Northern Waterthrush found in Essex garden
Britain’s eight ever Northern Waterthrush has been found in an Essex garden.
The bird was first reported on Wednesday 3rd January, luckily seen in the garden of an experienced birder, in Heybridge, in east of the county. Initial reports had the bird as being in the garden briefly but not seen again. However, later in the evening it was reported that another sighting had been made just before 4pm.
Much to the delight of Essex birders, and those who travelled from further afield, during the course of today (4th January) the bird was seen on a number of occasions.
This first for Essex, is only the third mainland record and the first British record since 2011. Britain’s first Northern Waterthrush was found on St.Agnes on the Isles of Scilly in September 1958. The archipelago has since hosted four more, most recently in September 2011. All previous British records have been found in the autumn (in 1977 a bird was found in April on Jersey). Ireland has two records, September 1983 and August 2008, both on Cape Clear in Co.Cork.
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4 January 2024
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