Birds
The bird life of Epping Forest has been fairly well recorded, albeit sporadically, over the last 160
years, with a few records even earlier than this. The Doubleday brothers, Edward and Henry, of Epping,
contributed much of interest in the 1830s, followed by Miller Christy in 1890, who included many of
the Doubleday bird records in his 'Birds of Essex'. Edward North Buxton (1911), at the turn of the
century, listed the birds of the Forest in his much reprinted book 'Epping Forest'. In 1929, William
Glegg, in the 'History of the Birds of Essex' added much of interest concerning the Forest. The London
Natural History Society has also published numerous reports and sightings of Epping Forest birds in
its London Bird Report, as has the Essex Birdwatching and Preservation Society, in The Essex Bird
Report, particularly those species that are less frequently encountered. More recently, in the 1970s
and 1980s, the Wren Conservation Group, through their excellent and informative reports, including
wildfowl counts and nesting records, on the birds of southern Epping Forest, have contributed much
to the body of knowledge about Forest birds. There are probably few areas of Essex that have
consistently attracted the attention of ornithologists over such a long period of time.
Although much of the evidence, particularly from the 19th century, is purely anecdotal, a striking
feature of many of the regularly reported bird species from the Forest is their liability to fluctuations
of a greater or lesser degree. The classic example from the Forest must be the Redstart. Henry
Doubleday, writing in 1832 'The Redstart has arrived this year in immense numbers. I never saw half
so many before.' In 1964 14 pairs (or singing males) were reported; in 1974 5 pairs and in 1984 only
2 pairs. Paul Moxey (1979) in the 'Wildlife of Epping Forest' wrote 'Since 1800 the overall structure
of the Epping Forest bird community appears to have remained fairly stable' and indeed there has
been a core of common species that have regularly bred in numbers throughout the Forest, and that
always appear to have been common; examples include the Wren, Robin, Blackbird, Song Thrush,
Blue Tit, Great Tit, Willow Warbler. Chiffchaff and Wood Pigeon, but even numbers of these species
are liable to fluctuate - harsh winters can devastate populations of particularly the smaller resident
species.
There seem to be several factors at work influencing the dynamics of the Forest bird populations.
There have been some dramatic changes to the habitats that comprise the Forest over the last 150
years. The cessation of pollarding has had a profound influence. The Forest obviously had a much
more open aspect than we see today and this in turn has affected the plants and animals. The open
ground between pollard trees then, with abundant light reaching the ground would have provided
home to many herbaceous plants. Even today areas of recently 'opened up' Forest, i.e. Lords Bushes,
near the Wake Arms and near the 'Big View' (off the verderers' ride) in conjunction with much soil
disturbance causes a prolific flowering of herbaceous plants at these sites, notably sedges, grasses and
rushes and many weed species. Concomitantly, such sites with a relatively high diversity of plant
species are good for insects. Certainly they are much better than an area densely shaded by beech
canopy with little or no floristic diversity beneath. What is good for a diversity of insects is good for
insectivorous birds, such as the Redstart. It is thought that the 6 pairs noted in the Forest in 1988
benefited from the opening up of the canopy caused by trees windthrown in the storm of October
1987. Redstarts may be the classic birds of wood-pastures. They like big, well spaced trees in very
open areas, although on the continent they will nest happily in holes in buildings and in gardens in
towns and villages. There is a possibility also they may prefer to forage in the field and shrub layer
rather than the canopies of trees, unlike some warblers, which would further restrict their breeding
success in the Forest today. Redstarts are also apparently curiously faithful to nesting sites. There was
a recent outcry when a pollard tree used by Redstarts was felled in the Forest, an aspect of behaviour
which potentially could limit their breeding success if further favoured trees were felled.
Another factor of some importance has been a decline in grazing and browsing pressure on the
Forest. Today much of the Forest's heath and grassland has disappeared under invading Birch and
Oak scrub. Declining grazing pressure and an apparent increase in Birch (an uncommon tree in the
Forest in the 18th century) have conspired to reduce these open habitats greatly in extent. The
implications for birds are fairly obvious, some heathland birds need trees, but not that many. A recent
study of breeding Nightjars at Minsmere R.S.P.B, reserve in Suffolk (Preece, 1989) found that
nightjars have a preference for nesting at the interface between the advancing scrub and the open heath
itself. A study of nest sites also revealed the importance of two other factors:-
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