Bright winter sunshine on the 15th, perfect for a five mile walk on the north side of Mersea. Tide was out in the Pyefleet Channel so plenty of mud for the waders to spread themselves apart from each other. Even those mud lovers the shelduck appeared to be much more obvious or was it just because the large white flashes on the body reflected the bright sunshine.
Dotted along the channel several small groups of red-breasted mergansers doing various group activities that either involved synchronised diving, or lots of boisterous displaying by the males. Seems very comical watching the males jerk their head down whilst their sharp razor-bill points skywards.
Striding along the seawall I glanced at the channel to find I was being stared at by a common seal about 50 metres away. Its grey head looked rather mottled and after a while it dipped under and swam past. Further along another couple of seals also headed down-channel, one individual showing a much browner head this time.
Common seals are present all year round and in recent years have had young along the Pyefleet. One of the areas where they have had young is by the Maydays saltmarsh. A very remote and undisturbed bit of coast, it's ideal for some peace and quiet. On some days the seals bask on the mud here at low-tide.
Along the edge of the fields here are some game cover strips that have been deliberately sown for wild birds as well as game. It was certainly worth the long trek to look for small birds. However it proved frustating seeing lots of finches and buntings fly out of the field and into the bright sunshine. About 150 birds were seen with over 50 chaffinch but what took my eye about 200m away were about 50 large chunky brown birds that could only have been corn buntings.
Elsewhere a pair of stonechats fed along the edge of the winter stubble and over by a thick hedge 3 song thrushes, a yellowhammer and some goldfinches flew around. There was the unusual sight for this middle part of the day of two foxes out on the prowl together in the middle of one of the fields.
For most of the walk there had been up to 5 marsh harriers quartering the army ranges of Langenhoe - a sight that has become very common now. However the best was being saved for last when a peregrine was seen playfully mobbing a male and female marsh harrier about 300 metres away on the nearby Reeveshall marsh. The birds tussled with each other in the air with the peregrine trying to wind up the bigger birds. After a while it gave up and sat on the ground and that's where I left it as I headed home.
Dotted along the channel several small groups of red-breasted mergansers doing various group activities that either involved synchronised diving, or lots of boisterous displaying by the males. Seems very comical watching the males jerk their head down whilst their sharp razor-bill points skywards.
Striding along the seawall I glanced at the channel to find I was being stared at by a common seal about 50 metres away. Its grey head looked rather mottled and after a while it dipped under and swam past. Further along another couple of seals also headed down-channel, one individual showing a much browner head this time.
Common seals are present all year round and in recent years have had young along the Pyefleet. One of the areas where they have had young is by the Maydays saltmarsh. A very remote and undisturbed bit of coast, it's ideal for some peace and quiet. On some days the seals bask on the mud here at low-tide.
Along the edge of the fields here are some game cover strips that have been deliberately sown for wild birds as well as game. It was certainly worth the long trek to look for small birds. However it proved frustating seeing lots of finches and buntings fly out of the field and into the bright sunshine. About 150 birds were seen with over 50 chaffinch but what took my eye about 200m away were about 50 large chunky brown birds that could only have been corn buntings.
Elsewhere a pair of stonechats fed along the edge of the winter stubble and over by a thick hedge 3 song thrushes, a yellowhammer and some goldfinches flew around. There was the unusual sight for this middle part of the day of two foxes out on the prowl together in the middle of one of the fields.
For most of the walk there had been up to 5 marsh harriers quartering the army ranges of Langenhoe - a sight that has become very common now. However the best was being saved for last when a peregrine was seen playfully mobbing a male and female marsh harrier about 300 metres away on the nearby Reeveshall marsh. The birds tussled with each other in the air with the peregrine trying to wind up the bigger birds. After a while it gave up and sat on the ground and that's where I left it as I headed home.
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