FROSTY AND STILL

For a change there was no wind on the frosty start to Saturday 14th with the river Colne as flat as a mill-pond. The tall yellow bases of the wind turbines awaiting installation offshore, dominate the scene from East Mersea Point. For the third day running there was the obliging group of 7 snow buntings feeding on the beach at the Point.

The calm conditions provided good views up the Colne in the morning but only 10 red-breasted mergansers, 2 great crested grebes plus hundreds of brent and shelduck dotted along the river's eastern edge. However Andy Field did well in the afternoon to pick out a distant female long-tailed duck drifting out of the river.

The freezing temperature during the night had frozen the seawater when it came in on the high tide. As a result this normally muddy creek near the Point was coated in a thin layer of ice as seen in the picture above.

There weren't many waders or wildfowl in the frosty grazing fields early in the morning although 5 snipe were seen. High up over the fields there was the interesting sight of a male marsh harrier displaying in a very floppy and erratic flight, with its high pitched calls as it drifted south from the direction of Langenhoe. Later in the afternoon, hundreds of the waders and wildfowl were spooked off as a peregrine hurtled low across the fields, before heading west along the beach. The main wader flock in the fields were the 150 black-tailed godwits, although a group of 500 golden plover passed overhead.

On the park pond 44 shoveler was another good count, while in the arable field to the west of the car park were 5 red-legged partridges.

The last hour of the day was spent with Andy on the Reeveshall seawall where the tide was just starting to uncover the Pyefleet mud. There was a good concentration of waders with dunlin, knot, redshank, bar-tailed godwit, black-tailed godwit and grey plover the main birds. In the Pyefleet 2 pairs of red-breasted mergansers were the only duck of note.

On Langenhoe there was another good harrier show with 11 marsh harriers and the ringtail hen harrier all flying around or perching on the top of the seawall before they dropped into the reedbed for the night. A distant barn owl hunted over the Langenhoe area late-on too.

On Reeveshall 500 brent geese left it till almost dark before leaving the grass field for the Pyefleet Channel. Four little egrets flew to the nearby wood for the night and 3 Canada geese and 10 greylag geese arrived on Reeveshall at dusk.

Dave Ladbrook saw 2 short-eared owls and a peregrine near Coopers Beach and also 700 great crested grebes offshore on Saturday afternoon.

The last hour of Friday was also spent along the Reeveshall seawall and I was very interested in the large flock of 500 teal feeding along the flooded ditch beside the seawall, pictured above. The late appearance of a peregrine sent all the waders into panic and one poor grey plover was chased back and forwards across the Pyefleet trying desperately to avoid being caught. The birds disappeared out of view so the outcome of the chase is unknown.

Also on Friday a barn owl hunted over the fields at Maydays and on Langenhoe the ringtail hen harrier joined 5 marsh harriers for the roost. Thirty grey lag geese arrived noisily at dusk and 10 avocets fed close in. Five brown hares started to come to life at dusk in the big grass fields.

Earlier on Friday at the park there was the unusual sight of 24 white-fronted geese flying north over the park, towards the Pyefleet. A male merlin flashed low over the grazing fields scattering all the birds, then it perched in a tree for five minutes before flying rapidly to the north.

The tawny owl was seen again at nightfall perched on a low tree just inside the entrance on Thursday evening.