RSPB Rainham Marshes, Essex, 27/01/2008

Weather: cold but sunny, bright & breezy. From 9:20am.
From the carpark before even venturing onto the reserve:
Lapwing, a flock of approx 3000, Woodpigeon, Crow, Dunnock & Magpie (numerous & all over the reserve).
Onto the reserve, or at least the path along the side of the reserve, & around the trees near the centre as well as on the feeders:
Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Starling (often overflew) Collared Dove, Chaffinch.

First sight of the reserves flashes:
Very many pairs of Shoveller, the most I have ever seen together, along with many pairs of Wigeon making lots of whistling calls.
Gadwall, Coot, Pied Wagtail around the various fence-posts, Greylag Goose flew overhead in a small skein.
On the water & the embankment between the path & the water:
Shelduck, Tufted Duck spottted in the other direction on one of the pools, Meadow Pipit, Comorant, Herring Gull, Black-headed Gull.
Facing back into the reserve at the end near to the landfill site:
Moorhen, Fieldfare, Kestrel which had caught something & was eating it on the post, Skylark heard & then seen, Little Egret, Great Black-backed Gull, Little Grebe, Mallard.
We made our way back to the visitors centre & on the way realised that we had missed entering the reserve proper, so we went in & picked up a map, got directions & headedout again!
Going through the small wooded section:
Robin, Teal seen on the first pond on the path, Great Tit, Blue Tit.
From the first & only hide on the reserve:
Canada Goose, Pintail (2 males dabbling), two Snipe disturbed by a foraging Moorhen which could have been Jack Snipe but without a telescope I was unable to absolutely verify.
After the hide, into the reedbed area & after towards the back marsh area:
Quite a few Stonechat, male & female feeding on the phragmites reeds & oblivious to our presence. Wren, Grey Heron, Common Gull.
On the way back to the visitors' centre again, about ten Jackdaws flew by.
Finally on the drive home a Lesser Black-backed Gull spotted on a lamp-post.
44 species.

Ellesborough (Chequers), Buckinghamshire, 06/01/2008

Weather: Lovely, bright & cold. From 1030am.

On the drive to find the seemingly well-secluded village of Ellesborough, quite a few Red Kite particularly in the village of Risborough.
Ellesborough Church car-park:
Long-tailed Tit, Pied Wagtail, Magpie, Rook.

During the walk around the woods that lead up to Chequers:
Blackbird, Woodpigeon, Black-headed Gull (in open field), Chaffinch, Robin, Nuthatch.

At this point after stopping at the gates of Chequers, the PMs official countryside residence, & taking a photo of the house & scanning the fields, I was briefly questioned by the police under the new 2005 Terrorist legislation, for apparently taking an interest in the place!

After that I wandered back & forth trying to find the path:
Pheasant, Jay, Marsh Tit (pit-choo), Great-Spotted Woodpecker (heard).
Eventually I found the path I was supposed to be walking, that circled the grounds of Chequers, & continued:
Blue Tit, then an unmistakeable large crow croaking as it flew overhead, a Raven, quickly followed by another Red Kite, Jackdaw.

On the drive back to London along the A41:
Buzzard, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, Collared Dove.

22 species.