DONNER UND BLITZ

Spent most of Thursday 1 May looking at the sky wondering if any of the big black rain clouds would pass overhead. True to local form, most of the thunder und lightning clouds missed Mersea - except for when I decided to have an evening walk around Rewsalls marshes in East Mersea!
Brightening up the walk were several large oil seed rape fields with their bright yellow flowers.

I didn't want to hang around after I took this photo near the Youth Camp as this big black cloud was heading straight towards me. At least I was able to complete an hour's circuit round the marshes before the heavens opened and luckily I found some cover at Coopers Beach while it poured.
On this small section of beach a pair of oystercatchers were seen, one bird appearing to be sitting on a nest. No sign of any ringed plovers that normally try and nest here.

The old marshes of Rewsalls provide a nice mix of reed-filled ditches, open water and fields of long grass. Some dogs ran amok through the fields, putting birds into the air. Two pairs of lapwing and a pair of redshank were probably thinking about breeding here. A pair of gadwall, shoveler, 6 shelduck, 8 mallard including the first ducklings of the year with 6 in the dyke.

Along the ditches were 4 singing reed warblers, one sedge warbler, one reed bunting, while a few skylarks, meadow pipits and linnets were also noted. Singing from the various hedgerows were 6 common whitethroats, 2 lesser whitethroats and when the rain cleared, lots of robins and blackbirds joined the dusk chorus by Coopers Beach.
Also seen during the walk was a kestrel on a tree and several swallows flying over the fields.

The view across a rather deserted car park at Cudmore Grove as another black cloud fills the sky. At various times of the day the loud and rich song of the nightingale was often heard coming from the hedgerow on the left of the photo above. The second nightingale nearer the cliff was also in fine song during the day. Out on the mudflats the whistling call of a whimbrel was heard.

During the sunny periods peacock, small white, speckled wood and small tortoiseshell butterflies were all making the most of the warmth. One common lizard was also spotted basking on a regular log. An adder was seen basking by the track yesterday.

The day finished at dusk with the setting sun throwing up an orange coating to a big black cloud, as it passed over the country park. That was the signal for the hundreds of rabbits to come out and graze undisturbed. Other than the singing nightingales, a distant cuckoo was heard briefly to the west and the large silhouette of a grey heron flew over the car park.