A first for #WildEssex – a few days away to a place far enough away to make it seem like a holiday, but not too far, with the necessities – both good wildlife and pleasant pubs 😊.  What more could we have wanted?  Well, Chris’ leg being in better shape may have speeded up the whole thing, but actually a slow pace with frequent opportunities to stop, look and listen fitted perfectly with the whole ethos of Wild Essex. The weather played ball, our group of ladies gelled brilliantly and made the whole experience a lot of fun. So thank you all!

Burnham-on-Crouch is a pretty place with maritime running through all its veins. Some of us resided in one of the ancient waterside pubs, Ye Olde White Harte, complete with lots of beams and quirkiness. Others chose to set up camp together ‘The Camper Van Three’ in their delightful touring vans.  The weather was pretty kind to us – one evening having the best sunset ever (even by Wivenhoe standards)…

… and that on the second evening was almost as impressive!

The ever-changing tides gave us constantly shifting views of the River Crouch – both for the birdlife and for the yachts and other boats moored along the riverside and at the yacht harbour.

Our amblings took us both east and west from Burnham and on the final morning we took a short but very enjoyable boat trip over to Wallasea island, now an RSPB reserve fashioned out of Crossrail spoil on top of a low-lying island previously used for intensive agriculture.

The birdlife here was somewhat disappointing, although we know that come the wintertime it will be teeming with birdlife. We were hoping to spend a whole day there but that was thwarted by the ferry not running the day we had planned; as it happened, the lack of a ferry was serendipitous given the dearth of birds.

On other days, Riverside Park, part of which is a brownfield site (so important for invertebrate life especially) and a de facto Nature Reserve, provided us with lots to admire, and we were impressed with Burnham Wick Farm, a working farm which strives to promote and help wildlife along with their daily raison d’etre of growing food.

During Chris’ ‘Sit-down Sessions’ we had the chance to think about and discuss tides and the moon; the importance of oysters, both in the past and now trying to restore Native Oyster stocks; the conflicts about how best to use our land – food, solar power, wind power, wild spaces, housing? – plus a lot else besides.

So what did we actually see?  We have compiled a list (see here Burnham lists)…., but some of the highlights included:

PLANTS – Sea Buckthorn with its cacophony of Starlings, the berries of the plant now sometimes used in superfood cooking (as an interested passer-by told us) which we tasted but were not particularly impressed with; Sea Aster in all its forms on the marshes; the ‘menagerie’ of plants, Bristly Ox-tongue, Common Fleabane, Goat’s Rue, Slender Hare’s-ear, Buck’s-horn Plantain, Autumn Hawkbit, Dogwood and more; many other fruiting species, often abundantly, including Buckthorn and Holm Oak; whole swards of Strawberry Clover and Narrow-leaved Bird’s-foot-trefoil; plus the beautiful Common Reed, its leaves showing the Devil’s teeth marks – and one of the few plants you can actually identify from the sound it makes in the breeze – known as ‘psithurisim ‘  (thanks Annie!).

INVERTEBRATES – Garden Spider, an amazingly bright Clouded Yellow butterfly, burnet moth cocoons, plus Ivy Bees homing in on the abundant Ivy flowers, Long-winged Cone-head, Forest Bug and Parent Bugs in a variety of colourways.

BIRDS – shore birds including Little Egret, Black Tailed Godwits and Ringed Plovers, Sandwich Terns, gulls and Cormorants; woodland species including several kinds of tit, Meadow Pipits and Swallows migrating through, noisy Cettis Warblers plus overhead Buzzard, Marsh Harrier and Kestrel.

OTHER wildlife delights included fungi (the bracket fungus on Sea Buckthorn proved to be Fomitiporia hippophaeicola, with no previous Essex records shown on the National Biodiversity Network map) and lichens, galls, a Harbour Seal bobbing about, a Brown Hare, a Harvest Mouse nest and various kinds of poo!

So all in all, although things didn’t go entirely to our original plan, we had a great time and really hoping we can organise another Wild Essex On Tour trip next year. Please let us know if you would be interested in being kept in touch about this.

Lovely sunshine greeted us when we all assembled on Harwich Halfpenny Pier this morning.  This was the first time we had organised an outing to Harwich and hope that everyone enjoyed as much as we did.

We wandered from the Halfpenny Pier, via the sandy beach near the New Bell pub, right along the foreshore as far as the Low Lighthouse. From then on we followed the promenade as far as the Banksy spraycation (?) mural at Stone Point, where Harwich turns into Dovercourt.

So what did we see?

Birdlife – Sandwich Terns ( including one being harried by a Herring Gull), Little Egret, Turnstones, Oystercatchers and the ubiquitous gulls.

Plants – some specialities of coastal areas, most of which are very uncommon given that their habitat is restricted to a thin sliver where the sea meets the land: Sea Rocket, Rock Samphire, Prickly Saltwort, Sea Holly, Sea Spurge and more…

… along with the rather less welcome invasive Japanese Rose, starting to colonise the low dunes.

