My local patch is a spot just outside Chelmsford, Essex – a location that sits between the mediocrity of suburbia and the wilds of bucolic Essex. It is largely  made up of farmland but has a huge area of grassland, the river Chelmer and a number of its tributaries draining the fields.

I have been recording wildlife on this patch for around 3 years now and continue to see new species whether its water vole or short-eared owl (may the two never meet).

Below is an up to date list on the species seen here plus a number of observations and photos with dates.

Patch List – Birds (101 species)

1. Mute Swan
2. Greylag Goose
3. Canada Goose
4. Egyptian Goose
5. Mallard
6. Tufted Duck
7. Shoveler
8. Teal
9. Goosander
10. Great Crested Grebe
11. Little Grebe
12. Pheasant
13. Red-legged Partridge
14. Cormorant
15. Grey Heron
16. Little Egret
17. Cattle egret
18. Common Buzzard
19. Honey buzzard
20. Osprey
21. Kestrel
22. Peregrine falcon
23. Sparrowhawk
24. Hobby
25. Red Kite
26. Water Rail
27. Coot
28. Moorhen
29. Oystercatcher
30. Common sandpiper
31. Snipe
32. Jack snipe
33. Woodcock
34. Black-tailed godwit
35. Golden plover
36. Black-headed gull
37. Herring Gull
38. Lesser black backed gull
39. Great black backed gull
40. Common Gull
41. Common tern
42. Stock dove
43. Collared dove
44. Wood pigeon
45. Cuckoo
46. Tawny owl
47. Short-eared owl
48. Barn Owl
49. Common swift
50. Common kingfisher
51. Green  woodpecker
52. Great spotted woodpecker
53. Skylark
54. House martin
55. Sand martin
56. Swallow
57. Meadow pipit
58. Pied wagtail
59. Grey wagtail
60. Yellow wagtail
61. Dunnock
62. Robin
63. Nightingale
64. Wheatear
65. Stonechat
66. Whinchat
67. Song thrush
68. Mistle thrush
69. Redwing
70. Fieldfare
71. Blackbird
72. Whitethroat
73. Lesser Whitethroat
74. Willow warbler
75. Cetti’s Warbler
76. Chiffchaff
77. Sedge warbler
78. Blackcap
79. Garden warbler
80. Reed warbler
81. Goldcrest
82. Wren
83. Spotted flycatcher
84. Great tit
85. Blue tit
86. Coal tit
87. Long tailed tit
88. Treecreeper
89. Magpie
90. Jay
91. Jackdaw
92. Rook
93. Carrion Crow
94. Starling
95. House sparrow
96. Chaffinch
97. Linnet
98. Goldfinch
99. Bullfinch
100. Reed bunting
101. Corn bunting
102. Yellowhammer

Patch List – Reptiles

Common lizard
Grass snake

Patch List – Mammals

1. Stoat
2. Badger
3. Fox
4. Water vole
5. Rat
6. Roe deer
7. Muntjac deer
8. Grey squirrel
9. Pipistrelle Bat
10. Noctule Bat

Record shots from site