Early Morning Visit to Rainham Riverside

Arrived at Rainham Riverside at 6.20 and immediately picked up a Whimbrel in flight by its piping call all on the same pitch and about seven at a time repeated regularly. On The River Thames were 3 Common Terns this number grew to at least 30 before I left.

Canada Geese

Canada Goose

Cowslips

Dunnock

Dunnock

female Linnet

male Linnet

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The Gardener's Friend

Whilst doing some weeding and planting in my mother-in-law's garden. I had an opportunistic Robin for company, I thought one but actually, there are a pair and I'm sure they have a nest with chicks nearby. I won't try and seek it out, but they were carrying a lot of worms and grubs away. So I took advantage to take a few pictures.

Robin with a beak full of food

Robins prefer Spear & Jackson

Robin with a beak full of food

Robin with a beak full of food

Robin with a beak full of food

Robin with a beak full of food

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Dagenham Chase

 Went to The Chase this afternoon. A good number of warblers in full song include Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Sedge, and Reed Warbler. Brilliant to see a pair of the exotic-looking Mandarin Duck, shame they stayed slightly obscured by the vegetation. Two Red Kites circling high over heading north was good to see. The warm weather has brought out the butterflies Orange-tip, Peacock, Brimstone, Small Tortoiseshell, and Small white.

Great Crested Grebe with two humbug like chicks

drake Mandarin Duck

Mute Swan in a flap

Peacock Butterfly

Whitethroat

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Rainham Marshes

Had a walk this morning along the river beside Rainham Marshes then up and over the landfill to the serin mound. Beautiful warm sunny early morning with no wind! Fairly quiet bird-wise although I did manage three warblers that were new for me this year, Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler, and Reed Warbler. There were a few butterflies enjoying the sun including a Brimstone that would not settle.

Cowslip

Green-veined White

Peacock

Robin watching over it's territory

distant Skylark at the top of the landfill

Small Tortoiseshell

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Temmink's Stint East Tilbury

Yesterday I walked almost a mile east of the fort to view the new scrape area. The reason I've come back again so soon is that a Temmink's Stint is showing so well.....no hang on my nose is growing again, it is showing but very distantly!

Temminck's Stint

This shot is very heavily cropped and the best I could do! This is a little unseasonal for this species given that it has been here for at least 3 days. Easily overlooked, this small wader can turn up on almost any coastal or inland marsh, especially in spring. It is, however, often a tricky addition to any year list, as its appearance in any one place is never guaranteed.

Its breeding range extends from Scotland eastwards through Scandinavia and Siberia to far eastern Russia. It winters from the Mediterranean south to African countries such as Nigeria and Kenya, and eastwards across southern Asia as far as Japan. It occurs as a vagrant in North America. Britain lies at the western edge of its migration route and Scotland is just within its breeding range.

Migration in both spring and autumn takes place on a broad front, with birds migrating inland, often being seen on inland waters on their route north. Both passages are rapid, with autumn movements beginning in July and mostly complete by the end of September. Winter quarters are vacated in March and April, and most birds are back at their European breeding grounds by late May

There were also three Little Ringed Plovers around the scrape area and a Peregrine sat distantly on top of the landfill site.

I noted a few signs of spring gradually taking hold as I walked back alongside the River Thames, Skylarks were singing, and bees were buzzing around mainly Bumble Bees which were probably queens seeking a new home.

Early Mining Bee - Andrena haemorrhoa lots of these feeding on the flowering Blackthorn

Red Dead Nettle

Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly

A gun turret was hidden in the vegetation at the end of the fort's moat

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Garganey at Dagenham Chase

Yesterday I caught up with the cracking drake Garganey on The Slack at Dagenham Chase. I had to wait quite some time for it to wake up and fully show itself. It is our only summer visiting duck and could well have flown from South Africa so I guess rest is acceptable!

