 Great Spotted Woodpeckers, 2 Red Foxes and a “barking” Reeves’ Muntjac. (2/2) #essexbirding

Visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning. “Patch gold” 😀 …. 2 HAWFINCHES 😀 First Essex/UK record for 2025 and, of course, first site record. Sadly, no photos given fleeting flight views of calling birds. (1/2) ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/02/visi... #essexbirding

Arlesford highlights: Brambling 10+, Yellowhammer 20+, Reed Bunting 20+, Corn Bunting 1, Linnet 50+, Chaffinch 200+, Goldfinch 10+, Skylark 20+, Sparrowhawk 1, Kestrel 1, Stock Dove 2, Lapwing 2, Golden Plover c.25 Mallard male and female, Reeves' Muntjac 1 #essexbirding

Arlesford .... large wintering finch/bunting flock. Thank you @esbr-essex.bsky.social for the map/directions 👍 Spectacular sight and sound plus 5 year ticks - Brambling, Yellowhammer, Corn Bunting, Reed Bunting, Linnet 😊 ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/02/trip... #essexbirding More >>>

More from EWT Warley Place .... #essexbirding

Visit to EWT Warley Place, Brentwood on Tuesday. At least 2 Nuthatches, 1 or 2 Coal Tits, G/S Woodpecker and Common Buzzard both heard plus usual expected woodland birds. (1/2) ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/02/trip... #essexbirding

Come on folks, let's try and clean up our wildlife and nature sites in Essex. Maybe start with your local patches. www.essexwt.org.uk/get-involved... #essexbirding

Just in case anyone needs a simple warbler ID guide 🤣 #essexbirding

Just in case anyone needs a simple warbler ID guide 🤣 #essexbirds

For those of you who are familiar with J.A. Baker’s “The Peregrine”, and who maybe visited the exhibition at Chelmsford Museum last year, you may find this video interesting …. www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9iS... #essexbirding

More from Shoeburyness East Beach yesterday. #essexbirding

Trip to Shoeburyness East Beach yesterday. Oystercatcher (at least 1000), Dunlin (at least 300), Turnstone (at least 50), Common Redshank (at least 50), Sanderling (c.10), Curlew (1), Dark-bellied Brent Goose (c.100), Cormorant (2) ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/02/trip... #essexbirding

Please support the WWT campaign to ban toxic lead ammunition which is so damaging to our wildlife and especially water birds. Petition >>> act.wwt.org.uk/page/160992/... Enjoy the video …. funny but with a serous message >>> x.com/WWTworldwide... #essexbirding

Visit to Coombe Wood/Hall Wood, Langdon Hills today. 5 new for 2025: Nuthatch 2, Treecreeper 1, Coal Tit 1, Stock Dove 4, R/N Parakeet c.15. No LSW but 4 G/S and 3 Green Woodpeckers. Also 4 Goldcrests and usual expected woodland birds. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/02/trip... #essexbirding

Very brief visit to my St. Nicholas Church local patch this morning. First 2025 site record of Common Buzzard (single bird). Also 1 Redwing, 4 Green Woodpeckers, still at least 200 Woodpigeons plus a Red Fox and a Reeves’ Muntjac. ss15wildlifewatching.blogspot.com/2025/02/visi... #essexbirding