The moth trap was left operating at the country park through the night of Thursday 4th and was checked just after 4am on Friday morning just as it was getting light, as the picture above shows. A couple of carrion crows and a blackbird were already hopping over the grass beside the trap and a skylark was singing overhead. The weather turned out to be quite good for moths as the wind died down and it stayed cloudy through the night. In the end about 200 moths of about 40 macro species was a good haul.
The most unsual moth was this white-colon moth which is listed as nationally scarce and is included on the Essex red data list. It is a mainly a coastal species around Britain and in Essex there have been several records along the north-east Essex coast in recent years. The pair of tiny white spots in the middle of each wing resembles a punctuation mark which gives the moth its name.
The first peppered moth of the year was found in the trap, a regular visitor in late spring and early summer in previous years. The black form is also recorded here most years too.
This pale tussock moth is the second sighting this spring, a moth that is larger than most others in the trap and noticeably furry.
Buff ermines have been turning up at the trap in small numbers over the last fortnight along with the white ermine moths.
Other moths noted included elephant hawkmoth, 4 cream spot tigers, 25 cinnabars, 75 marbled minors, 30 heart and darts, white point, light brocade, light arches, dark arches, treble brown spot, mullein wave, lychnis, shoulder striped wainscot, clouded border, green pug, scorched pug and willow beauty.
Not much to report birdwise from the park on Friday although the nightingale continues to sing loudly beside the car park. Ian Black reported seeing a female bullfinch at the park which is a notable sighting as bullfinches disappeared from the Island about 8 or 9 years ago. The cuckoo could be heard early in the morning calling to the north of the park.
Two red-legged partridge were seen at the top of Bromans Lane, a little owl flew past the village hall at dusk and a brightly marked male sparrowhawk perched by the East Mersea road earlier in the day.
An evening walk along the Reeveshall seawall on Thursday evening provided good views of brown hares with at least 15 seen in various fields. There was the unusual sight of 7 hares together, with the picture below showing four of them in the distance. Although there was some chasing of each other going on, there was no boxing matches between them.
Two pairs of avocets have returned to the pool with a fifth bird in the Pyefleet, also 12 black-tailed godwits, pair of redshank, 6 lapwing and an oystercatcher nesting on the side of the seawall with 2 eggs. Also seen were pairs of pochard, shoveler and gadwall. Three great crested grebes, and several little terns and common terns were the only birds of note along the Pyefleet Channel.
The male and female marsh harriers were seen over Reeveshall while five others were seen over Langenhoe as was a barn owl and a Mediterranean gull.
Other birds noted were a singing corn bunting, yellowhammer, calling turtle dove, 2 green woodpeckers and a group of 20 sand martins gathering to roost.
Martin Cock was pleased to hear a turtle dove and a cuckoo from his West Mersea garden on Thursday morning.
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