The garganey is a small dabbling duck. It breeds in much of Europe and across the Palearctic, but is strictly migratory, with the entire population moving to southern Africa, India (in particular Santragachi), Bangladesh (in the natural reservoirs of Sylhet district), and Australasia during the winter of the Northern hemisphere,

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Day Out in Cambridgeshire

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We spent a gloriously sunny day in Cambridgeshire on Friday starting at The National Trust's Anglesey Abbey, Gardens & Lode Mill. A Jacobean-style house with gardens and a working watermill. A passion for tradition and impressing guests inspired one man to transform a run-down country house and desolate landscape. At the age of 30, the future Lord Fairhaven began to create his first home. Wanting to inspire and surprise visitors, he created a spectacular garden with planting for all seasons and a cosy house in which to entertain. Life revolved around horse racing and shooting, and guests enjoyed 1930s luxury.

Inside: fine furnishings, books, paintings, silver, and rare clocks give a feeling of opulence. Outside: 46 hectares (114 acres) offer vibrant colour, delicious scents, and the simple pleasures of nature.

It is a beautiful place to visit and today there were many who did, I'm also sure that in a few more weeks as more flowering plants appear it will be even more spectacular.

Scilla luciliae or Lucile's glory-of-the-snow with Daffodils

Scilla luciliae or Lucile's glory-of-the-snow

Dark-edged bee-fly

Scilla luciliae or Lucile's glory-of-the-snow amongst Silver Birch trees

Scilla luciliae or Lucile's glory-of-the-snow

Scilla luciliae or Lucile's glory-of-the-snow amongst Silver Birch trees

Lode Mill

Looking back towards the mill

View looking out from the top of the mill

The Raptor Foundation

At the Raptor Foundations, their aims have always been, firstly to rescue, rehabilitate and return injured birds of prey back to the wild and secondly to protect and preserve them through education and conservation. By visiting them, you are supporting the very important work that they do and helping birds of prey across the world.

I know I'm not a fan of seeing birds behind wire, but at least here some are there for a number of reasons that they can not be returned to the wild and are being used to educate. Now to the flying display, if I'm honest it failed a little, with birds just not playing ball by either flying off, not moving or returning to their aviary. At least the Peregrine Falcon saved the day (as they often do) with a fast at times low-level fly past and occasional stoops.

Harris Hawk

The Harris's hawk, formerly known as the bay-winged hawk or dusky hawk, and known in Latin America as peuco, is a medium-large bird of prey that breeds from the southwestern United States south to Chile, central Argentina, and Brazil. Birds are sometimes reported at large in Western Europe, especially Britain, but it is a popular species in falconry and these records almost certainly all refer to escapes from captivity.

Bateleur Eagle

The Bateleur Eagle, also known simply as the Bateleur, is a medium-sized eagle and the only member of the genus Terathopius. It has long wings and a very short tail, making it unmistakable in flight. Spending much of the day soaring, it hunts over a territory of 250 square miles (650km). The adult male has black plumage except for the chestnut mantle and tail, grey shoulders, and red facial skin, bill, and legs.

Peregrine Falcon

The peregrine is a large and powerful falcon. It has long, broad, pointed wings and a relatively short tail. It is blue-grey above, with a blackish top of the head and an obvious black 'moustache' that contrasts with its white face. Its breast is finely barred. It is swift and agile in flight, chasing prey.

The strongholds of the breeding birds in the UK are the uplands of the north and west and rocky seacoasts. Peregrines were at a low point in the 1960s due to human persecution and the impact of pesticides in the food chain. Improved legislation and protection has helped the birds to recover and they have now expanded into many urban areas.

Peregrine

Ely Cathedral

Ely Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is an Anglican cathedral in the city of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. The cathedral has its origins in AD 672 when St Etheldreda built an abbey church. The present building dates back to 1083, and it was granted cathedral status in 1109.

part of Ely Cathedral

Lovely to see the canon supporting Ukraine

The cathedral is a stunning building it is a shame I could only show part of it here, definitely needs a longer visit. A nice touch having the canon in Ukraine's colours with flowers placed inside it.