High Tide at Mistley

24th January 2026

My first visit to Mistley this winter so I thought I would follow the same route as on previous visits. First stop was always Mistley Quay three hours before high tide where one of the deep channels comes close to the quayside. Here was a good place to see wintering ducks including up to 20 Goldeneye, 10+ Pintails, Red-breasted Mergansers and even the odd Common Seal. Today, like the last two visits last winter there was absolutely nothing, not even a Mallard. Even Ahmed the Mediterranean Gull had moved on.

So the next stop was The Walls where we would sit on the beach and wait for the tide to push in all the waders on the water's edge so we could photograph them down to 30 yards range, and often less. Today there were very few waders on the water's edge by the deep channel in the middle of the estuary, and when the tide came in the only waders on the mud were Redshanks and Turnstones.

I always call Mistley Redshank City, as apart from the large flocks of Black-tailed Godwits that roost further upstream, Redshank is by far the commonest wader here and usually provide some close shots.

And even some flight shots.

Turnstones are not numerous here, but usually about a dozen or so feeding on the tide-wrack.

Avocets were also present but right out in the middle of the river and always roost on the Suffolk bank. So today an unusually poor wader diversity with no Dunlins, Ringed Plovers, Black-tailed Godwits or Knot, all of which are usually seen here.

Also not much on the wildfowl side apart from a few distant Teal and some very close Shelducks that were sifting the shallows.

One then decided to have a bath, and when Shelducks have a bath they really go for it.

And then the compulsory wing-flap to dry their wings.

At that point all the waders and gulls flew up in a panic and I wondered what caused it. Then over the tree-line came a huge Buzzard which circled the beach a couple of times before flying back inland.

And lastly down to the Manningtree Coop where the Black-tailed Godwits often gather before going to roost by the railway bridge. This is usually the best place to photograph the Avocets as they tend to come closer than at The Walls.

The Black-tailed Godwits were already starting to gather for their roost and here is just part of the first flock of around 500 birds.

And more flying in all the time.

But the star of the show today was the Greenshank which by all accounts seems to have been a regular feature here for some time.

So a fantastic day, but fairly quiet compared to previous visits.