Simon

Should be 3CY or second summer bird…

Great size comparison with one of the local Black-headed Gull (right)

Great to find this 2CY Little Gull today at Heybridge Pit, Maldon - arrived in classic weather conditions- clearing fog and a very light SE breeze #birds #essexbirds #ukbirds #Maldon

This Common Lizard was found sunning itself out on saltmarsh at Mundon Essex on 2nd March. To reach where it was (an area submerged at high tide) it had to move perhaps 2m across sticky mud and vegetation - not something I’d immediately think a lizard would do in the UK. @arc-trust.bsky.social

A fairly pale, Common Buzzard over Heybridge Pit, with overall a quite distinctive appearance

Corn Bunting - seemed to be scarce this winter, or I’m looking in the wrong places!

Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Comma and Brimstone all seen this week with healthy numbers of the latter. A couple of Small Tortoiseshell is almost as many as seen all last year locally.

Green Shield Bug - turning green for the summer…

A quiet week on the #Maldon patch with a Goosander at Chigborough on Monday the best I could manage…smartly coloured Common Buzzard over Heybridge Pit on 2nd and a single Corn Bunting, Southey Creek the same day. Butterflies & other insects appeared on the warmer days #birds #essexbirds

Last #IronworksMeadow Maldon, work party until autumn today under misty, leaden skies but blossom everywhere and a few flowers emerging and much bird song. Plenty done thanks to c20 volunteers - mere clearance, bramble & blackthorn removal, litter picking, construction of sow-thistle enclosure etc.

@essexbirdnews.bsky.social @birdtrack.bsky.social Essex Wildlife trust (very misty) Abberton Reservoir: 3 spoonbill, red kite, j sparrowhawk & f smew - LBC; m smew - LdlHC; returning m Canvasback & m ring-necked duck (both in same pochard flock) - Billets farm; singing chiffchaffs in all locations.

Red-necked Grebe for 2nd day off Kingsland Rd, West Mersea then an adult Spoonbill on Ray Island care of Dougal Urquhart. Also first singing Chiffchaff of the year and 40+ Fieldfares #Essexbirding ##UKbirding

Red kite and WTE

Red kite and WTE

The WTE With the EWT visitors centre and pumping station

WTE with Herring gull, which was taken to the bank. The gull managed to get away although it didn’t look great and probably would succumb to its injuries.

That was a great morning at Abberton church watching the White tailed Eagle. Always distant but nice to see it hunting (unsuccessfully) for Coot and it even caught a Herring gull which somehow got away. Last seen flying N around midday #essexbirding

The Abberton WTE from this morning unsuccessfully hunting a Herring gull, it caught it twice but it still got away #essexbirding

Lizard Orchid rosette

Red Dead Nettles

Incredible show of Red Dead Nettle at Hazeleigh Wood on 24th February had Buff-tailed Bumblebee, Honeybee and at least one Hairy-footed Flower Bee feeding on it.

Several rosettes of Lizard orchid on the Heybridge sea wall.
#bee @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Agonopterix purpurea - noticed in one of the outbuildings in Hazeleigh Wood. Only the third site record.

Pine Beauty from the garden - a smart moth and fairly early

Dotted Chestnut from Hazeleigh Wood - a handful are caught every year.

Small Brindled Beauty from Hazeleigh Wood

Moths! The home trap in my Heybridge garden produced 11 species on 24th whilst some 1,500+ moths in the Hazeleigh Wood traps (mostly Small Quaker) on 25th represented 27 species. Brimstone butterfly seen on 25th in Maldon #moths #ukmoths #butterflies @savebutterflies.bsky.social

Black Brant

Pintail are slowly moving west along the Blackwater - Millbeach used to be the furthest west they were found - a few can now be seen off the Prom.

Make Goldeneye

Light-bellied Brent - much rarer than Black Brant around Maldon

Still Black Brant and Light-bellied Brent on the Maldon patch, off Heybridge Pit this week. A male Goldeneye dropped as well as couple of Red-breasted Mergies with three Mediterranean Gull by the end of the week. #essexbirding #birding #ukbirds @britishnatureguide.bsky.social

Great morning at Abberton Res with @esbr-essex.bsky.social Highlights inc 2 SMEW, 25+ WF GEESE, 2 GT EGRET, BN GREBE & stunning male MERLIN having a bath! Good to bump into @tonykennelly508.bsky.social #essexbirding #BirdsSeenIn2026 #ukbirds #birds #birding #nature @britishnatureguide.bsky.social

This cracking BLACK-NECKED GREBE was close to the causeway at Abberton Reservoir this morning #essexbirding #BirdsSeenIn2026 #ukbirds #birds #birding #nature @britishnatureguide.bsky.social

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

I headed into central Essex yday for my annual search for LESSER SPOTTED WOODPECKERS and was thrilled to find a pair! Very mobile in the trees but managed to grab this shot. #essexbirding #BirdsSeenIn2026 #ukbirds #birds #birding #nature @lesserspotnet.bsky.social @britishnatureguide.bsky.social

Black Brant

Pale-bellied Brent

Grey Shoulder-knot in the trap last night along with Common Quaker, Hebrew Character, March Moth, Agonopterix alstromeriana and Tortricodes alternella

Little Egret - still only a very few around but expect that with the milder weather numbers will start to increase.

