BACKGARDEN BLACKCAP

A male blackcap spent a few minutes feeding on the fat-balls after tucking into some sunflower hearts in the back garden in Firs Chase on Saturday 29th. It's a few weeks since the male has been seen in the garden although the female was seen four weeks ago. The plastic cup seen in the picture is to stop the mice that had been clambering down to feed on the fat-balls.

A bright but very breezy Saturday 29th made birdwatching along the Maydays seawall tricky with the buffeting wind trying to blow the telescope and tripod over. Sitting down to scope through 1500 brent geese on Reeveshall revealed two pale-bellied brent geese feeding side by side. A peregrine flew west along Broad Fleet, a pair of marsh harriers was also seen hunting over here earlier and two buzzards noted too.

A kingfisher flew away from the Maydays seawall sluice, while in nearby bushes were 8 corn buntings and two redwings flying about. In the Pyefleet were four red-breasted mergansers, 100 avocets while 30 golden plover flew off Reeveshall. A Chinese water deer was seen running across the Maydays field towards the reed-filled borrowdyke, emerging soon after to trot back along a ditch.

At Cudmore Grove on Saturday, Shaun Bater saw the male pintail on the pond, also two pochard, tufted duck, 12 gadwall, three calling water rails, mistle thrush and green woodpecker near the Golfhouse and six greylag geese in the park fields. Steve Entwistle visited the park pond and also noted 33 mallard, 3 tufted duck, 72 teal, coot, little grebe, 3 shoveler and a pair of wigeon.

Thirty shelduck were along the Strood channel on Friday 28th, as were 300 teal, 71 avocets and 200 golden plover, while 500 brent geese flew into Ray Channel. Three marsh harriers, two buzzards, two kestrels were seen from the seawall while a sparrowhawk flew over Firs Caravan park. Ten meadow pipits and three rock pipits were along the seawall. A brown hare was flushed off a field by a tractor and ran to safety into the middle of the big grass field.

Andy Field noted from the Esplanade on Friday morning two great northern divers, two red-throated divers and a probable shag towards the Mersea Quarters , two other diver sps flew upriver.

Later at Cudmore Grove Andy noted six red-legged partridge before Bromans Lane, pintail on the park pond, calling water rail by the dyke, rock pipit, displaying ringed plover, buzzard, a merlin on a post on Langenhoe Point and 15 red-breasted mergansers in the Colne.

Jonathan Norgate visted Cudmore Grove on Friday and noted sparrowhawk, stonechat and 15 knot.

On Thursday 27th at Cudmore Grove two shoveler were along the park dyke with a further 30 on the saltmarsh pools by the Golfhouse. A male stonechat, four reed buntings and ten linnets were near the saltmarsh while on the mud by the Point were 15 ringed plovers.

A distant male hen harrier was watched through the telescope flying over Rat Island before it dropped down there, while in the Colne were 24 red-breasted mergansers. 

A flock of 200 wigeon were grazing the grass inside the park seawall on Thursday with some feeding in the nearby corner of the grazing field - a first sight this winter of them doing so. Five greylag geese were at the back of the fields as were a few curlew.

On the country park pond on Thursday were the male pintail, 12 gadwall, 50 teal and two tufted ducks, while nearby was a buzzard perched in a tree and a water rail called.

Steve Entwistle saw a water rail and heard a second, in the dyke near Ivy Farm on Thursday and a red-throated diver close -by in the Colne.

A redshank was stepping over the mud near the Dabchicks on Wednesday 26th. Along the Strood channel were 70 avocets, bar-tailed godwit, 15 black-tailed godwits, Mediterranean gull, 150 lapwing, 150 teal and 15 little grebes. A peregrine was mobbing a marsh harrier over Feldy Marshes, also 700 brent geese flew off here,  while a marsh harrier was also seen over Ray Island and a buzzard perched by the Strood fields. Two corn buntings perched on a bush by the Strood dyke and five stock doves feeding in a field.

Three great spotted woodpeckers were following each other over Firs Chase, a sparrowhawk, mistle thrush were by the Firs Caravan park.

From the Esplanade Steve Entwistle saw two great northern divers and a red-throated diver on Wednesday morning.

On Tuesday 25th along the Strood channel, there were 65 avocets, bar-tailed godwit, ten black-tailed godwits, also marsh harrier, two buzzards and a stonechat seen, also a mistle thrush by the caravan park. A red squirrel was seen scrambling through the trees beside the path along the top of the Firs caravan park.

At Maydays on Tuesday Steve Entwistle saw the kingfisher by the sluice, 72 knot and 38 linnets.

A stock dove was photographed through the kitchen window as it fed on the driveway in the Firs Chase garden.

Andy Field and I walked the north side of the Island on Monday carrying out the monthly WeBS count from Maydays to Cudmore Grove. Highlights seen were 2000 brent geese, four pintail, 48 red-breasted mergansers ( 37 in a flock off Cudmore), 237 avocets, 2300 dunlin, 280 curlew, 104 knot, 48 shoveler, 5 sanderling, 2 snipe, 6 greylag geese, sparrowhawk, 6 marsh harriers, four buzzards, 20 fieldfares, six redwing, 20 corn buntings, three rock pipits and a stonechat. A common seal rested in a pontoon in the Pyefleet.

Earlier in the day a shag perched on a post opposite the West Mersea Hard.

Steve Entwistle and Martin Cock walked the Maydays seawall together on Monday morning and noted 30 fieldfare, six redwing, 3 corn buntings, 2000 dunlin, 2000 brent geese, two kestrels, possible merlin, corn bunting, marsh harrier, buzzard, 25 black-tailed godwits, 52 avocets, 7 little grebes and lots of shelduck.

John Fell and Richard Brown visited the neighbouring Langenhoe ranges on Monday and reported a short-eared owl, at least 20 bearded tits in one 100m length of reeds, also the remains of a dead cattle egret with no cause of death evident.

The black brant and pale-bellied brent goose were feeding with twenty other brent geese behind the Dabchicks sailing club on Sunday 23rd.

Near the East Mersea Golfhouse on Sunday Steve Entwistle reported seven snipe on the saltmarsh pools, also 38 shoveler, 250 dunlin, grey plover and two rock pipits. Later at Coopers beach there was a mistle thrush, also eight Slavonian grebes and ten red-breasted mergansers were offshore.