Landscape Lens is our fixed-point photography project funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, to encourage residents and visitors to connect with the landscape. 

One location as part of the project is beautiful Mistley in northeast Essex, which became part of the Coast & Heaths AONB in 2020.

Mistley is a breathtaking spot, but what are we looking at?

Mistley looks out over the River Stour and provides an essential stop off for thousands of birds.  Referred to as an estuary, as this is where the river meets the sea as the tide comes in.  During low tide, the exposed mudflats are home to millions of tiny creatures which are an essential food source for many wading birds.

Mudflats form within the shelter of estuaries where fine silt and clay sediments settle.  Mudflats have a distinctive smell, like rotten eggs, this comes from the bacteria that lives in the mud being exposed during low tide.

Saltmarsh develops closer to dry land and varies depending on the length of time the area spends covered by salt water. More species occur at the highest part of the marsh where they are exposed to salt water for a shorter time.

What wildlife can you see at Mistley?

The River Stour abounds with wildlife, particularly birds. The salt marshes and mudflats are home to avocet, ringed plover and redshank. Migrating birds, including Brent geese, grey plover and greenshank can be seen in the Spring, late Summer and Autumn as they stop to rest and feed.

Huge flocks of birds arrive for the winter and can been seen on the mudflats. You can sometimes spot waders such as the black-tailed godwit. They breed in Iceland, arriving in Mistley from August.

You will also encounter the famous Mistley Swans, who have lived in Mistley since the 17th century, feeding on barley that blew off barges on the River Stour estuary.

Did you know….

The road now known as ‘The Walls’ was a causeway, built across the large stretch of marshland, as it was an important highway between London and the military port of Harwich in Elizabethan times. 

When the tide was in, the Sheddinghoe creek became impassable to all users and so a wooden structure was built over the creek.  The creek now runs under a brick-built structure most recently re-designed by Robert Adam in 1775. 

It is interesting to note that this smart new bridge however proved too narrow and the ornate walling on the estuary side was taken down when it was later widened to accommodate more modern carts. The original Rigby road was probably no wider than the current pavement and verge we can still see today.

More will be announced about Landscape Lens over the coming weeks. Find out more.