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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Delighted to see the Lesser Yellowlegs at Cattawade this morning plus a bonus Spotted Redshank and a couple of Green Sandpipers too, and I even got to work on time! #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

Some pics from the Naze yesterday - adult and juv Sandwich Tern, some sleepy Sanderlings, a 1cy Mediterranean Gull, and a Bar-tailed and Black-tailed Godwit going their separate ways! #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

Really pleased to connect with the Long-tailed Shrike in Oxfordshire (Lifer😀) Great day with @swallowbirding.bsky.social @olicwildlife.bsky.social & Dan H, thanks guys 👍 Record shots attached - bird showed well but heat haze was a nightmare!

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

Spent a couple of hours at Abberton with @paulebirder.bsky.social this morning before the rain set in - highlights inc. Hobby, Red Kite, Marsh Harrier, Corn Bunting, 300+ Swifts, Cuckoo, GW & Cattle Egret, Spoonies and Ruddy Shelduck #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

Excellent day at Minsmere with @swallowbirding.bsky.social & @fivefootseven.bsky.social despite the weather! Highlights inc. Dartford Warbler, Woodlark, 2 Roseate Terns, Hobby, Bittern, Sanderling, Little Gull, Marsh Harrier & lots more

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

The Common Tern Deliveroo service needs a bit of work! 🤣

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

Second lifer of the day was this cracking American Golden Plover at Old Hall #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

Just had a double-lifer day! First this gorgeous Ross's Gull at Thameside #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

Record shot of 31 Black Terns at Abberton Rsv this evening #essexbirding

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Essex Birdwatching Society @essexbirdnews.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

There are still places left on this weekend's excellent Birdsong Walk for young birders at Abberton Reservoir, starting at 9am. See full details and book your place at www.bto.org/our-work/eve... #essexbirding

bto.org

BTO Youth Dawn Chorus Walk | BTO

Join BTO Youth and the Essex Birdwatching Society on a guided walk around Abberton Reservoir nature reserve, listening to the different songs and calls of the birds which call the reserve home includi...

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

Also on WeBS: 9 Greenshank, Common Sandpiper, lots of Avocet and Shelduck, plus a few Barnacle Geese and a Ruddy Shelduck #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

Trying to take photos of Avocets and an Oystercatcher on today's WeBS count and this chap kept on photo-bombing! 🤣 #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

Fantastic day yesterday helping to lead a 12 hour @swallowbirding.bsky.social TopSail Barge trip from Maldon. Highlights inc. Common Tern, Whimbrel, Peregrine Falcon, Marsh Harrier, Sanderling, Black & Bar-tailed Godwit, Mediterranean Gulls & Brent Geese Galore! #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

Superb @essexbirdnews.bsky.social field trip to @suffolkwildlife Carlton Marshes - 82 sp. seen inc Ring Ouzel, Bittern, Great & Cattle Egret, Yellow-legged Gull, House & Sand Martin, Swallow, Ruff, Pintail and much more!

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Some photos from today in and around Colchester: a nest-building Wren, a superb looking Moorhen, a pair of Mute Swans moments before coitus and a rather smart Chiffchaff

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

Other sp. that I've caught up with this week include the Ring-necked Duck at Abberton, some sunset Spoonbills and Artemis II high-altitude views of a Goshawk in Norfolk!

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

Flock of c75 Fieldfare still at Ardleigh Rsv this week, with a few Redwing too #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

You've got to love a gosling, even one from Egypt! #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

The local Mute Swans are getting feisty! Unfortunately, this male has a fishing hook and line lodged in his neck 😢 I wish fishers would be more careful! #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

A couple of hours on the causeways at Abberton brought Spoonbill & Cattle Egret year-ticks, GW Egret, Corn Bunting, 35 White-fronted Geese, Red Kite, Marsh Harrier, Buzzard and this sinensis Cormorant #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

Really pleased to connect with Bullfinch and Marsh Tit in Essex today - always find them tricky to get in the county each year. Bonus male Hen Harrier on the way home was nice...😃 #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

And of course, target no.3 in Norfolk today was this little beauty - Eastern Black Redstart (sort-of-lifer!), at times showing down to 5 feet! Great day out with @swallowbirding.bsky.social as always, thanks mate 👍

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

Mega Norfolk day, target species no.2: Iceland Gull (another lifer!) Picked up flying overhead by @swallowbirding.bsky.social on way back to car after 2 hours waiting in freezing conditions!! 🥶

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

Superb day out in Norfolk with @swallowbirding.bsky.social - three target species all achieved! No.1 Black-winged Kite (lifer!). Good to meet @debalmer.bsky.social too 👍

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

Amazing Starling murmuration in Stanway at dusk today! Thanks to @fivefootseven.bsky.social for the tip-off 👍 #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

Lovely half-hour watching 6 Purple Sandpipers doing their thing at Holland Haven today #essexbirding

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Essex Birdwatching Society @essexbirdnews.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

Don't forget to watch tomorrow night's 'Birds of Essex' LIVE on YouTube, and send your 2026 pics, your most surprising missed species so far, and any birding 'selfies' you may have from the past to: ebwstalks@gmail.com Watch the show at www.youtube.com/live/M1cfbA4... #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

