WHISTLING WHIMBREL

Ten whimbrel were seen along the Strood channel and heard whistling their distinctive call during a morning walk along the seawall on Tuesday 23rd. One group of them including this one pictured, was on the saltmarsh near the Strood Hill. The only other wader of note was a single black-tailed godwit.

Managed to see my first cuckoo as it flew over the Firs Chase caravan site calling on Tuesday morning. Later in the day it was heard calling from somewhere in The Lane.
A couple of common buzzards were noted, as was a marsh harrier on the Peldon side.

A pair of yellow wagtails was feeding near the Strood seawall on Tuesday.
Two reed warblers were singing in the reeds, as were a couple of male reed buntings. Also a singing common whitethroat, singing corn bunting and ten linnets were noted too.

A male wheatear was seen on top of the seawall before it flew into the nearby wheat field.
A pair of Mediterranean gulls passed overhead, while four common terns were perched by the boat mooring in the channel.

A pair of gadwall were in the Strood dyke on Tuesday, I believe they've been here for a few days now.

At Cudmore Grove country park on Tuesday, Steve Hunting reported 2 whimbrel on the Golfhouse saltmarsh, also 3 avocets, 8 black-tailed godwits, while 2 common terns were near the Point and 3 lesser whitethroats singing in the main park. Also Steve saw a red squirrel have a close shave running across Bromans Lane dodging the traffic on Tuesday afternoon.

A red kite was seen by Martin Cock flying over his garden in the Coverts on Tuesday 23rd, the second garden sighting there this spring.
A common buzzard and a pair of Mediterranean gulls flew over the Firs Chase garden on Monday 22nd.
A blackcap was seen on Sunday 21st by Adrian Amos in his East Road garden in West Mersea. Also here the first small tortoiseshell butterfly for a long time.

It was nice and sunny along the seawall at Maydays on the north side of the Island on Saturday 20th.
The highlight was a red kite seen crossing over the Pyefleet Channel next to a common buzzard, then circling high overhead while being mobbed by  pair of Mediterranean gulls. The red kite then glided quickly south west towards the Strood channel.
Two marsh harriers were seen over the Maydays/ Reeveshall fields with another five in the air over Langenhoe. Three buzzards were noted in the air at various points.

A sedge warbler and two reed warblers were singing from the dyke, while 2 whitethroats and a lesser whitethroats were singing too. A cuckoo was calling from Langenhoe. Two swallows, a yellow wagtail, 6 yellowhammers were seen while 15 house martins were by the Maydays farm. Thirty four golden plover dropped into a field and a pair of grey partridge and a muntjac were also seen in the fields. Butterflies of note included a brimstone and orange tip near the farm.

The only birds of note along the Pyefleet channel were 40 shelduck, 48 black-tailed godwit and 3 whimbrel.

At the country park on Saturday 20th, Andy Field noted cuckoo, wheatear, whitethroat, lesser whitethroat, 3 avocets, 4 lapwing and a slowworm missing part of its tail.
On Friday 19th two Sandwich terns were seen by Martin Cock sitting on a buoy in the Colne. Along the Strood on Friday the cuckoo was seen singing on Ray Island by Andy Field, also a reed warbler singing in the dyke

A pine beauty moth was one of a dozen or so moths in the moth trap in the Firs Chase garden on Monday 22nd.

A least black arches was another of the moths in the garden trap on Monday night.