PARK PINTAIL

Nine pintail were a nice surprise for Andy Field on the country park grazing fields on Thursday 4th. Also on the fields were a pale-bellied brent goose with 1200 dark-bellied brent geese, two snipe while on the pond were three pochard and in the river Colne were 15 red-breasted mergansers.

This muntjac deer was photographed by Andy at the back of the park's grazing field on Thursday. 

Along the Reeveshall seawall on Thursday, three pintail were seen flying up the Pyefleet Channel, while in the channel were five red-breasted mergansers and 300 brent geese. A pair of marsh harriers was flying over Reeveshall while another three birds were seen over Langenhoe, one of the males displaying and calling high in the sky. Also on Reeveshall were six greylag geese, nine coots, 200 starlings and 20 teal. A muntjac deer was seen in Shop Lane walking into a thick copse.

A short-eared owl was flushed off the East Mersea seawall on Thursday by Chris Tyas about fifty metres east of the Oyster Fishery.

Not much to see along the Strood seawall in the fog on Wednesday 3rd. A flash of blue from a kingfisher was seen briefly inside the central ditch in the fields, while in the channel were 12 avocets and 75 knot. 

The bearded tit was seen by Martin Cock and Andrew Tilsley on Wednesday morning.

Ian Black reported a buzzard and two Mediterranean gulls over his house in Mersea Avenue.

At Cudmore Grove on Tuesday 2nd a peregrine was watched swooping down a couple of times at the birds on the saltmarsh pools near the Golfhouse, before snatching a presumed dunlin. It then headed over to the nearby grazing field where all the hundreds of waders and wildfowl were sent scattering and it then landed to feed on its prey.

Before the peregrine frightened everything away, a pale-bellied brent goose was with 400 brent geese, 20 snipe, 25 lapwing, 40 curlew and 70 redshank were also in the fields. On the pond and nearby dyke were five pochard and six tufted duck, also a redwing in the trees. In the Colne were a male eider and eight red-breasted mergansers and a grey seal. Two green woodpeckers were feeding in a paddock near the bus turning circle.

On Reeveshall two Canada geese and two buzzards were seen by Martin Cock on Tuesday.

At West Mersea a male stonechat was seen on the beach by the sea-blite bushes near Shears Crescent by Jonathan Bustard on Tuesday morning, also a great northern diver offshore.

 

The black brant was feeding along the edge of the saltmarsh behind the Dabchicks sailing club on Monday 1st, along with 300 brent geese in the Strood channel. A pair of red-breasted merganser was in the channel opposite the Firs caravan park, while two marsh harriers were along the Strood, as were 12 avocets while three Mediterranean gulls were on a field.

At Reeveshall on Monday morning about 900 brent geese were feeding in one of the fields while on Langenhoe a marsh harrier were noted by Michael Thorley.

On the north side of the island alongside the Bower Hall saltmarsh a peregrine was seen flying north towards Langenhoe on Sunday 28th, also four marsh harriers and five buzzards noted during the walk from Maydays west towards the Strood. A green sandpiper flew over calling, five little egrets were on the saltmarsh and two greylags flew over. In the fields were 200 linnets, 150 jackdaws, six stock doves and a yellowhammer.

Off the Esplanade on Sunday morning were two great northern divers, 20 great crested grebes and 7 wigeon seen by Steve Entwistle. Later at Coopers Beach 98 curlew and a bar-tailed godwit were seen by Steve on the marshes.

At Reeveshall on Sunday afternoon Andy Field reported 12 marsh harriers, two maybe three merlins, buzzard over the Langenhoe and Reeveshall marshes, while three pintail flew over. Later at dusk a barn owl was seen by Andy, by the East Mersea road near the Barrow. A barn owl was also reported to me by the Calcutts whilst on a cycle-ride, lying dead beside the East Mersea road near Meeting Lane the previous day. 

Fine sunny spring morning on Saturday 27th for a visit to the Rewsalls marshes for high tide and then a walk along the beach to West Mersea. A peregrine circled over the beach beside the Youth Camp and a kestrel hovered nearby. On the back of the marshes were two bar-tailed godwits, 70 redshank, three little egrets and a snipe. A male yellowhammer perched in a hedgerow beside one of the nearby fields to the north. Offshore on the calm sea were four Slavonian grebes, 170 great crested grebes also a Mediterranean gull flew past. 

By Waldegraves caravan park a Mediterranean gull was on the pond and twenty brent grazing close-by, a small tortoiseshell butterfly flew past, while offshore were 25 sanderling on the shingle island. A great northern diver was offshore from the Esplanade.

The female stonechat was seen along the Strood seawall on Saturday by Steve Entwistle.