Monday 6 February 2017

SHOVELER IN THE SUN

This colourful male shoveler was one of twenty in the park's grazing fields on Sunday 5th.

The park's grazing fields have filled up with a bit more water following some recent rain. Numbers of wigeon have dropped a bit to a thousand birds in the fields along with 300+ teal. A group of 100 redshank roosted on the fields on Thursday at high tide.


On Sunday 5th a pair of stonechat was on the saltmarsh near the Golfhouse for the second day running. A marsh harrier flew north over the saltmarsh spooking 100 lapwing into the air.


At West Mersea on Sunday a black-necked grebe was found offshore from Kingsland Road by Daryl Rhymes. Later a great northern diver, 8 red-breasted mergansers and two Mediterranean gulls were seen by Steve Entwistle. Along the Strood seawall the glossy ibis was seen on the Ray Saltings by Steve, also a pale common buzzard on the Strood fields.
Offshore from Coopers Beach 5 Slavonian grebes were seen by Daryl and a Lapland bunting flew over calling on Sunday.


There were ten fieldfares seen by Rewsalls on Saturday by Andy Field, also a couple of goldcrests at the Youth Camp, while later a common scoter was noted in the Colne.
At the park two skylarks were in full song in the Saturday morning sunshine.



The fully grown cygnet was found dead sadly in the park dyke on Friday with no visible sign of harm on it. It had been still been feeding in the dyke the morning before. It was the last cygnet from the original brood of seven born last spring.

Offshore from the park on Friday 3rd there were 19 red-breasted mergansers and 550+ great crested grebes on the water.

At the park on Wednesday 50 greenfinches gathering to roost, 40+ blackbirds and 10 song thrushes were in the area of the car park. The previous day 45 blackbirds feeding in the car park must be the highest count here, also a sparrowhawk and house sparrow also noted on Tuesday.

A red squirrel was seen by Sheila Rayner crossing Prince Albert road near the Coverts on Friday while two days earlier two red squirrels crossed The Lane in front of my wife Nolly.




No comments: