Woodchat Shrike, Rochford

On the journey home from Frampton yesterday, news filtered through of an adult Woodchat Shrike present at Rochford in Essex. Having only seen one before in this country, a juvenile at Chipping Sodbury in 2017, I was very keen to see an adult bird, and the fact it was in my home County strengthened my feelings. Unfortunately, the diversion from where we were would have added at least two more hours onto our journey, so we decided to wait and hope it stayed overnight.

Fortunately, it was quickly found this morning and we were soon heading along the M25 and A127 towards Rochford. We Parked in Mill Lane and from here it was a short walk along the public footpath to a small gathering of birders standing along the far edge of the field. The shrike was spotted before we joined them. When the wind became stronger the shrike would shelter lower down among the branches, occasionally reappearing in the more open areas only to disappear again.

Woodchat Shrike

Time was limited, but Wallasea was only 5 miles away, so we had time for a brief visit. We were hoping to see Corn Bunting and luckily we found one sitting in a bush very close to the entrance track.

It was a brief trip this morning but a rewarding one with a new addition to my Essex list and two to my year list.