Insects – not many, just the occasional butterfly and Meadow Grasshopper, but also a rather interesting (and rare) fly – Dune Villa.

Products of the Sea – shells were discussed, with particular reference to Oysters, from former abundance to severe decline, but now hope in the form of the Essex Native Oyster Restoration Inititative; and fossils, especially sharks’ teeth. One of our group found one in the morning, but later in the day we (plus Chris’ family over from Germany) spent some time looking and each found one. So worth looking for next time you visit Harwich beach.  Lots of seaweeds but these will be a topic of a future walk.

Geology – the Harwich Stone Band (not a pop group), which defines Harwich as the only natural rocky shore in Essex. The band formed from an ash layer from volcanoes 50 million years ago which settled in that area and became compacted to form a layer of rock.

Other life – the tail of a Common Lizard seen disappearing into the undergrowth and these two in their rather groovy new tee shirts!

A gorgeous day blessed our walk at Mistley today.  What contrast to our Wrabness trip a month before!

Several of us ( including the special co-leader, Eleanor) arrived by train and immediately tucked into a good coffee and cake from the Zero Waste van-man at Mistley Station. When all were assembled we set off through Edme works (with that distinctive malty smell permeating the air), under the railway line and into the first of our varied habitats – a field used sometimes to graze cattle, but today was just full of Meadow Buttercups  and other wild flowers, such as new-sprung Hogweed flowers round the margins and fungi sprouting on the sites of now long-gone cowpats.

And of course there was also the grasses, many species in fresh flower, and both diverse and beautiful as shown by this Cock’s-foot and Yorkshire-fog.

A Small Tortoiseshell skipped between buttercups, and the big old parkland trees held both Jackdaws and Rooks, whose cawing rose to a crescendo as a Raven swept in (no doubt on the lookout for an easy chick meal) – a dramatic addition to the Essex skyscape over the past five years.

At the foot of Furze Hill, the local springs that led to the 18th century marketing of Mistley Thorn as a spa town coagulate into a streamline fringed with massive Alder trees, harbouring singing Wrens, Blackcaps and a Song Thrush. The leaves were covered in the small galls of the microscopic mite Eriophyes laevis.

A pleasant walk along a leafy lane ensued (welcome shade!) – many wayside and woodland flowers to be admired, from blue Alkanet and Germander Speedwell, to yellow Wood Avens and white Cow Parsley (going over) and Ground Elder (freshly out), along with many Nettles supporting a myriad of insect life.

After a short walk through a woodland clearing we arrived on to the rec ground where we divided into two groups. Eleanor and Granny went to spend a happy hour on the swings whilst the more ‘grown-up? 😊’ ones enjoyed a walk through the woodland, admiring the natural beauty, in particular the ancient trees.

Of these Old Knobbley was, of course, the star attraction.  According to a rather lovely book by Morag Embleton ‘Old Knobbley the Oak Tree’, it is some 1000 years old and has seen a lot of changes!  Chris’  blogs have more information too Furze Hill, Mistley: home to the Ancients | Chris Gibson Wildlife and #BringingNatureToYou : branching out to Furze Hill, Mistley | Chris Gibson Wildlife.

Then where Brambles were bursting into flower, another natural resource was being exploited to the full by Honeybees, bumblebees, Red Admirals and many others, including late-instar nymphs of Red-legged Shield bug Speckled Woods and numerous Gold-barred Longhorn Moths sunning themselves on the leaves.

We completed our session with a stroll over the recreation field itself, which in places has avoided too-regular mowings and been allowed to grow.  Lots of Birds-foot-trefoil (a favourite of bees and Common Blue butterflies) was blooming, together with Lesser Stitchwort, Common Cat’s-ear, Mouse-eared Hawkweed and Sheep’s Sorrel, indicating the sandy nature of the soil. A briskish walk up School Lane back to the station brought the morning to a close.

As always the pleasure was ours, and we hope that everyone enjoyed the experience.  Some of the group continued into Manningtree for a lunch, and we carried on to Harwich to spend the afternoon on the beach.

Looking forward to seeing you all before long, and just to finish with a final mention to be sure to check yourselves for ticks after a countryside walk these days.  Ticks – advice on protection, prevention and removal | Scouts

Rain, rain and more rain…a feature of our half day walk around beautiful spots of Wrabness, but hopefully not the only memory to be taken away😊 . Our thanks to everyone for their perseverance….’it may brighten up later’….but despite the less-than-perfect conditions we still got a flavour of this relatively unspoilt area, and we hope that it was worth getting a bit damp for!

The morning got off to a mixed start – slight issues with the car-parking payment facilities but the prospect of a coffee and use of a loo in the little community shop more than made up for any initial annoyances. We covered quite a distance over the four hours, our first port of call being the House for Essex, the whacky but very interesting Grayson Perry creation.  If you get the chance, do try to visit this on a sunny day, when the whole exterior seems to shine and glow. And to our eyes at least a very fitting addition to the newly-designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Next, East Grove was a pleasant little diversion from the main route – a perfect little woodland boasting many plants, including Butcher’s Broom, Bugle, Greater Stitchwort and of course Bluebells aplenty.

