WARM AND MUGGY

The Mersea Quarters had returned to some sort of peace on Monday 24th after a hot weekend coincided with the local sailing regatta. Although Monday morning was cloudy, it was warm and muggy with the sun breaking through in the afternoon.

Most of the birds seen were roosting for the high tide on Cobmarsh Island with a small flock of ringed plover, oystercatcher, redshank, dunlin and turnstone. Herring, lesser black-backed and black-headed gulls were also sitting around as the tide approached high-tide. Also noted were common tern, cormorant and 2 great crested grebes.

A few hundred gulls streamed westwards away from West Mersea and it appeared they joined in a massive gull feeding frenzy in the sky above Tollesbury Wick marshes where several thousand gulls circled round, presumably feeding on flying ants.

Five swifts flew over Firs Chase late morning along with several swallows. In the early evening about 50 swallows and a swift were seen passing westwards over a field on the eastern side of West Mersea.



An evening visit to Reeveshall didn't produce anything unexpected with the usual birds at the pool, pictured above. Pair of swans, Canada goose, 6 teal, 6 mallard, 10 lapwing, 4 little grebe, 5 black-tailed godwits and a redshank were the birds noted on the pool.

Many of the waders along the Pyefleet Channel were distant silhouettes scattered across the mudflats. One whimbrel whistled loudly from the nearby saltmarsh. Five marsh harriers flew into the evening roost on Langenhoe Point, just opposite East Mersea.

The last of the sun for the day shone across one of the borrowdykes beside the seawall near Reeveshall. A couple of yellow wagtails flew off the cattle field to their roost.

Glyn Evans walking along the north side of the Island noted the wood sandpiper still at the country park muddy pools, 4 bar-tailed godwits, 4 whimbrel, common sandpiper, 33 little egrets and 5 common seals along the Pyefleet. At West Mersea one arctic tern was seen along with 30 common terns.