Heybridge GP, Maldon over the last week has been more of the same: Black Brant on three visits with the Pale-bellied Brent twice, a Goosander on 19th, 18 Pintail on 20th, and up to 20 Barwit.

Moth trap - 6 species last night.

#essexbirding #birds #birding #nature
@britishnatureguide.bsky.social

Common Firecrest

Fantastic day guiding on the Suffolk coast last weekend. Lots to see inc this stunning FIRECREST plus a supporting cast of XBILL, DARTFORD W, WOODLARK, WATER PIPIT, WHOOPER SWAN, BEARDED TIT, WATER RAIL + more. #suffolkbirding #BirdsSeenIn2026 #ukbirds #birds #birding @britishnatureguide.bsky.social

Dartford Warbler

Greater Scaup

Male Crossbill

Water Pipit

DARTFORD WARBLER, GREATER SCAUP, CROSSBILL & WATER PIPIT from our guided day trip to the Suffolk coast last weekend. #suffolkbirding #BirdsSeenIn2026 #ukbirds #birds #birding @britishnatureguide.bsky.social @suffolkbirdgroup.bsky.social

Fieldfare

Redwing

Red Kite

Common Reed Bunting

Final 2 farms surveyed in N Essex for the @gwct.org.uk BIG FARMLAND BIRD COUNT. Huge no's of FIELDFARE + YHAMMERS, singing NUTHATCHES, TREECREEPERS, RED KITES, SISKIN #birdsseenin2026 #essexbirding #birding #farmlandbirds #ukbirds #bfbc26 @britishnatureguide.bsky.social @stuttonsparrows.bsky.social

Some of the 18 Fallow deer grazing in the fields north of hazeleigh wood (back of camera photo)mummy..

Fallow deer by hazeleigh wood (back of camera photo)

@essexbirdnews.bsky.social @birdtrack.bsky.social #Maldon wick & fields south of limebrook way: 10 song thrushes singing, 12 yellowhammers, 10 corn buntings, 3 kestrels, 1 red kite, 15 fieldfares, 12 stock doves, 100+ black-headed & 30+ common gulls, c20 skylarks, cetti's warbler & 18 fallow deer

@essexbirdnews.bsky.social @birdtrack.bsky.social @nationaltrust.org.uk Blake's Wood, Little Baddow: song thrushes, siskins, Nuthatch & treecreeper & goldcrest. Green, great spotted & lesser spotted woodpeckers present, seen about 200m north of the carpark & several calls heard but no drumming.

Up in Suffolk and Just had these 2 Common Cranes interrupt my breakfast. They flew East over Wenhaston appearing to drop towards Blythburgh at 07:05 this morning @birdguides.bsky.social @rarebirder.bsky.social #Ukbirding

Greater Scaup

Mediterranean Gull plus Common & Black-headed Gulls

Western Marsh Harrier hunting Eurasian Teal!

Great Cormorants

Enjoyed a few hours at Abberton Reservoir last week and still lots to see incl 20+ WHITE-FRONTED GEESE, 2 SMEW, 7 MEDITERRANEAN GULLS, SCAUP, GT EGRETS & a MARSH HARRIER that specialises in hunting TEAL! #essexbirding #BirdsSeenIn2026 #ukbirds #birds #birding #nature @britishnatureguide.bsky.social

Common Reed Bunting

European Stonechat

Fieldfares

Western Marsh Harrier

Surveyed two farms last week as part of the @gwct.org.uk BIG FARMLAND BIRD COUNT. Great numbers and variety to be seen incl YELLOWHAMMERS, REED BUNTINGS, FIELDFARES LINNETS etc plus MARSH HARRIER, STONECHAT & GREAT EGRET! #essexbirding #birding #farmlandbirds #ukbirds #bfbc26

1 of 2

Barn Owl came out again during the brief lull in the rain this evening.

Phonescoped from indoors.
#EssexBirding

2 of 2

Espied 4 White-fronted Geese on Blue House Farm this evening from my house.

No sign of 'my' Short-eared Owl this evening in poor weather but...friend and birder Matt got this cracking photo of it yesterday evening with the Brent in the background - just so evocative 😍

#EssexBirding

/02/26- A good day out with @SwallowBirding.bsky.social in Suffolk.
Excellent views of species that included, Woodlark, Dartford Warbler, Red Crossbill, Common Firecrest, Marsh Tit, Bearded Reedling, Water Pipit, Caspian Gull & Greater Scaup +
Western Marsh Harriers, were sky dancing.

The 4 Shore Lark showed well in a rare day’s sun at Kessingland, Suffolk on Saturday
@suffolkbirdgroup.bsky.social
#birds

Nice cold and calm day here on Yell. The sea had frozen and the tide gone out to leave some nice patterns.
Bullfinch was new for the year along our road and with Ravens gathering nest material last week and Hoodies defending their empty nests, spring must be close, joke! 😂
#birdingshetland

A glorious sunny day, it was not…

Scrub clearance in the reed bed

Scrub clearance in the reed bed

Anti deer fencing around the Marsh Sow-thistle

Atrocious weather for penultimate work party at Ironworks Meadow, Heybridge this morning with rain and sleet and a cold SE. 13 tough souls carried on regardless and removed scrub from reedbed, nest box maintenance, bramble removal and litter picking. A Kingfisher was heard.