update

I'm maintaining this new drive to use my free time for birding

Thursday 23rd saw me grab some time at Rainham between school runs and I managed to count 80 species with the highlight being my first Hobbys of 2026 with four hawking over the marsh. The Gropper was still reeling away and Med Gulls continued to call overhead.

Friday 24th saw me take a changed route and again either side of the school runs I headed along the wall from the top car park to the Stone barges and back along the north of the tip to the car park. My reward for this walk was a singing Nightingale, a Whimbrel by the barges and a couple of Common Sandpipers. I made an effort to count everything paying particular attention to Great Whitethroats which totalled 34 on the circuit and I would imagine I got about half of what's there. The species list for this walk was 69. 

One of the 34 Whitethroats on my walk around the tip

same bird different bush

The Nightingale was singing by the yellow pipe

Saturday 25th and I headed to KGV for a change. A full circuit delivered a decent count of 21 Yellow Wagtails and a Wheatear. Back at the south end of the reservoir I stopped to chat with Graham W and check the terns one last time. Graham picked out two Black Terns and then managed to get me onto a couple of Little Terns as they flew straight through heading south. The Black Terns lingered all day and my total for the day was 65 species. Heard a woodpecker which sounded somewhere between Great and Lesser but we settled on it being a Great Spot on soft wood. The Black and Little Terns were both year ticks.

Yellow Wagtail (male)

Yellow Wagtail (female)

Yellow Wagtail

My 23rd Wheatear of the year (from just three sites)

Sunday 26th and an early return to KGV proved fruitful with three Whimbrel and two Dunlin on the causeway. A few Yellow Wagtails and two or possible three Cuckoo. The Greater Scaup remains as we get close to May and it has provoked discussion recently about it being a possible hybrid. Following the walk around KGV and going home to sort lunch for Suzanne I decided to pop down to Rainham where I found all three of the Black-winged Stilts that arrived today and a single Wood Sandpiper on winter pool with both being year ticks and taking my year list to 194 which is respectable considering how local most of my birding has been this year. The Whimbrel is a new bird for me at KGV.

Dunlin

Dunlin

Dunlin

Common Sandpiper

The Scaup or is it?

Cuckoo

Whimbrel (a site tick for me)

The causeway

Rainham and EBIRD

Still visiting Rainham still seeing some good birds like Spoonbill, my 21st and 22nd Wheatears of the year over the three sites I watch, Lesser Whitethroat and Gropper are being heard daily still but rarely seen, The Bittern seems quiet if it's still there and I'm told it is. A Cuckoo today was my first this year at Rainham. A nice arrival of Bar-tailed Godwits yesterday was noteable and I counted 38 with 6 Blackwits for company. I found a Dunlin today on Winter pool but missed the six reported Spotted Redshank and two Greenshank. A Hobby has been seen over the last two days but I'm yet to connect with it. I still await my first Arctic Tern having enjoyed upto 70 Common Terns on occasion. Med Gulls are heard then seen most days now and the Raven is pretty reliable flying over from the tip most mornings.

I watched a couple of Marsh Frogs sun bathing yesterday and today a Little Grebe has that same spot, has built a nest and laid an egg all since yesterday. There are young Coots, Canada and Greylag Geese so far.

My 22nd Wheatear of the year

Wheatear

Little Grebe

Little Grebe

Coot

Coot

Coot

Bar-tailed Godwits

Year list 189

Jim has been ebirding recently and I've enjoyed helping him list/count species on our days out together at Rainham and KGV but resisted getting involved myself until today when I submitted my first Ebird list for Rainham and then the obvious need to input some historical records. I'll see how it goes and if it brings anything positive to my birding experience before deciding if it's for me or not.

Rainham

We had some positive news today from the hospital regarding my daughter-in-law and we sure needed it. Hopefully it marks the start of a better run of luck for her. I'm still pretty busy helping out with School runs and after school commitments etc coupled with looking after Suzanne as best I can but I am also trying hard to make time for birding which helps clear my head too.

Rainham has been the chosen venue for most of my birding over the last few days and it continues to deliver new arrivals and year ticks for me.

