BARN OWL FLYPAST

A barn owl was out hunting beside the seawall at Maydays farm late afternoon on Friday 26th. It perched on several fence-posts beside the dyke and was seen to carry away a vole it had just caught.

The barn owl was first seen hunting over the saltmarsh beside the seawall before crossing over the seawall about thirty metres ahead of me.

The barn owl has been seen regularly in the late afternoons at Maydays and often heading over to nearby Reeveshall at times too.

The sun was setting over the Maydays marsh as the barn owl was hunting. Two marsh harriers and a buzzard were also noted.

A dozen yellowhammers were at Maydays on Friday afternoon as were five corn buntings and ten reed buntings.

Earlier on Friday morning a peregrine flew over the fields by the Strood channel before flying south-west over the caravan park and three buzzards noted too. The Cetti's warbler sang quietly from a bush in the reedbed, the female stonechat was by the dyke, ten corn buntings by the seawall and two rock pipits. A pale-bellied brent goose was feeding with 200 brent geese near the saltmarsh by the caravan park.

Also along the Strood seawall on Friday morning, Martin Cock reported seeing a chiffchaff by the dyke and sixty corn buntings in the large grass field.

At Cudmore Grove Steve Entwistle reported on Friday seven pochard, six gadwall, nine redwing, 25 knot, 3 greylag geese and an evening roost of 26 greenfinches.

On Thursday 25th at Coopers Beach, fifty turnstones were gathered along the front of the caravan park.

Offshore a Slavonian grebe, great northern diver and great crested grebe were seen.

On the flooded Rewsalls Marshes on Thursday were 70 curlew, 70 redshank, three little egrets and five teal while a buzzard perched on a tree at the back.

Along the Strood Channel on Thursday morning, the bearded tit and Cetti's warbler showed briefly to Andy Field, also two corn buntings singing.

A pair of shelduck was resting on the Rewsalls Marshes near the Coopers Beach caravan park on Wednesday 24th. Also noted there were 124 curlew, 90 golden plover, 30 redshank, Mediterranean gull, three little egrets and three teal while nearby were sparrowhawk, two kestrels and two red-legged partridge.

At Maydays farm on Wednesday 12 pintail, barn owl and four marsh harriers were seen by Martin Cock.

On Tuesday 23rd at Cudmore Grove Country Park four white-fronted geese were feeding on the grazing fields as were thirty greylag geese, 1500 brent geese, one pale-bellied brent goose and 1500 wigeon. Also in the fields and nearby pond were five pochard, two tufted duck, eight gadwall, 24 snipe along with another 20 flying off the saltmarsh. A buzzard was seen flying over Ivy Farm while five red-breasted mergansers were in the Colne.

On Monday 22nd a peregrine was seen flying over the Strood fields, two marsh harriers were also noted during the walk along the Strood seawall. The female stonechat was seen by the dyke, also 15 corn buntings, six linnets, 20 meadow pipits and a rock pipit. A male red-breasted merganser was in the Strood channel and three little egrets were noted during the walk.

A woodcock was flushed on Sunday 21st from a ditch near Fishponds Wood in Shop Lane by Tom Fleetwood and his dog.

MAYDAYS VISIT

 

A male yellowhammer perched in a bush near the Maydays seawall on a sunny Sunday 21st. A corn bunting was also in the same area with ten reed buntings, while 30 linnets were beside a game crop near Haycocks Lane.

A large flock of 1000 brent geese on Sunday were alternating resting in the Pyefleet channel for half an hour or so before returning to a wheat field at Maydays to feed. A pale-bellied brent goose was also with the dark-bellied brent flock. 

Four male pintail could be seen amongst a distant flock of wigeon at the top end of the Pyefleet, also three red-breasted mergansers, 365 shelduck, 700 knot, 105 avocets were along the Pyefleet channel during the low tide. Three marsh harriers and five buzzards were the main raptors seen.

Other wildlife of interest seen in the sunshine by the Maydays seawall was a stoat running up and over and also a brimstone butterfly that fluttered along the dyke before heading low across the saltmarsh.

Later in the afternoon Martin Cock saw at Maydays a barn owl, green sandpiper and a spotted redshank that was only heard but not located.

At the eastern end of the Pyefleet Steve Entwistle and Shaun Bater watched the harriers going into the Langenhoe roost and were rewarded with good views of a male hen harrier flying low over the reedbed before dropping down at dusk. Also 15 marsh harriers also going into roost, while other birds noted in the area were buzzard, 1000 lapwing, 1000 dunlin, 60+ avocets, 13 grey plover, 25 black-tailed godwits and 13 red-breasted mergansers.

A woodcock was reported by Tom Fleetwood flushed from a hedge to the north-west of Fishponds Wood in Shop Lane on Sunday.

