On Tuesday I went to Southend and met up with Dave, a birdwatcher/photographer I'd been talking to on flickr for a while. He's been visiting Southend and photographing lots of birds I wanted to see, such as Turnstones and Plovers of different kinds so he offered to show me around. The day started not very promisingly with a dense layer of fog covering much of south Essex, but we were hopeful that once the the day warmed up a little it might burn off.
We met at the sea-front and took the first train to the end of the pier, hoping we might see the groups of Turnstones there that Dave had seen but unfortunately it was low tide and they were all out on the mudflats. We saw Oystercatchers flying about and Cormorants out on the water and off to the south-east a trio of Brent Geese flying low above the waves. A few pigeons perched on the railings and a young Mediterranean Gull sat on some wooden posts nearby alongside a juvenile Great Black Backed Gull. Taking the train back we could see the water was extremely shallow after spotting a Grey Heron sitting motionless half a mile out from the beach, then we saw lots of waders out on the muds - Redshank, Oystercatchers and then a Curlew, the first I'd ever seen and a bird I really had wanted to find!
Mediterranean Gull on Southend Pier
Back at the sea-front we left the pier and went down to the sea wall on the east side of the pier, pausing to watch a Pied Wagtail on the road and a small huddle of Little Egrets in a pool on the beach. When they flew away we went out to the wall and looked out at a mass of waders in the distance, lots of Dunlin amongst the birds we'd spotted from the train and out to the south-east a second Curlew probing the mud with it's long curving bill. We took some photographs, difficult at such distances and on such a dull grey day but at least by now the fog had lifted from this side of the estuary, although we could see the Kent coast was still shrouded.
We left the beach and collected Dave's car, driving west to Leigh-on-Sea where we hoped to find more Brent Geese. We were not disappointed as when we arrived at the small quay at the eastern end of Leigh we saw a large group of geese on the exposed muds and amongst them lots of Black-tailed Godwits! I'd seen Godwits at Cley before but only off in the distance - these were far closer and so I could much more easily see their back tails as they probed the mud. We settled down to take photographs and as I did so I watched the occasional little scuffles between the geese as they fed. A few Redshank were dotted here and there and in a creek near the quay a few gulls lurked, keeping out of the cold breeze perhaps. I could hear a Curlew calling just off near the beach so we packed up and moved on there, photographing a lone Brent Goose that was striding across the beach. Looking out to the estuary I could see a Little Egret standing hunched on the mud, more Godwits and a Curlew beyond and more Brent Geese out in the distance, perhaps not the thousands some had seen recently but plenty for my tastes.
We headed back to the car and after a bite to eat drove on past Leigh train station to Two Tree Island. Leaving the car we could see lots of small birds in the scrub around us, Robins and Wrens and more, and we struck off west towards the lagoon at the far side of the island. We passed a group of trees full of Chaffinches and Linnets and watched some Teal and a Curlew down in the creek to our right, closer than the others we'd seen so I paused to photograph it but retreated carefully when it looked like it was uncomfortable with my presence. At the lagoon we could see a good sized gathering of Wigeon and nearby Teal and Avocets scattered amongst the islands. We headed for the hide and settled down inside as a light shower began.
We sat for a while watching the birds and saw a few Redshank amongst the Teal, another solitary Little Egret at the far end of the lagoon and a male Shoveler asleep in the shallows. A Curlew called out beyond the sea wall the Avocets filled the air with their piping calls as they fed nearby. The rain became heavier for a time and then as it eased Dave suggested I might want to check out the other hide nearby looking out over the estuary, so I gathered up my binoculars and camera and headed along the path there. I stopped as a small dark animal crept out from the undergrowth ahead, paused on the path and then disappeared into a thicket on the other side of the track. I was too far away to be sure but it seems likely it was an American Mink, watching some videos on the internet their movements certainly appears consistent with what I saw.
I entered the other hide and lifted the flap, immediately seeing a flicker of movement in the marshy plants as 'something' disappeared along an overgrown channel. I thought it probably was another Redhank as when I sat down and looked about I could see a Redshank feeding nearby, a few Shelduck out on the estuary and off in the far distance groups of more birds, way too distant to make out. I watched a Robin hopping around the weeds nearby and then saw the movement in that channel again. I got my binoculars on it and slowly, very gingerly into view crept a Water Rail! I quickly grabbed my camera and took some photos, struggling at such a distance in the dingy light but managed somehow to get some shots. I rang Dave in the other hide (we were the only ones there and he asked me to if I saw anything good) to let him know and he was really pleased but since he had only the other day seen one well at another reserve (I'd seen the pics, it was a great view he got!) he stayed where he was to carry on counting the birds at the lagoon.
After a minute or two the Rail moved back into the channel and disappeared, and after a few more minutes I did so too, heading back to the lagoon hide. I could see a Blackbird and a Dunnock on the path ahead and as I went to raise my binoculars a Sparrowhawk swooped down over my shoulder and flew really low along the path, scattering the terrified birds and then banking around the lagoon hide and out of sight. Dashing to the hide Dave said he'd seen it come in fast and low, buzzing across the water before disappearing over the bank. Pretty cool!
We chatted with another birdwatcher that came to the hide as we packed up and then headed back to the carpark before Dave very kindly gave me a lift back to Chelmsford. Dave was rather miffed that we'd not seen the Turnstones on the pier (which are very tame!) and the big flocks of plovers that would have been at the lagoon at high tide but coming away having seen at least four species of bird I'd not seen before and with photos of a Water Rail I was really pleased! Even without those it was a great trip to scout out the area and see what was around, I'll certainly be back another day when the weather is better, hopefully catching the high tide and those flocks!
Brent Goose at Leigh-on-sea
