WALK TO THE POINT

By the time I went for a stroll to the East Mersea Point in the early evening of Tuesday 28th, the clouds had turned very grey and the breeze was blowing from the east. The big grey clouds north of the river Colne looked threatening but stayed away from Mersea. It was low tide so there was plenty of mud on show but many of the waders seen were tiny specks in the distance.

Any bird that was big and white like a little egret were easily seen with seven noted. Up to 40 avocets fed together in a tight group along the outer edge of the mudflats with a further 12 on the east side of the Colne near Brightlingsea. Also dotted along the distant edge were about 100 black-tailed godwits, although there were other small groups scattered across most of the different mudflats.

Around the Point were 5 meadow pipits feeding in the saltmarsh while nearby among the shrubby sea-blite bushes was a flock of 25 linnets which flew around briefly before settling back down to continue feeding.

One of the saltmarsh pools near the park showing the big grey cloud just missing Mersea.

Walking back along the seawall the loud squealing of a rabbit in distress could be heard. I scanned one of the grazing fields and saw a red fox with a rabbit in its mouth. It soon picked it up and then sprinted across the field past some bemused cows and calves towards a nearby hedgerow. Scanning the other field a second red fox was seen surveying the surroundings and probably weighing up his foraging options for the night ahead.

A grey heron flapped menacingly and ponderously over the fields with huge wing-beats. The local carrion crows took great offence with the heron trying to perch in their favourite look-out tree. They cawed loudly and mobbed it repeatedly so that it was forced to fly away and past the pond. A snipe was seen dropping down into the fields.

Near the pond a young cuckoo was unexpectedly seen perched on top of a fence post. It provided good views of its finely barred chest, the brown wings and back as well as the white spot on the back of the head. This is probably a migrant from further north, stopping off for a brief feed on the local caterpillars.
Two blackcaps also seen here were the first at the park for nearly a month. A pair of yellowhammers perched briefly by the pond before flying strongly away.

On the pond a water vole was seen swimming from one clump of reeds into the cover of a willow bush. The sight of three teal is a sign that autumn is not far away.

A sparrowhawk was seen by the beach at dusk chasing after a sand martin by the cliff but without any luck. Over the nearby fields about 100 swallows, sand martins and house martins spent time feeding low over the grass.

Earlier in the day a passage grey wagtail flew east over the park calling as it went. Also a group of 200 golden plover passed swiftly over the car park with their rapid wing-beats sounding like a strong gust of wind blowing through the trees.

One of the exotic plants that has been growing happily on the sand at East Mersea Point for several years is this garden escape variety of Clematis tangautica. One of the yellow flowers is giving this motionless bumble bee some shelter as dusk approached.