Description
Holland Haven has a great reputation for being well watched by local birders. Situated along the coast this area get lots of interesting migrants that drop into the flooded scrape or the scrubland. Right next to the car park is an area of cover with some bushes which are always worth a search though for small passerines such as, rdečeglavi kraljiček, sivi muhar, črnoglavi muhar and mušja listnica.
Then as you walk towards the hide and the scrape, you need to scan the coastline. Here is a concrete structure where you may well find morski prodnik which the site is well known for. If the tide is low and the mudflats are exposed you may see, veliki škurh, školjkarica, progastorepi kljunač, črna prosenka, kamenjar and peščenec.
Looking out to sea one may find strmoglavec flying passed and also rdečegrli slapnik alongside crna raca and srednji žagar. Plus the usual suspects of gull species .
Now you can walk away from the shoreline up to the ridge where you get a good view over the marsh and grazing meadows. Keep an eye out for overwintering geese, siva gos , beločela gos and kanadska gos. Its possible to see priba ,veliki škurh and the odd small party of mali škurh feeding in the long grass.
Next is the flooded scrape area for such birds as, kreheljc, žvižgavka, žličarica, duplinska kozarka and grivasta gos. Many waders can be spotted including sabljarka, rdečenogi martinec, zelenonogi martinec, mali martinec, pikasti martinec, črnorepi kljunač and spremenljivi prodnik.
The marsh and grassland is a great hunting ground for raptors and regularly see Pegasta sova, rjavi lunj, sokol selec and the odd pepelasti lunj.
Details
Access
Holland Haven is northeast of Clacton-on-Sea and located between the towns of Holland-on-Sea and Frinton-on-Sea. Easy to get to by taking the B1032 Frinton Rd out of Holland-on-Sea and the turning to Holland Haven is on your Right, just outside the town. Press P on the map for directions to the parking. The cafe and toilet are back towards the town in a southwest direction.


