IT’S one of the definitive sounds of spring, and north Essex is arguably the best place in the country to hear it, according to wildlife experts.
Officers at Essex Wildlife Trust’s Fingringhoe Wick visitor centre near Colchester report that dozens of nightingales have arrived at the nature reserve and are breaking out into song together.
About 25 singing males have already returned from wintering grounds in Africa and that number should increase to 40 or more over the next week.
Matt Cole, Essex Wildlife Trust’s warden at Fingringhoe Wick, said the reserves scrub habitat is perfect for nightingales.
He added: “Fingringhoe Wick is one of the best places in the UK to hear and see nightingales. It has arguably the greatest concentration of territories. Numbers at the reserve continue to rise, bucking the national trend.”
From this week until Saturday May 11, Essex Wildlife Trust is running ‘Nightingale Walks’ every evening at Fingringhoe Wick, from 7.30pm to 9pm.
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