BLUEBELL DELL

Out of the glare of the sunshine and sheltered from the fresh easterly wind on Sunday 29th, this little patch of bluebells nestled in a little dell in the country park. The oak tree above cast a dense shade on the bluebells below and there was a powerful aroma of spring in the air. All these hot and sunny days will speed the season along and no sight or smell epitomises an English spring as standing amongst some bluebells in full flower. Here they were at their peak.

Normally a little insect like this one pictured above, would not interest a passer-by. However I was asked by one regular dog-walker what the swarm of "flies" were round some of the bushes. These "flies" were actually male Longhorn moths that have been around for a few days and catch the eye every spring with their dancing displays.

As they dance from leaf to leaf, fluttering around maybe a hundred to a bush, their extremely long thin antennae wave around in front of them. When they settle on a leaf, the sun is reflected off their shiny dark irridescent wings.

One of the dancing bushes was also where the green hairstreak was seen again, trying to do a spot of sun-bathing except that it was being pestered by the longhorn moths. Also seen was the first red admiral of the spring, small copper, several orange tips and speckled woods too.

The first dainty azure damselfly of the season was seen resting amongst grass.

On the park pond the highlight was seeing the first duck brood with a mother mallard watching over an impressively large brood of 13 tiny yellowish ducklings. A male pochard was seen flying off and strolling nervously over the nearby field during mid morning was a fox. Maybe it was doing some extra hunting to feed its young cubs somewhere. The first cuckoo seen at the park few high above the Sunday crowds.

Local Mersea birders Richard Hull and Andy Field strayed "off-piste" and had a very productive (and authorised!) visit to the normally restricted firing ranges of nearby Langenhoe - just opposite the north side of Mersea Island. Amongst the highlights were a ring ouzel, common buzzard, hobby, 8 marsh harriers (incl. 4 females), 7 Mediteranean gulls, 2 stonechat, 2 cuckoo, nightingale, 25 whitethroats, 20 lesser whitethroats, 15 sedge warbler and 20 reed warblers.

Meanwhile Richard Allen on the West Mersea beach noticed three groups of bar-tailed godwits totalling 250 birds flying east. This is a record count for the Island and it appears that lots of other bar-tails have been passing through parts of coastal Essex this week. Two Mediterranean gulls were also seen on along the beach.

It is interesting to speculate what may have flown past Mersea this weekend if people had been watching. A pair of common cranes were seen at nearby Colne Point and also apparently Fingringhoe, so they could have flown past East Mersea. Similarly a spoonbill which was at Holland Haven appears to have turned up at Old Hall Marshes near to West Mersea, so it may've flown over the Island to get there.