Rainham Marshes in Early October

4th October 2026

I took the anti-clockwise route today as the footpath from the Purfleet Hide to the MDZ was closed. The habitat at the Ken Barrett Hide looked fantastic with low water levels and lots of wet mud but apart from a few Teal was completely dead, until a lone Water Rail ran from one reed bed to another.

The Butts Hide was equally quiet and I was soon approaching the bridge just past the Dragonfly Pool. Here the end of the hand-rail has fallen off and Paper Wasps have moved in and have constructed one of their exquisite paper nests. You can distinguish Paper Wasps from common UK wasps by their more slender elongated bodies, bright orange-tipped antennae, and longer hind legs that dangle forwards when they fly.

I then went through the turnstile on to the river wall. The tide was a long way out and not much on the mud flats apart from a lone Harbour Seal having a break from fishing.

Now back on to the reserve and made my way to the Purleet Hide. I quick stop on the bridge produced a cracking green Marsh Frog and a male Migrant Hawker Dragonfly resting on a Phragmites head.

The resident Heron was at the back of the scrape and doesn't tolerate Great White Egrets sharing its patch.

Of the waders present there was a total of eight Black-tailed Godwits scattered around, although usually a lot more at high tide when the mud on the river gets covered.

There are always a few Lapwing just preening or loafing around....................

........................but as we all know they are easily spooked.

And the over-wintering Snipe are gradually starting to return.

The male ducks are now starting to come out of their eclipse plumage like this Teal. Here its head is still a little bit fluffy.

This is a female showing off her green speculum and drying her wings after a bath.

The Shoveler males are a bit behind the Teals and are only half way through moulting into their breeding plumage.

This is a female having a wing stretch.

Just look at the width of that bill!!!

And the compulsory wing flap after a  bath.

And finally my favourite duck the Pintail which are just starting to return for the Winter. As far as I could make out this was the only Pintail on the scrape and at first couldn't make up my mind whether it was a female or a male in eclipse.

Then I remembered they are late in going into eclipse, and now it is on land you can just see some pale grey feathers coming though on the lower breast and therefore it is a male.

Well still a bit quiet but Winter is just around the corner so .................

                                                            WATCH THIS SPACE!!!!!

Pectoral Sandpiper and Lesser Yellowlegs at Rutland Water

1st October 2026

I normally only go to Rutland Water once a year for my annual pilgrimage to photograph the Ospreys at the nest, but a Pectoral Sandpiper and Lesser Yellowlegs were too good to miss. I made my way to the Shoveler Hide and it soon became apparent that, like most other sites, most of the lagoons had dried up and it was only Lagoon 3 that held an appreciable amount of water. Once inside the hide I settled down for some breakfast and to wait for the action to commence.

A couple of Snipe were feeding on the other side of the water and were showing well in the morning sun.

At one point a male Teal joined them. This was the first male Teal I have seen coming out of eclipse plumage  this year.

So what about the waders? Well, there were a couple of Green Sandpipers and a Ringed Plover but all very distant, and certainly too far for a decent photo. The first wader to come within range was a lone Common Sandpiper.

The Pectoral Sandpiper was being very elusive and spent most of its time feeding on the far side of the spit and hidden most of the time behind vegetation with just its head showing on occasions. But then after an hour or so it walked across the spit and started feeding in full view.

Just look at that pectoral band!!!!

Luckily, the Lesser Yellowlegs was in view most of the time but fairly distant, but eventually came closer and started to feed just 30 yards from the hide.

And finally showed off those famous yellow legs.

Well, what a fantastic day at the Egleton Reserve.