Andy Field managed to catch a glimpse of the shy little owl perched in a poplar tree at the front of the East Mersea Youth Camp on Sunday morning.

On Saturday 20th the little owl was seen flying from a large Cypress tree and perching in one of the poplar trees at the Youth Camp - spooking a flock of 24 meadow pipits that were feeding in the nearby grass.

At the Rewsalls marshes on Saturday a kingfisher was seen at the back by a pond, three buzzards were in the area, a sparrowhawk flew past the boating lake. On the marshes were 60 curlew, bar-tailed godwit, five shelduck, five teal and a little egret.

A flock of 80 brent geese was feeding at the deserted Waldegraves caravan park on Saturday and a Mediterranean gull and redshank were on the pond. Along the beach and offshore shingle island were 55 sanderling.

On Friday 19th nine red-breasted mergansers were seen from St Peters, near Cobmarsh Island as were four Mediterranean gulls, two bar-tailed godwits and 200 brent geese.

At East Mersea on Friday afternoon two barn owls were seen by Shaun Bater near the Oyster Fishery.

A woodcock was flushed from the hedgeline down the side of the Firs Caravan Park on Thursday 18th. The alarm calls of a few birds in the trees above suggested there was something upsetting them close-by. Later along the Strood seawall 40 avocets, 45 curlew, 150 redshank, 3 little egrets and a grey heron were the birds of note.

In Mersea Avenue two blackcaps were at feeders in Ian Black's garden and a buzzard flew overhead.

On Thursday afternoon Martin Cock and Andy Field watched the Langenhoe harrier roost from the Shop Lane seawall and saw the male hen harrier over Reeveshall and then onto Langenhoe, also 15 marsh harriers, while ten red-breasted mergansers were in the Pyefleet and a buzzard in a nearby field.

Two Canada geese were on Pewit Island on Wednesday 17th, while ten red-breasted mergansers, 120 avocets, 180 black-tailed godwits, ten knot were along the Pyefleet. On Reeveshall were 400 lapwing, little egret and buzzard while near the Oyster Fishery a pochard was on a pond. Two goldcrests were in Fishponds Wood.

At West Mersea a blackcap was in the garden in Firs Chase on Wednesday morning.

Michael Thorley took this set of sanderling pictures at East Mersea Point on Wednesday 17th.

A sanderling with a turnstone.

Flock of sanderling coming into land on the beach at the Point.

Sanderling in flight.

Birds noted along the Strood seawall on Tuesday 16th were two buzzards, kestrel,1500 brent geese, 145 shelduck, 30 ringed plover, 300 golden plover, 35 avocets, three bar-tailed godwits and 12 black-tailed godwits. Small birds of interest were 13 corn buntings on wires, 35 meadow pipits, two rock pipits and three reed buntings.

The little owl was seen perched in a poplar tree at the front of the Youth Camp on Tuesday by Martin Cock. On Monday 15th Martin saw a peregrine tucking into a wader on one of the fields at Maydays, also marsh harrier, buzzard and two red-breasted mergansers.

At Cudmore Grove on Monday 15th a woodcock flew out of the ditch by the park entrance. The purple sandpiper was feeding on the mud near the Point, while on the fields were 54 greylag geese, 1000 wigeon, 20 snipe and 150 black-tailed godwits. Three pochard were on the pond and nearby were four redwing, also sparrowhawk and six fieldfare noted.

The moth trap was dusted down and brought out of winter storage in the Firs Chase garden on Wednesday 17th - catching this single Chestnut Moth.

The first common quaker moth was trapped on Sunday 21st - the first of many hopefully over the coming weeks.

A dotted border was the only other moth in the trap on Sunday night.

GARDEN VISITORS

A fieldfare tucking into the rosehips in Michael Thorley's East Mersea garden near Meeting Lane. Michael spent time in the warm indoors photographing these two visitors in his garden, pictured below

The fieldfare was stealing the rosehips that Michael has reserved for waxwings just in case any make a return visit to this bush like a small flock did a few years ago!

 

Most of the big fieldfare flocks have moved on now, leaving just a few individuals about.

The fieldfare making the most of the berries on the ground.

A female green woodpecker hopped about on Michael's lawn.

The green woodpecker among patches of snow on Michael's lawn.

Getting the beak of the green woodpecker deep down in the lawn looking for insects.

SNOW FIELDS OF MERSEA

The snow and ice were still covering the fields and seawall at Maydays farm on a very cold Sunday 14th. During a quick seawall walk birds of note were three red-breasted mergansers, 1000 dunlin, 100 knot and a bar-tailed godwit along the Pyefleet channel. On the snowy fields were 80 skylarks while beside Haycocks Lane were 100 linnets, 4 fieldfares, 15+ yellowhammer and a corn bunting.

Two of the 28 yellowhammers seen in Haycocks Lane on Sunday through the back of Steve Entwistle's camera, also a corn bunting and a sparrowhawk of note here. 

