POOLS FILLING UP

Recent rains have been topping up the muddy pools in the park grazing fields, pictured above. The fields were looking nice and wet on Monday 1st while it rained, enticing the waders and several egrets to roost for the high tide.


There was a nice flock of 15 little egrets which circled above the pools with some dropping down to the water while others flew to roost in the nearby trees overlooking the fields. There have been some large gatherings of little egrets seen recently off the park with this group being the largest seen in the pools / park pond area.

The redshank roost of 200+ birds was another big flock for the site, while 20 snipe, 40 lapwing, 30 black-tailed godwits were also present. In the nearby grass field 100 curlew were roosting. There seemed to be a good spread of wildfowl on the pools and nearby grassland with 200 teal and 150 wigeon.
On the park pond 5 gadwall, 9 shoveler and 2 tufted ducks were the main ducks of note.

At least fifty swallows passed over the park during the morning, five mistle thrushes were seen in the car park and a couple of chiffchaffs were heard calling from bushes.

A late afternoon walk along the Strood seawall on Sunday 30th provided views of various waders during the low tide. Two greenshanks and one avocet feeding along the bottom of the channel were the main waders of note, while amongst the other regular waders 80 golden plover and 25 ringed plover were also noticed.

Not many ducks as a couple of days earlier with only 10 wigeon and about 10 teal seen while 4 little grebes were amongst the boat moorings. Ten little egrets were seen along the channel and across the saltings.

In the fields 300 starlings were feeding in a stubble field and a flock of 100 linnets were seen briefly before heading off to roost. No small birds were seen in the weedy field as noted the day before. Thirty meadow pipits flew off the Island to roost in three small flocks. A marsh harrier flew north-east over the Ray saltings as it headed towards the Langenhoe evening roost.

Andy Field reported from Langenhoe ranges that on Sunday there were curlew sandpiper, spotted redshank, 2 greenshank, 15 green sandpiper, peregrine, common buzzard, 6 marsh harriers and a short eared owl on Langenhoehall marshes.
Hugh Owen saw 2 short-eared owls, common buzzard and a marsh harrier over Langenhoehall marshes on Saturday.