Abstract

The Water Pipit Anthus spinoletta is an uncommon winter visitor and passage migrant in Britain. The shy and retiring behaviour of the species in its favoured wetland habitats can make it difficult to observe and record accurately. This paper reviews the species’ historical status in Britain and describes observations at a communal winter roost in Suffolk, where counts regularly exceed the numbers observed foraging on adjacent marshes during daylight. Observers are encouraged to seek out further roosts, which could support the evidence from this site that the current estimate of the British wintering population may be too low.