A Visit to Rainham Marshes (RSPB Reserve)

Saturday 19th June was a much cooler day than we’d had lately, but was pleasant for our walk around Rainham Marshes, organised by Ann.

Eight of us - Ann, Trevor, Tony, Frances, Parviz, Lynne, Richard and myself - met up and were pleased to find that the hides are now open.

rainham heron artWe saw a lot of different birds, including grey herons, egrets, a common ringed plover, reed buntings and skylarks. We also heard, but did not see, chiffchaff and Cetti’s warbler.

We were treated to an extended view of a marsh harrier flying around and overhead when we stopped for our packed lunches at the picnic tables. The marsh harrier flew over for a while, dived down, reappeared, then repeat, for well over half an hour – a splendid sight.

rainham snail artAs well as the various birds, we also spotted small yellow snails and ladybird larvae in the hedgerows.

We heard the chorus of marsh frogs before we saw them in the lake; in fact, they were so loud, I couldn’t believe it was frogs responsible and thought it was another type of bird. But then we spotted the frogs swimming and puffing out their “cheeks”, making a distinctive sound like laughter.

Towards the end of our walk, we took a slight detour to the adventure playground and climbing boulders. This provided certain members of our group with the opportunity to showcase their climbing, sliding and swinging skills. Parviz, in particular, excelled in climbing up the boulders and, with a bit of instruction from others as to where the toeholds were, descending safely to earth.

All in all, a very enjoyable visit, thank you to Ann for organising.

Cathy S.   21st June 2021