Beginning a new year list always gives me fresh enthusiasm for birdwatching – I guess I shouldn’t be such a listing freak, but I am!

Today I headed down to Greenhithe on the River Thames and walked along to Swanscombe Marsh, or what is left of it. This is a good site for Water Pipit and this was my target bird for the day along with hopefully some interesting gulls. As I walked along the foreshore at Greenhithe a couple of immature Mute Swans were “sledging” across the mud, pushing themselves along on their bellies and a few large gulls turned out to be a few Lesser Black-backed and one Herring Gull. At the first pile of shoreside rocks I came to I spotted a Rock Pipit which as foraging along with 4 other Rock Pipits and a Pied Wagtail. Also in the area were a group of about 40 Chaffinches and 20 Linnets.

Further along on the mud just before some old piers were a few wading birds – 2 Redshank and 6 Black-tailed Godwits, along with a few Teal, about 40 Mallard, 3 Gadwall and a Grey Heron as well as masses of Black-headed Gulls and some Common Gulls which were to be seen all along the riverfront.

As I approached the stone piers quite a number of birds appeared, foraging amonst the buddliea and gravel on the floor. A group of around 50 Chaffinches and Linnets were obvious, a Blue Tit and 2 Reed Buntings were accompanied by 6 Meadow Pipits and 3 Skylarks; also feeding amonst the weeds were a pair of Stonechats and a lone Fieldfare.

Rounding the piers I flushed a Little Egret and 2 Grey Herons and discovered a large group of Teal, Mallard and 17 Lapwings. In the junk that had been washed up on the shore were 2 more Stonechats in a conflict with a Grey Wagtail and a Dunnock.

As I walked further along I began to think that the weather was not cold enough to have driven any Water Pipits this far south but as I got to another inlet I stopped to view 3 Curlews and a number of Redshank when a pipit came into view. It was very pale underneath, light brown above with obvious wing bars and white in the tail. A few thin streaks on its breast and this was an obvious Water Pipit -  a good bird to start the year with!

Above is the spot where I found the water Pipit. In fact, as it flew off it chased another pipit away which may also have been a water Pipit, but I didn’t get a good enough look to tell.

A few gulls flew overhead, mostly Lesser Black-backed, but a few Herring and Great Black-backed also. In some nearby trees a Green Woodpecker revealed itself and on my way back I came across the Little Egret again and 2 Song Thrushes.

All the way back at Grrenhithe I stopped to scan the far side of the river and could make out hundreds of Redshank, Dunlin, Lapwings and gulls along with 9 Shelduck and also 3 Great Crested Grebes on the Thames. 2 House Sparrows and a Collared Dove in the car park were also additions to the day list and, at this stage, the year list to finish off an interesting walk.