Monday, 16 May 2016

MISTLE THRUSHES

Two pairs of mistle thrushes were at the country park on Saturday 14th, this one pictured above, feeding in the car park. A second pair was feeding in the grazing fields near the Golfhouse.

Also noted at the park that day were 2 pairs of pochard, 10 tufted duck on the pond, five black-tailed godwits, 10 lapwing, pair of Canada geese, 2 pairs of greylag geese and 10 swallows on the fields with a reed warbler singing from the reeds in the dyke. Two sand martins worked their way slowly along the beach as they headed east, occasionally resting for a while on the ground.
On the nearby mudflats the only waders noted were 25 dunlin, 10 ringed plover and 7 grey plover.

The saltmarsh pools near the East Mersea Point held 30 black-tailed godwits and one bar-tailed godwit on it at the end of Saturday.

The next morning a short-eared owl was watched being harassed in flight by three herring gulls as it tried to cross east over the Colne. It circled higher to evade them but the gulls kept mobbing the owl and it gave up crossing the river and headed west over the grazing fields.

On the pools by the Point 7 avocets were feeding and checking out the small islands, while six whimbrel and 2 common terns flew up river.

The cows and calves were happily grazing the fields over the weekend with a yellow wagtail noted near a pair of pied wagtails on Saturday. A grey heron and two little egrets were seen on Sunday in the fields with a reed warbler and Cetti's warbler heard singing.

At the park pond 3 pairs of pochard and a male shoveler were seen, with a sparrowhawk flying low along a nearby path.

A common buzzard flew over the park heading east on Friday 13th and a little tern flew west along the park shoreline.

Two green hairstreaks tussled with each other beside one of the paths on the sunny morning of Sunday. One was also seen in a different location near the car park on Friday 13th.

Other butterflies noted on Friday at the park were 3 speckled wood, 2 red admiral, 3 orange-tip, 2 holly blue, 4 small white and also the first broad-bodied chaser of the season.

A small swarm of the green longhorn moths were flying around some sheltered bushes at the park on Sunday. Their very long antennae waving about as they fluttered around and their greeny-sheen on the wings glinting in the sunshine.

One adder was seen at the park first thing on Saturday morning.

Four male yellowhammers were seen during an evening walk along the seawall at Maydays on Sunday 15th, this one singing from a nearby post.
Also seen by the seawall were two cuckoos- one in pursuit of the other, this after one was calling. Three reed warblers sang from low down in the reeds in the dyke and 2 reed buntings also seen here. A common buzzard was perched beside a recently cut field corner and a kestrel hovered nearby too.

On Reeveshall 2 marsh harriers were noted, male pochard, pair of gadwall, 36 greylag and Canadas, and 16 mute swans. Along the Pyefleet flew a common tern and a Mediterranean gull but few waders with the tide coming in.

On Langenhoe, two hobbies were seen perched on bushes and flying around by Steve Entwistle on Sunday evening. A couple of marsh harriers also seen flying over the ranges.

Two pairs of yellow wagtail were seen, this one perched up calling from a small tree near the Maydays dyke. Eight swallows were hunting over the seawall and at least fifteen house martins were over the farm buildings.

At West Mersea two turtle doves were seen in Willoughby car park on Sunday by Martin Cock, one bird heard purring. Two swifts flew over Firs Chase on Sunday evening. From the beach 3 common terns and a little tern were seen by Steve.

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