March at the Naze is always unpredictable weather-wise, but one constant feature is the wind! And so it proved, with 20-30+mph winds whipping across the headland, penetrating every nook and cranny, ensuring the bird life in particular remained well-concealed.

However in spells of springy sunshine the Red Crag cliffs were afire, brought to life by the blooming of Colt’s-foot on the slipping undercliff….

…. although by the time we made it onto the beach, the cloud had gathered, rain was imminent, the gloom mirrored in the London Clay and the beach clothed with pyritized wood and copperas after recent sand erosion from the foreshore.

A very high tide required a rejig of the our planned route, and meant there were rather few shorebirds. But most species were present and correct, Ringed Plovers seemingly the most numerous, and already noisily getting down to territorial display.

 A few Turnstones, Dunlins, Sanderlings and other waders provided good opportunities for side-by-side comparison, while other waterbirds included Brent Geese, numbers already seemingly reduced by spring migration back towards Siberia,  and a Woodcock that flew from our path through a copse, always a bonus bird.

But the wind kept most scrubland birds out of sight; Chiffchaffs and Cetti’s Warblers were singing well, maybe eight of the latter being a high number and a good sign for its continued spread into the drier scrub areas of the site.

The few trees on the windswept headland were just coming into their own, Hornbeam, Sallow and Alder all festooned in catkins….

…. while the absence of leaves make it all the easier to appreciate the weird and wonderful growth forms (Hornbeam), the distinctive pattern of diamond-shaped lenticels (White Poplar) and the natural lichen art on the trunks.

Gorse of course was in flower, against a blue sky a fitting tribute to the ongoing troubles of the Ukrainian peoples, along with Blackthorn just bursting into bloom….

… while the most important nectar source at the moment seems to be Alexanders, attracting solitary bees and dung flies aplenty. However much criticism can be levelled at alien plant, this is one such that really earns at keep at a time of year when native nectar sources are at a premium.

Insect life was not especially evident, given the wind, but three species of butterfly (Comma, Brimstone and Peacock) appeared in sheltered corners, along with nest-questing queen Buff-tailed Bumblebees, a few basking 7-Spot Ladybirds, a Hawthorn Shield-bug and a larval Cream-spot Tiger moth.

So, something for everyone in windy Wild Essex, even if the late Spring and the ferocity of the elements meant we found ourselves admiring ‘less obvious’ things like the newly sprouting shoots of Sea Hog’s-fennel (rarest plant of the day) and the acid-green fringe of Early Meadow-grass along the path sides, a former rarity, recent arrival and success story of climate collapse!

On my way to leading walk from Burnham on Crouch, I took the opportunity to do something I have been meaning to do for nearly 40 years, to visit the so-called ‘petrified ‘ forest of Dengie, the amazing Mundon Oaks.

On a dull day, they presented a stark and mysterious sight, one that is probably best captured in monochrome…

Aged at somewhere around 800 or 900, these oaks died standing in middle age several centuries ago, probably as a result of saltwater incursion from the Blackwater. That has to some extent preserved (albeit not petrified) the trunks, though they are now showing the wear and tear of the centuries, and bits are dropping off. My advice if you want to see them, don’t leave it four decades like I did: by then they may exist only in photos and the collective Essex memory …

… and if you go, another ‘must see’ is the remote, grade 1-listed St Mary’s Church.

With parts dating back to the 14th century, and on the probable site of a previous Saxon church, clearly this was once a place of importance, standing alongside the ancient pilgrim route to St Peter’s Chapel on the wildest, far-flung edge of Essex at Bradwell.

The church almost found itself suffering the future fate of the oaks, of collapse and mouldering into the earth. But thanks to the sterling work of the wonderful, and evocatively named charity, the Friends of Friendless Churches, dedicated to saving these unsung gems of our architectural and social history, it has been rescued and restored from the jaws of dereliction.

It’s just a pity that there is no way to turn back the hands of time for the trees….

A stiff, cool breeze made conditions less-than-optimal for birdwatching by the River Crouch, and certainly there were no large numbers of shorebirds, those presumably keeping their heads down out of the wind, perhaps across the river in the lagoons of Wallasea Island. But for this sort of walk, numbers are not necessary – if starting from a point of little knowledge, what’s really needed is enough different types of bird and good enough views to be able to see (and hear) the salient features.

Along the waterfront as we started, the tide was up and the gulls were largely roosting on the various jetties and structures, a great opportunity to compare and contrast the Black-headed Gulls (in a variety of head-moult stages) with Herring Gulls, and just a couple of Common Gulls.

Then as the tide ebbed, out came the waders, including Oystercatchers, Redshanks, a Curlew and (more distantly) Black-tailed Godwits and fly-over Golden Plovers, with additional variety coming from Teals splodging in the mud, Little Egrets and a diving Dabchick hugging the shoreline.

Riverbank gardens also had a range of interesting and important plants, from the decorative, salt-tolerant Silk Tassel-bush to our native Ivy, in fruit, demonstrating its supreme ecological importance at a time when most other shrubs have been stripped by the birds.

Into Riverside Park, there were plenty of perching birds, though only the Woodpigeons and Magpies were showing well; smaller species were keeping warm deep in the scrub or (Greenfinches and Pied Wagtails especially) being swept past aloft at a rate of knots. Robins and Great Tits were in full song, Blue Tits and Long-tailed Tits more restrained…

… the first spring flowers were out, including Red Dead-nettle, Shepherd’s-purse and Common Chickweed, and the wholly incongruous sight of Stinking Hellebores apparently fully naturalised among the rip-rap stone facing of the Yacht Harbour.

And the various bushes were also showing signs of springing into life, with Cherry-plum starting to flower and Blackthorn almost there. Hazel catkins wafting the the breeze drew the eye into the glorious little scarlet female flowers, while the various planted trees from its time as a caravan camp provided enough clues to be able to recognise them, such as buds and leaf-scars on Horse-chestnut, catkins and last-year’s cones on Alder and the diamond-marked bark of White Poplar. And no mistaking the Dog Roses with its fearsome array of thorns!

Devoid of leaves, the shrubs also showed the fascinating array of other wildlife, including  Sunburst Lichen, always one to brighten a dull day, and Sea-buckthorn Bracket-fungus. An old friend, we found this infected tree last year, but so far as we are aware this is the only example of the species anywhere in Essex.

So, ‘Birdwatching for Beginners’ and a whole lot more – we don’t have any truck with the nonsense of taking a blinkered approach to the diverse wonders of Nature! And as if to underline that, just as this blog was being posted, there arrived from the organiser of the walk the attached list of pretty much everything we saw Wildlife recorded, birds and all: a good all-round day of wildlife and weather, and a splendid lunch in the Anchor!