The ponds around Wat Tyler are buzzing with activity, both large red and azure damselflies were oviposting this week.

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A male broad-bodied chaser posed beautifully.

It seems that almost every hawthorn bush has a whitethroat singing from it!

 Be sure to pop in to the RSPB Visitor Centre to have a look at the progress of our frog tadpoles in our new indoor pond. Some are becoming quite large.

Thanks to Neil…

Four black-winged stilts were found on the scrape at Wat Tyler Country Park early afternoon on Saturday. They remained all afternoon, although did move to RSPB Bowers Marsh for a while before returning to the scrape. Unfortunately they were not present on Sunday.

Identification black above, white below, white head and neck, long pink legs, long thin black bill.
Male - black back with green gloss
Female - brown back.…

The hoopoe above was found on our West Canvey Marsh reserve yesterday. It proved to be a very showy individual, and delighted many visitors throughout the day. Hoopoes turn up annually in the UK, usually in spring, as they migrate from Africa, some overshoot their European breeding grounds. Thank you to the lady who phoned the news in to our visitor centre at Wat Tyler Country Park, and thanks to local photographer Steve…

This brilliant picture was sent to use by 9-year-old Natasha King.

She says; "My dad took this photo of a blue tit in the nest box I made when I visited the South Essex RSPB centre in the half term holidays.

Nestboxes are essential for many garden birds as we move into breeding season. They act as an alternative to natural nesting grounds such as holes found in old trees and can make a great spring home to…

I love this time of the year, everytime you go outside, there is something new to see or hear. I stopped briefly at a local wood on the way home from Wat Tyler, and the woodland flowers are looking great with wood anemone and bluebells now starting to appear. At Wat Tyler this week I heard my first cuckoo, a sure sign summer is just around the corner! Blackcaps are singing all around the park, while the whitethroat's…

Yesterday two nightingales were singing in Wat Tyler Country Park. The first was near the first hide over looking Timberman's Creek as you walk from the marina. The second bird was singing on the opposite side of the creek. A willow warbler was singing NE of the marina. Nightingale image below by John Bridges.

 This weekend could see a migration bonanza. With high pressure systems sitting over North Africa and Western…

At least three blackcaps joined the Wat Tyler choir's warbler section yesterday along with an early reed warbler. On Saturday a sedge warbler was seen in the park. Our early morning avian choir is starting to take shape and will be in fine voice for our dawn chorus walks during May. Dates to follow shortly!

Two excellent blackcap images taken at Wat Tyler yesterday by Neil Phillips. You can see more click here

Now is a great time to get to grips with the three warbler species that breed in or close to the reedbeds at Wat Tyler. Our resident cetti's warblers are now being joined by the summering sedge and reed warblers.

Cetti's warbler a small, rather nondescript bird, Cetti's warbler (pronounced chetty) is a skulking bird and can prove very difficult to see. It usually makes its presence known with loud bursts of song…

On Tuesday our first swallows arrived back at Wat Tyler Country Park. Three of them were seen on the telephone wires near the RSPB reserves office (white cottages).

 Thanks to Neil Phillips for providing these excellent images.

Monday 28th March: Walk for health 12.30 pm - 1 pm
Get fit with a bracing lunchtime walk around Wat Tyler Park. A regular brisk 30-minute walk to improve your fitness in peaceful surroundings. Free event no need to book. Location: RSPB Visitor Centre, Wat Tyler Park, Pitsea Hall Lane, Basildon SS16 4UH

Tuesday 29th March: Holehaven Creek Walk and Pub Lunch, Holehaven Creek, Canvey 10.30am – 12.30pm
A guided walk…

 Clear blue skies and warm sunshine over the weekend, triggers a movement of birds of prey. Over Vange Wick viewable from Wat Tyler Country Park on Saturday lunchtime two different common buzzards and a peregrine falcon showed well, while on Sunday a peregrine falcon and a marsh harrier were seen. Thanks to Steve Arlow for the images below taken on Saturday.

A chiffchaff was seen yesterday at Wat Tyler Country Park, while increasing numbers of chiffchaffs overwinter in the UK, this one is almost certainly a migrant. On Thursday three siskin were seen in the alder tree opposite the RSPB reserves office, a scarce species for the park.

At West Canvey Marsh yesterday a pair of adult summer mediterranean gulls were showing well from the first hide. A good count of 51 stock d…

Had our first returning summer migrant last Friday, a stunning male wheatear on West Canvey Marsh. The males tend to arrive a week or two before the females, probably to set-up their breeding territory, ours was passing through on his way further north. At Wat Tyler Country Park up to three ruff can still be seen in the creek from the marina,along with spotted redshank, greenshank and black-tailed godwits. At Vange Marsh…

This weekend, the weather will be fine, daffodils are poking their yellow heads above the earth, birds are singing and the days are lengthening.

Surely, this can mean just one thing - spring has sprung!