The juxtaposition of tidal mud and ancient woodland is exceptionally rare in Essex, and the smell of the estuary was a feast for the nose!

Peering out from the trees, we could see a couple of hundred Dark-bellied Brent Geese on the shoreline. The icon of the Essex coast in winter (we are home to a fifth of the world’s population), the Stour is one of its renowned departure points for its return migration…

…and sure enough, a chorus of burbling, and off they went. Next stop the Taimyr Peninsula? Or at least a staging post in the Baltic.

Walking along the seawall we were able to admire many other shore birds: Shelducks, Oystercatchers, Little Egrets and  more. The quiet conditions (hardly any people on foot and a welcome lack of light aircraft overhead which seem to enjoy being noisy), and the damp, still air made Bird Listening (as opposed to Watching) an important part of the day. Farmland birds were in full voice, including Skylarks, Whitethroats and Lesser Whitethroats, with more distant Cuckoo, Nightingale and Yellowhammer.

Along this stretch we found virtually the only insects of any note – St Mark’s Flies.  These dangly-legged beasties emerge at roughly the same time as our hirundine visitors, providing food for them after their long flights from Africa. Among the big boys was a smaller, more colourful species, Downland Bibio.

An innocuous field of peas turned out to have a fascinating story – these have been bred to be leafless, the leaflets now being just tendrils which twirl around each other allowing the plants to huddle together, as protection from wind and heavy rains etc. Something we were having to come to terms with ourselves! And some of the Oak trees along the cliff-edge were already laden with galls, even on the leaves which must have burst only a week ago. One or two had huge numbers of large Oak-apples, on one of which we found a micro-hyperparasite, a tiny, long-tailed wasp, presumably a parasite of the gall-causer, itself a tiny wasp!

Next part of the route was along the beach.  Of interest was the geology – the cliffs (SSSI) showing ‘ash layers’ in among the London clay… visible evidence of when these parts were covered in ash from volcanic activity in Caledonia many millions of years ago.  The rocks – part of the Harwich Stone Band (forerunner of the Rolling Stones??) – from which local VIP buildings such as Colchester Castle have been partially constructed – were all around, to be admired, and some adorned with festoons of seaweed. This beach and a similar one at Harwich are the only natural rocky shores between north Norfolk and north Kent.

Rocks and fallen trees  provided a kind of make-your-bum-wet perch on which to eat lunch, though some sensible people in our group found a nice dry boat under tree canopy to eat theirs!  The conditions weren’t really conducive to leisurely beach-combing, but a few shells of interest were found, including Portuguese Oysters (a rampant non-native, potentially squeezing out our local native variety), Slipper Limpets, Cockles in a variety of attractive colours and a Shore Crab’s carapace. Another highlight of the shore walk was seeing the Sand Martins’ nests in the sandy banks – one of only three natural martin nesting sites in Essex.

Onward and up the bank onto the footpath we wended our way into the Essex Wildlife Nature reserve.  By now the wet weather was starting to really take its toll. The rain soaking up from my feet was meeting that dripping down from my coat, and we began to think we should call it a day a bit earlier than originally planned.  This meant missing out the Woodland Burial Site, but perhaps next time! The Nature Reserve – an important site, luckily rescued from development proposals – really does need visiting in the warm (see our evening visit last year, when conditions were perfect…  Wrabness Nature Reserve on a summer’s evening | Chris Gibson Wildlife ). Today there was no insect life whatsoever, but a few plants were worth a mention – Field Horsetail (diminutive relative of the giants from which our coal was laid down, eons ago), White Ramping Fumitory, Spotted Medick and Cowslip – and the many funnel-web spider webs, liberally laced with mercurial droplets…

The birds were not performing as we had hoped. Not a peep from the local Nightingales nor the Corn Buntings. But one important memory that we must take back from the nature reserve was the purring sound of the Turtle Doves…sadly such a rare thing to hear these days, due to merciless hunting in certain Mediterranean countries and the lack of suitable habitat (all they can find are agricultural wastelands ravaged by pesticides and totally lacking the seeds of ‘weeds’) for those that do manage to make it.  But here at least they can find sanctuary.

At this point our group began to separate – some heading for an earlier train, whilst others of us wandered at a more leisurely pace back to the station.  A little stop at the church (unfortunately not open to allow a sit down!), was worth a few minutes of our time, if only to see Annie inside the bell-cage.  Apparently the church tower collapsed in the 17^th century, when the bell was ‘caged’, and seemingly that is where it will stay for evermore. And further along the road, we encountered the second of The Twelve Days of Christmas birds – Partridges (Red-legged varieties) which were enjoying the pea-fields.

Again thanks to everyone who stuck with us, and hope that we can repeat this, in more favourable conditions another year.  Writing this, having been home an hour or so, the sun is shining and we can’t help thinking ‘if only….’…