Walk on Monday 12th was along from the Dabchicks Sailing Club at West Mersea onto the seawall beside the Strood Channel. Not surprisingly there was the regular group of 15 dabchicks in the Channel, seen from near the Dabchicks.
Feeding in the grass and winter wheat fields were huge flocks of plovers and wildfowl. The field pictured is supposed to have a thick green winter wheat crop but the ravages of the brent geese have turned the field into a real quagmire. It was difficult to tell whether there were more birds on the mud inland or out on the mud of the Strood Channel.
There was the spectacular sight of 1000 brent geese, 2000 golden plover, 500 lapwing and 50 wigeon. The plovers especially found the muddy conditions perfect for feeding. As I left the area I had one last glance back to the fields and noticed all the birds in the air. The culprit was a low flying sparrowhawk which did a good job in scattering all the birds into small flocks which promptly dispersed away from this end of Mersea.
Feeding in the grass and winter wheat fields were huge flocks of plovers and wildfowl. The field pictured is supposed to have a thick green winter wheat crop but the ravages of the brent geese have turned the field into a real quagmire. It was difficult to tell whether there were more birds on the mud inland or out on the mud of the Strood Channel.
There was the spectacular sight of 1000 brent geese, 2000 golden plover, 500 lapwing and 50 wigeon. The plovers especially found the muddy conditions perfect for feeding. As I left the area I had one last glance back to the fields and noticed all the birds in the air. The culprit was a low flying sparrowhawk which did a good job in scattering all the birds into small flocks which promptly dispersed away from this end of Mersea.
The regular pair of stonechats were still perching on reedmace in their favourite dyke, while nearby a rock pipit flew off the saltmarsh.
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