As mentioned in an earlier post, four woodcock were seen feeding at the country park by Andy Field as was a water rail along a ditch. A fifth woodcock flew out of a different ditch near the park entrance while in Meeting Lane another woodcock was seen by Steve Entwistle on Sunday afternoon and later a marsh harrier at the Strood.

In West Mersea three redwing and a song thrush were feeding under feeders in Ian Black's Mersea Avenue garden.

Another cold day on the Island despite the sun shining on Saturday 13th, here over the Strood fields. A black brant and a pale-bellied brent goose were feeding with 100 brent geese in front of the Firs caravan park. Along the channel during high tide were 25 avocets roosting, also four snipe in various places, three rock pipits, five fieldfares and two redwings.

At Cudmore Grove at least one woodcock, three snipe and a water rail were seen by Steve Entwistle feeding in the open in the pond meadow, later a second woodcock seen on Saturday afternoon by Martin Cock. 

Twelve snipe were feeding in a wet field behind Mersea Barns on Saturday and also a redwing there, while at Maydays farm two corn buntings and two yellowhammers were seen feeding in Haycocks Lane by Steve Entwistle.

A flock of 92 greylag geese was resting on the snow covered grazing field at Cudmore Grove on Friday 12th.

The woodcock and water rail were seen feeding beside a ditch in the pond meadow throughout Friday. Earlier in the morning a woodcock flew out of the ditch just inside the park entrance, seen by Martin Cock. Late afternoon three snipe and two song thrushes were seen at the edge of the meadow by Steve Entwistle.

Thirty-five snipe were seen feeding in the snow on the park's grazing fields on Friday morning and a few lapwings sheltering behind grass tussocks from the chilly wind. On the park pond were two tufted ducks and eight gadwall, while along the shore were 300 knot, three sanderling and a couple of little egrets seen flying about.

By the Golfhouse were five fieldfares, four redwings and three mistle thrushes, while nearer Bromans Lane were a sparrowhawk and two red-legged partridge.

In West Mersea a female blackcap was seen in Andy Field's garden in High Street North along with a few fieldfares and redwings that found his apples.

A sparrowhawk sadly flew into a window of David Bullock's house in East Mersea whilst chasing a small bird on Tuesday 9th.

SOME WADERS CLOSE-UP

The cold weather provided photo opportunities for Michael Thorley at Coopers Beach on Saturday 13th. As the tide ebbed in the afternoon and the foreshore was uncovered, the waders gathered close in during a strong icy wind. This golden plover photographed by Michael was one of 50+ seen.

Golden plover at Coopers Beach

Golden plover

Five grey plover were seen by Michael at Coopers Beach.

Grey plover

Grey plover

Bar-tailed godwit seen at Coopers Beach. Two black-tailed godwits were feeding in the dyke.

A Mediterranean gull and curlew at Coopers Beach.

WOODCOCK WEEKEND

The recent cold snap brought out the woodcock to feed in the open at Cudmore Grove Country Park. The rare sight of watching and photographing a woodcock on the Island, tempted several of the local birders to go and have a look at them over the weekend. Andy Field took this picture of two woodcock feeding together with a snipe.

This woodcock photographed by Andy had a worm in its bill. Five woodcock were thought to be along this ditch - three feeding together, a fourth bird 30 metres further along the field-edge, while a fifth bird in a ditch near the park entrance was reported by Jack Hoy. This is the most amount of woodcock seen at the park in a day.

A water rail was also seen inside the ditch on Sunday by Andy.

One of the woodcock alongside a snipe was digiscoped by Steve Entwistle on Sunday 14th.

There has been a big influx along the east coast in recent days of woodcock arriving from the continent to escape the cold weather there. Woodcock usually hide in cover during the day but this cold weather has forced them out to feed in the open. 

Not to be out-done by the others before, Jonathan Bustard managed to photograph two woodcock and two snipe feeding on the wet grassland at the bottom of the small field at the park on Sunday.

A couple of back of the camera shots of the woodcock from Steve.

Another digiscoped woodcock image from Steve.

Another woodcock was discovered elsewhere on the Island by Steve, on the verge in Meeting Lane at the entrance gate to Reeveshall, which sadly got flushed by a couple of joggers.

One of the woodcock was on show at the park on Friday 12th along with a water rail feeding along inside the ditch. This poorer image is my contribution to the woodcock album! A woodcock was also seen flying out of the ditch just inside the park entrance on Friday morning by Martin Cock.

At least one woodcock was present during Saturday morning while later two woodcock and a water rail were seen at the park late afternoon on Saturday 13th by Martin Cock.

In previous winters during periods of snow, woodcock have occasionally been seen feeding near the park pond and nearby hedge bottoms. Woodcock have sometimes been seen flying about at dusk as they head off to feed for the evening.