REGULAR REDS

At least two red squirrels have been visiting the feeder in the Firs Chase garden over recent weeks. This female with the big bushy red tail, has been tucking into some wild cobnuts that were gathered off the ground of a campsite in the Dordogne a few weeks ago!

Several blackbirds have been feeding on the cotoneaster berries in Feldy View.

A flock of 600 brent geese were seen along the Strood channel on Tuesday 12th. Several youngsters with the white wing-bars were seen in this group on the water.

The brent geese had been feeding in the wheat field before being flushed off to land on the water.
Also seen were a marsh harrier by the Strood causeway, 500 dunlin roosting by the causeway, while rock pipit and stonechat were by the seawall.

On Sunday 10th at the country park grazing fields, 700 brent geese, 500 wigeon were flushed off by a paramotor, while of interest at the Point were a stonechat and 200 knot. At the country park pond 100 teal, 20 shoveler, 4 gadwall and a chiffchaff were noted.
From the Esplanade on Sunday two common scoters offshore, were first reported by Steve Entwistle then four were seen by Jonathan Norgate who later reported a new flock of seven birds, also a chiffchaff at the Monkey Beach.

Along the Reeveshall seawall on Saturday 9th, a green sandpiper and merlin were seen by Martin Cock. Michael Thorley visited the East Mersea Point on Saturday morning and noted a stonechat, 4 rock pipits and 6 sanderling.
At the country park on Friday 8th, Andy Field saw 5 sanderling, 3 red-breasted mergansers, a few redwing and 200 teal on the park pond.

Tucked among the branches of a hawthorn bush was this little owl seen near the Waldegraves caravan site on Friday 8th. Also a water rail feeding among the reeds of the pond, 3 goldcrest in Cross Lane while offshore were 80+ sanderling, 10 Mediterranean gulls, 50 brent geese, 100 cormorants and a common seal.

Four fieldfare, 2 redwing, chiffchaff, 2 goldcrest were seen by Feldy View on Thursday 7th.

On Wednesday 6th there was a large roost of 1000 golden plover on the mud along the Strood Channel.

Also along the Strood that day were 500 dunlin, 10 knot, 100 wigeon and a Mediterranean gull.
A stonechat, two rock pipits and 15 linnets were seen from the seawall.

A male gadwall was an unusual visitor to the Strood on Wednesday, feeding beside some of the wigeon. Also in the channel were 25 little grebes.

A distant merlin perched on top of a tree on Ray Island on Wednesday and spent several minutes scanning around from its vantage point. Also a common buzzard on a tree at the back of the Strood fields and a sparrowhawk noted too.

A firecrest was seen in the Firs Chase garden near the end of Wednesday afternoon, in the same bushes as the four were seen the previous day. A sparrowhawk glided over the garden, luckily ignoring the small birds.

On Tuesday 5th the flock of brent geese feeding in the Strood field had 90 juvenile geese among the flock of 455 birds. Two marsh harriers were noted over Ray Island while the stonechat was again inside the Strood seawall and there was a siskin seen flying north over Feldy View.

In Firs Chase during Tuesday afternoon, four firecrests were watched feeding in the garden with some tits. They were very busy feeding among the bushes and trees like birch, holly and yew, calling regularly to each other. A chiffchaff was calling earlier in the day in Firs Road.

A silver Y moth was attracted to the lit window in the evening of Monday 4th at the Firs Chase house. A red admiral was seen near Feldy View on Tuesday 12th.