WHITE-FRONTS GET-TOGETHER

 A family of three white-fronted geese turned up in the park's grazing fields on Friday 21st to join up with the juvenile that has been present since Tuesday. The pair of adults stood out with their barred bellies and the white at the base of the bill.

Four white-fronted geese stayed close together amongst the 400 wigeon, 100 brent geese and 80 greylag geese. The original darker juvenile is pictured closest in the picture, while the newer juvenile on the left-hand side of the picture is a bit paler.

At the Point 2 rock pipits flew over the saltmarsh, 5 knot and 70 shelduck on the mud, 500 brent on the Brightlingsea side and a common seal in the river.

The brent geese seemed to have had a good breeding season in Siberia as seen with this family on the park dyke with six juveniles beside the two parents on the right.

Two brambling perched in the car park calling on Friday morning, beckoning me away from the office computer with the camera in hand but not needing to step outside to see the birds. The birds flew off east after a couple of minutes. Earlier in the morning a brambling had flown over the park as did five redpolls. A yellowhammer flew over the fields and 5 reed buntings were feeding near the park seawall.

The resident male kestrel perched on a bush near the pond on Friday morning.
Two shoveler and two tufted ducks were on the pond along with a few mallard, teal and wigeon.

Yesterday at the park Andy Field saw the single white-fronted goose, 2 snipe at the pond and a chiffchaff during his walk round the site.