December 6th
I have for quite a while been planning to visit this Reserve ,mostly spurred on by the Raptor reports, on a whim the night before I decided it’s about time. Having read the reports on the site I know it is a work in motion and ongoing.
Of course I had looked at the projected forecast and seeing wall to wall sunshine sealed it, I headed down from Hornchurch and 55 minutes later arrived just as the sun came up.
Not unexpectedly it is out in the middle of nowhere, a long track eventually leads to a car park, from there it is up on the sea wall for a walk along the Estuary.
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| The view over the Crouch towards Burnham |
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| The car park all to myself - beyond is the fields the Harriers frequented. |
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| Looking back along the entrance track. |
However before I undertook the walk I checked the fields, 3 Kestrels were already in the air and it wasn’t long before I saw my first Hen Harrier, a Ring Tail, stunning birds as always.
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| Working the fields - rudder of a tail |
I eventually headed out along the Crouch; the usual commoner waders were present with many distant flocks of Dark Bellied Brent Geese seen on fields.
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| Soil arriving all the time from the River |
This being my first visit and having chatted to a local earlier, I understand as yet you cannot do a round robin walk like Old Hall, I may be wrong on this, anyone out there knows different please correct me.
After a mile or so I retraced my steps but on the way had had some ‘good’ birds.
3 Ring Tail Hen Harriers interacting aloft together – distant but quite a sight.
A Ring Tail Hen Harrier, presumably one of the 3 seen earlier skirmishing briefly with a Short Eared Owl.
A female Merlin singling out a Starling from a flock giving chase, I did not see the outcome.
I have also never seen so many Corn Buntings together, I would suspect numbers and flocks seen are up in the 200 + mark.
Arriving back at the car park I watched a dot of a Marsh Harrier and then got on to a single Hen Harrier hunting, at times very acrobatic and Owl like in its strategy.
3 Ring Tail Hen Harriers interacting aloft together – distant but quite a sight.
A Ring Tail Hen Harrier, presumably one of the 3 seen earlier skirmishing briefly with a Short Eared Owl.
A female Merlin singling out a Starling from a flock giving chase, I did not see the outcome.
I have also never seen so many Corn Buntings together, I would suspect numbers and flocks seen are up in the 200 + mark.
Arriving back at the car park I watched a dot of a Marsh Harrier and then got on to a single Hen Harrier hunting, at times very acrobatic and Owl like in its strategy.
A good site and I can see myself visiting more often.
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