SEASIDE COLONY

There was still lots of sand martin activity around the colony in the cliff at the back of the country park beach on Wednesday 18th. A count of the nest-holes dug this summer showed about a hundred had been excavated in the cliff, which is about forty more than last year. Many chicks were still inside their holes being fed, such as these two waiting at their entrance. In total about 100 sand martins were flying about the cliff and across the park too.

A scruffy juvenile wheatear seemed very obliging, posing on the beach close to the ramp where lots of people were going past. The bird looks similar to a juvenile seen three weeks earlier on the park seawall but can't say for sure if the same bird still here.

By the park pond were 8 little egrets, with another seven on the saltmarsh, also lesser whitethroat and a Cetti's warbler. Two willow emerald damselflies were seen at the west end of the park dyke.

The family of ringed plover including the two juveniles, was on the mud just after high tide near the old fort along with forty other ringed plovers, 40 golden plovers and 12 dunlin. Five black-tailed godwits, 70 curlew, five common terns and four Mediterranean gulls were seen near the Point. 

At Maydays on Wednesday Martin Cock reported 66 curlew, green sandpiper, two buzzards, yellow wagtail, two common terns and also three common seals in the Pyefleet.

Michael Thorley visited Reeveshall on Wednesday morning and noted three greenshank, six dunlin, yellow wagtail, four common terns and two lesser black-backed gulls as well as two red squirrels in Shop Lane.

Five swifts were seen flying west over Firs Chase on Wednesday also a willow warbler there, while two local swifts were still above Queen Ann Road and a house martin was still visiting the nest opposite the West Mersea vets.

A juvenile yellow wagtail was looking anxiously up to the sky as it watched a sparrowhawk pass overhead on Tuesday 17th along the Strood seawall. Along the Strood channel were six golden plover, four grey plover, four ringed plover, 300 redshank, 50 black-tailed godwits, six dunlin and two teal with five mute swans seen in the Ray Channel. Fifteen swifts, two house martins and a willow warbler were seen at Feldy View, also five sand martins flew west over the fields.

Eight whimbrel were seen off the country park on Tuesday afternoon by Michael Thorley.

On Monday 16th along the Strood were a pochard, 35 black-tailed godwits, 15 grey plover, ten golden plover, four dunlin, three ringed plover and four common terns. A buzzard and sparrowhawk passed over, while six linnets and five goldfinches were noted too.

At East Mersea on the mud near Ivy Farm on Monday morning, Martin Cock reported a good selection of waders including six bar-tailed godwits, a knot, 25 dunlin, 25 grey plover, three golden plover, 100 black-tailed godwits and two little terns.

An unusual find was this seemingly freshly dead banded demoiselle damselfly, found beside a ditch by the Bower Hall seawall on Sunday 15th. This is not a resident damselfly on the Island and must have wandered from the mainland, maybe the Roman River valley. A southern migrant hawker was hawking up and down a nearby ditch.

Birds noted by the Bower Hall marsh on Sunday were eight greenshank in the creek, ten little egrets, buzzard, singing yellowhammer, five linnets, 25 swallows while three house martins were over Maydays farmyard.

Three brown argus were beside the Bower Hall seawall, also a painted lady seen too on Sunday. At least twenty wasp spiders at webs were in the grass beside the seawall.

In East Mersea at the Oyster Fishery and Ivy Dock area, Martin Cock noted on Sunday morning eight whitethroats, a lesser whitethroat, two willow warblers, Cetti's warbler, 100 black-tailed godwits, 12 common terns, also clouded yellow and a painted lady butterfly.

At Maydays farm on Sunday evening Steve Entwistle reported a greenshank flying over and another two heard, great crested grebe, two common sandpipers, sedge warbler, yellowhammer, two reed buntings, green woodpecker and a red-legged partridge on a workshop roof.

A ruddy darter was photographed on a "ruddy mouse" in Feldy View by Angela Buckley on Sunday.

Three speckled wood butterflies were fluttering under the trees by Fishponds Wood on Saturday 14th. Three willow warblers were calling in the trees, while by the path to the seawall were 12+ wasp spiders.

At Reeveshall fifty swallows were over the fields, four greenshank, knot, 18 grey plover, two shelduck families totalling 24 birds, 12 avocets, 20 black-tailed godwits, four common terns and two great crested grebes.

Andy Field reported on Saturday morning seeing along the Strood seawall common tern with a juvenile, eleven golden plover, five grey plover, five avocets, dunlin, yellow wagtail and peregrine while in Feldy View were a willow warbler and a blackcap.

A juvenile cuckoo was seen perched in a bush by the Strood seawall on Friday 13th.

The cuckoo dropped down amongst the grass for a couple of minutes probably looking for caterpillars. Feeding itself up ahead of its imminent long journey to Africa.

Along the Strood were 25 grey plover, 20 black-tailed godwits, eight avocets, two dunlin, four common terns, 200 redshank, while over the fields were 300 starlings on wires, buzzard, sand martin, house martin and four linnets.

Fifty swifts were counted passing west over Feldy View / Firs Road with one quick count producing ten birds passing in a minute. The swifts were trickling through all Friday morning at this sort of rate, the third day of a big westerly movement. On Thursday over Firs Chase 200 swifts passed westwards at a rate of 60 seen in one fifteen minute count in the morning and still fifty passing in fifteen minutes late afternoon.

A great spotted woodpecker and a sparrowhawk were seen by Steve Entwistle at Feldy View on Friday. A willow warbler was seen by Martin Cock in his garden in The Coverts on Friday morning.

A black-tailed godwit was feeding along the Strood Channel on Thursday with 17 other godwits. Also on the mud were 14 avocets, four golden plover, a knot, two dunlin, while a hobby, buzzard, sparrowhawk and three yellow wagtails were seen passing over.

A young common tern perched on a post in the Strood channel waiting to be fed, three others fishing nearby. 

A greenshank and a yellow wagtail flew over the Firs Chase garden on Thursday afternoon, while a willow emerald damselfly was a nice sighting for the garden.

Andy Field photographed this wasp spider near the Shop Lane seawall on Thursday 12th.

The wasp spider was seen with its prey entangled in its web - one of five wasp spiders seen.

Birds noted by Andy between Shop Lane and Maydays during Thursday's low tide in the morning were 35 black-tailed godwits, 120 curlew, two whimbrel, 75 grey plover, six ringed plover, 20 dunlin, five greenshank, common sandpiper, eight avocets, three little terns, two common terns and a buzzard.

Two clouded yellows, two painted ladies and two holly blues were noted and a red squirrel and chiffchaff by Fishponds Wood by Andy on Thursday.

Martin Cock reported six blackcaps and two whitethroats near Meeting Lane on Thursday afternoon.

On Thursday evening Steve Entwistle visited the Golfhouse and East Mersea Point area and noted three sanderling, five dunlin, teal, eight Mediterranean gulls, 20 turnstones, 30 curlew, 51 golden plover, 28 grey plover, 67 ringed plover, 100 redshank, 50 oystercatchers, eight common gulls, 58 black-tailed godwits including a ringed bird, also a lesser whitethroat by the Golfhouse.