OYSTER FISHERY

Brief walk at East Mersea on Monday 26th February along the seawall to the Oyster Fishery building belonging to the Colchester Oyster Fishery Company. The photo above shows the huge mound of discarded oyster shells on the edge of the Pyefleet Channel. The actual oysters will have been prised from their shells long ago after being driven up to London and served in some of the top restaurants.

Despite plenty of mud on show, there weren't many waders to see at first. However the incoming tide seemed to bring more waders back into the Pyefleet such as 250 redshank, 700 dunlin, 50 grey plover, 3 bar-tailed godwits and one knot. A large flock of 50 shoveler seemed to have been flushed off the army ranges on Langenhoe as they circled above the lagoon. There were several shelduck and wigeon along the edge of the mud. Also in the air were three marsh harriers with the familiar well marked male tussling with a female as she passed nearby.

On the seawall near the Oyster Fishery was an unexpected and an increasingly scarce group of five very colourful yellowhammers. They had been feeding amongst the grass before flying into a nearby bush. Grazing one of the grass fields near here were 400 brent geese.

The day ended with another picturesque sunset at the West Mersea Hard.