Over the last few days I've found Whimbrel, Grasshopper Warblers, Lesser Whitethroats and my first Swifts of the year to name a few and it's also been good working through the species counts with around 70 on most visits.

The year list now sits at 188 but I'm still to find an Arctic Tern or Sandwich Tern, no Ouzel or Whinchat for me yet but I keep looking. I missed a Redstart the other day and today somebody reported two Cranes flying over Rainham shortly after I'd left.

Common Sandpipers

Whimbrel and Curlew

Swift

Marsh frogs

Wheatear

Marsh Frog

Common Terns

Little Egret

Dunnock

Breeding plumaged Great White Egret

Gropper on the fence

Cetti's Warbler

Whitethroat

Pochard

Pochard

Gadwall

Wheatears at KGV

I made two trips to KGV today one at the crack of dawn with Jim where we found six Common Terns on south basin which were our first here this year. It was cold and overcast when a Great White Egret flew along the edge of south basin and was close enough to ID with the naked eye. Yesterdays Lesser Whitethroat was still rattling away as we walked up the east bank. Two Oystercatchers remain and we were surprised to find three Goldeneye again after they'd all cleared out a week or so ago. A Yellow Wagtail was in the far NE corner and we saw six Swallow and two House Martins among the many Sand Martins. A single female Wheatear was found on the causeway and both Ravens were seen along with a Buzzard, Sparrowhawk and two Red Kites. We only walked the east bank but still counted 58 species.

The afternoon was very blustery but I somehow avoided getting wet on a full circuit. I had six Wheatear with one on the causeway two on the NW bank and three on the SE bank. A Yellow Wagtail and four Greys was nice but also of note was a count in excess of fifty Pied Wagtails. Two Oystercatchers and three Common Sandpipers were seen before I found the Scaup in the SW corner of north basin having not seen it for a few days now although it has been reported by others.

I've now seen 20 Wheatear over three sites this spring.

Three Wheatear on south basin together

Scaup with Tufted Ducks

Oystercatchers

Wheatear

Wheatear

Wheatear

two of the three Common Sandpipers present tonight

Yellow Wagtail

Still slotting in a bit of birding where I can

With time still at a premium I'm concentrating on local to limit travel time and maximise birding time and I'm quite enjoying it to be honest. Yesterday I dropped George to school in Hornchurch then popped down to Rainham for a couple of hours before my other duties for the day. The Spotted Redshank was still on Wennington although the water levels suggest not for long and a quick scan of the grassy areas revealed two Wheatear and a Yellow Wagtail out on the marsh. On the tip a single Corn Bunting with three Meadow Pipits before a scan over to the yacht club and I found no fewer than fifteen Common Tern with more passing through, as I was scanning I heard my second Grasshopper Warbler of the year which called well for about ten minutes before silence as if it were never there. Raven flew over and a large flock of Sand Martins were busy hawking high up in the distance. I heard my first Lesser Whitethroat of the year mid way between the turnstile and the visitor centre and  I recorded 69 species in the visit including Curlew, Snipe, Stonechat and Willow Warbler. The Jims joined me and it was great to see Dad out enjoying a bit of action after being tied up himself with domestic/family duties of late.

Today I joined Jim for a dawn raid on KGV where we only walked the east bank but recorded no fewer than 55 species for our trouble. Another Lesser Whitethroat (just past the sailing club) was a first this year for Jim and a Cuckoo on Sewardstone marsh was also a first for Jim this year both being seconds for me. Skylark, Yellow Wagtail, Grey Wagtail, Raven, Peregrine, Common Sandpiper were good to see and a single Swallow hawked around with c60 Sand Martins. On the duck front we noted c160 Tufted Duck, 3 Shelduck, 4 Wigeon, 2 Teal, 14 Gadwall and 23 Mallard. The Scaup continues to be seen but seems to have moved to the west side and is a little more difficult to pick out from the eastbank now and I lack the enthusiasm for the mission having seen it almost daily this year.

Year list now sits at a reasonable 186