It's a full-on Great Egret invasion at Ardleigh Rsv at the moment. 3, possibly 4 birds there this morning - they're in the reedbeds, they're in the bushes and they're in the trees. Good job there are no beaches or I might have to start fighting them!🤣 #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

Got the ringing data back on one of the Great White Egrets that's been at Ardleigh for the last couple of weeks. Ringed in Lithuania as a chick in May '25, it turned up at Rye Meads 4 months later and now it's on my local patch. Astonishing! #essexbirding

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Essex Birdwatching Society @essexbirdnews.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

Our 2026 Conference is on Saturday 28th March and it's going to be a superb day! With six talks on the status of key species & habitat in Essex, lots of display stands, plenty of delicious food, & a prize raffle it's not to be missed! Book your place at ebws.org.uk/conference/r... #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

Delighted to find this patch-tick (& year tick!) Red-necked Grebe at Ardleigh Rsv earlier today😃, also a colour-ringed Great White Egret which I'm looking forward to getting the history on... #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 23/11/2025

A quick stop on the main causeway at Abberton this afternoon produced a 1w Greater Scaup, a smart drake Goosander and a Slavonian Grebe #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 22/11/2025

Heavily cleaned up (ISO25600!!!) record shot of ring-tailed Hen Harrier at Copt Hall this afternoon at dusk. Also two Glossy Ibis were a nice surprise 😀 #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 22/11/2025

Excellent day co-leading @swallowbirding.bsky.social Topsail Charters Thames barge trip, despite the weather! Lots of Brent Geese, Marsh Harrier, Red Kite, Knot, Dunlin, Avocets galore, Com. Ringed Plover, Goosander and 1 (possibly 2) Black-throated Divers as we turned round! #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

Some pics from Sunday's superb field trip to RSPB Freiston Shore & Frampton Marsh. Highlights inc. 4 Merlin, Whooper Swans, Peregrine, Marsh Harrier, Kingfisher, GW Egret & lots of Wigeon, Pintail & Golden Plover in the sun! @rspbframptonmarsh.bsky.social @rspb.bsky.social @essexbirdnews.bsky.social

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Essex Birdwatching Society @essexbirdnews.bsky.social · 05/11/2025

This month's fascinating talk is about Recording Rare Breeding Birds in the UK and Essex, by Mark Eaton from the RBBP. It's streaming live on YouTube from 8pm on Friday: youtube.com/live/VlTi7GS... #essexbirding #RareBirdsUK @ukrbbp.bsky.social

youtube.com

Recording Rare Breeding Birds in the UK and Essex

YouTube video by Essex Birdwatching Society

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 26/10/2025

Couldn't resist posting another pic of one of the stunning Firecrests at Wells last week 🥰 #Norfolkbirding #birds

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 26/10/2025

Lucky timing at Hollesley as I arrived to find my mate @janl28.bsky.social & his wife watching Crossbills! He then showed me where the Brown Shrike was seen 1hr before & it promptly reappeared (life✅, thanks Jan😃). Bonus Stonechat and Dartford Warbler too! #suffolkbirding #rarebirdsUK

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 25/10/2025

Superb day's birding in north Norfolk yesterday with @fivefootseven.bsky.social, @swallowbirding.bsky.social & @stuttonsparrows.bsky.social - highlights inc. watching Redwing & Fieldfare in/off, super views of Firecrest, 100s of Pink-footed Geese & Golden Plovers, Spoonbill, Peregrine & lots more!

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Essex Birdwatching Society @essexbirdnews.bsky.social · 16/10/2025

WE NEED YOUR HELP! Descriptions and/or photos are required for a number of Essex rarities from 2024. The full list can be found at ebws.org.uk/2024descript... If you saw any of these, please submit a description - there's a video on the link that explains more. Thank you #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 17/10/2025

Frinton and The Naze today: 'nordic' Jackdaw, Long-tailed Tit vs Goldcrest cuteness contest and a Brent Goose family with a noisy youngster! Also got the Yellow-browed at the end of the day thanks to DS👍 #essexbirding

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 14/09/2025

After this morning's superb ringing demo, @swallowbirding.bsky.social and I popped into Wallasea for a very distant Osprey & a slightly closer Glossy Ibis! #essexbirding #birds #rarebirdsuk

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 07/09/2025

Some pics from my WeBS count today: Hobby, Red Kite, and to prove I'm actually doing WeBS some Greenshank and Black-tailed Godwits and a diving Kingfisher #essexbirding #birds

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 06/09/2025

Managed to get some nice views of the Arctic Warbler near Abberton Rsv today (LIFER😃) - a superb find by @snixon66.bsky.social and @chrispoole050.bsky.social. Also stopped to look at Black Terns on way home and managed to find a close Little Stint #essexbirding #birds #RareBirdsUK

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Essex Birdwatching Society @essexbirdnews.bsky.social · 31/08/2025

The @essexbirdnews.bsky.social Autumn 2025 Bird Photography Competition is now open for entry. For the full rules see www.ebws.org.uk/photocomp/au... #ebwsphotos #essexbirding #birds

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Matt Turner @esbr-essex.bsky.social · 29/08/2025

It was Snipetastic at Ardleigh Rsv last night! #essexbirding #birds

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