This weekend why not hunt for signs of spring. It could be snowdrops in your garden or local park. Skylarks singing over The South Essex Marshes reserves or robins chasing each other in the RSPB garden at Wat Tyler…

Yesterday on the marsh one green sandpiper, a peregrine falcon, corn bunting, linnet, chaffinch, cormorant, 2 little egret, 6 shoveler, 10 shelduck, tufted duck, a brent goose with the canada geese. Good numbers of gadwall, teal, wigeon, mallard and skylark.

At Wat Tyler Country Park on Sunday, Scrape Hide only: 7 Little Grebe, 1 Great Crested Grebe, 79 Pochard, 6 Tufted Duck, 1 immature male Marsh Harrier, 1 Snipe, 3…

Friday 14 Vange Marsh -12:35 to 13:30, Rain, westerly wind
55 Wigeon, 6 Gadwall, 420 Teal (possible the highest number recorded on the marsh), 2 Pintail, 10 Shoveler, 1 Sparrowhawk (female), 42 Snipe (one large 'wisp' flying around the marsh for about 10 mins occasionally breaking up into smaller groups.)

Monday 10 Wat Tyler Country Park - 08:30 to 15:15
1 Red-breasted Goose (likely escaped bird on the scrape at…

The bittern which has taken up residence on Vange Marsh, continues to be seen albeit briefly in flight over the eastern reedbed. This bird takes some patience to see, but it is well worth putting the effort in. Probably the best place to look from is the raised path to the viewing screen, here you will have the sun behind you in the mornings, please avoid entering the reedbeds and good luck. More interesting species seen…

The bittern was seen again briefly in flight over the eastern reedbed at Vange Marsh yesterday. Also seen was a kingfisher as it flew along the creek near the screen hide and later over the reedbed. Also a green sandpiper flew from the saline lagoon and 7 common snipe were on the freshmarsh. A green woodpecker flew across the reserve.

In Timbermans Creek and viewed from the marina at Wat Tyler Country Park was a nice…

Vange Marsh (RSPB), 12:30 to 16:15
1 bittern ((First seen at 15:30, then seen again as it flushed from the reed bed, then flew out over reed bed and circled over main marsh before returning in to same area of reed bed at the east end of Marsh)), 177 lapwing (Vange Wick), 9 ruff (Vange Wick,), 1 spotted redshank (Vange Creek), 1 green sandpiper (Vange Wick), 1 snow bunting (male, feeding in straw supplements on track near…

This morning there were 70+ waxwings near the Tesco garage in Pitsea, this is an increase from the 42 thjat were there yesterday. Our visitor centre is open every day this week at Wat Tyler Country Park, do pop in and update us on the waxwings.

Yesterday there were still 13 waxwings near our reserve on West Canvey, between dutch cottage and the garden centre. I make no appologies for including another one of Dave Blackwell…

20 - 30 waxwings were seen on Canvey Island near Dutch Cottage, close to RSPB West Canvey Marsh on Christmas Eve during the afternoon. The two images below were taken by Dave Blackwell.

Vange Marsh on the 24th Grey Heron, Wigeon, Teal, Shoveler, Mallard, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Kestrel, Snipe, Redshank, Dunlin, Grey Plover, Kingfisher, Redwing, Long-tailed Tit, Reed Bunting

There have been some large flocks of white-fronted geese seen over the last few days in Essex. Yesterday morning, approx 60 flew over Wat Tyler Country Park from Vange Wick heading towards Bowers Marsh.

Also seen were, 2 grey plover, 2 avocet and 4 dunlin in the creek while an adult winter  Mediterranean gull was on the scrape.

Of local interest forty waxwings were seen recently in Pitsea, they were seen briefly near the Tesco…

15:20 today 32 white-fronted Geese flew over West Canvey Marsh, initially heading north-west then came back round to the east and headed north. The flock included some fine adults with their barred under-bellies clearly visible.

At Wat Tyler the fleet and scrape is completely frozen, but has been affording some good, if brief views of water rails feeding in clear view along the edges of the reedbeds.

Image - White-fronted…

A barn owl was sadly found dead in a barn on Canvey Island recently, it was emaciated and surely a victim of the recent cold snap. This is sad as there are probably no more than two pairs breeding on the island, if you do see a barn owl on Canvey I would really like to hear about it, please email: alan.shearman@rspb.org.uk 

Have a look at the recent press article below, with a second period of cold weather now with us…

Wat Tyler Country Park, 15:00 to 16:35, all from scrape hide, fleet frozen, scrape 75% frozen, sunny, sunset at 15:48
3 Pochard, 1 Tufted Duck, 1 Hen Harrier (ringtail flew south mobbed by crows), 4 Water Rail (3 on edges of frozen scrape, 1 calling from N end of fleet), 47 Moorhen, 51 Coot , 1 Green Woodpecker, 2 Cetti's Warbler singing together by the hide and perhaps a different bird singing c.100m to the south, 3…