PARK WIGEON

At Cudmore Grove on Friday 1st, there were still 100 wigeon to be seen, some on the fields, some on the saltmarsh and one or two along the borrowdyke. Other wildfowl were ten shelduck, 12 shoveler, 70 teal, two greylag geese while on the park pond were three pochard, four tufted ducks, four gadwall and ten mallard.

Eight lapwing were in the fields with one bird seemingly on a nest for the last week, three black-tailed godwits, 20 curlew and eight little egrets were noted. A buzzard flew over the car park and a sparrowhawk perched behind the park pond, where a Cetti's warbler was heard singing.

A pair of ringed plover was on the East Mersea Point, four avocets were on the Golfhouse pools while in the river Colne were two red-throated divers and six great crested grebes.

Five great northern divers were seen offshore from the Esplanade on Friday by Steve Entwistle.

Along the Strood seawall on a dull and cold Thursday 31st, birds noted included six golden plover, three snipe flushed off the grass field by a marsh harrier, four corn buntings, buzzard, great crested grebe and fifty brent geese. Two chiffchaffs were heard singing one in Feldy View and another in Firs Chase where the overwintering blackcap was seen again.

Four great northern divers were offshore from the Esplanade on Wednesday seen by Steve Entwistle, who later visited Coopers Beach and saw a merlin at the back of the Rewsalls Marshes, while offshore were a red-throated diver and 52 great crested grebes.

The male red-breasted merganser that has been in the Strood channel for the last week was seen having a sleep on a surfboard near the Dabchicks sailing club on Tuesday 29th. 

The pale-bellied brent goose was feeding beside the saltmarsh in front of the Firs Caravan park on Tuesday.

The pale-bellied brent goose was keeping company with 15 dark-bellied brent geese on Tuesday. Also seen along the Strood channel were a greylag goose, seven shelduck, two great crested grebes, 20 dunlin, ten grey plover and four little egrets. A Cetti's warbler sang by the Strood layby, two corn buntings, five pied wagtails and fifty linnets were in the fields, while a chiffchaff was in Feldy View.

A red squirrel was photographed on Tuesday at Cudmore Grove country park near the park entrance by Andy Field. Offshore was a summer plumaged red-throated diver, also at the park were the kestrel pair mating on their tree, three pochard, three chiffchaffs, two Cetti's warblers singing and a pair of ringed plovers at the Point.

On a misty Monday 28th, the pale-bellied brent goose was with a small group of ten dark-bellied brent geese behind the Dabchicks, and a great crested grebe was in the channel.

The female blackcap was in the Firs Chase garden again.

The shag was seen from Old Hall marshes close to Cobmarsh Island on Monday by Colin Mackenzie Grieve.

On the Langenhoe army ranges on Monday, Richard Brown saw two great white egrets, short-eared owl, three ruff, little ringed plover and a green sandpiper.

On Sunday 26th during a walk along the north side of the Island a red kite was seen flying over Langenhoe and at one point seemed to be feeding on a snake in mid-air, as something long and thin was dangling down from it. Possibly the same bird was seen by Steve Entwistle later in the afternoon as it flew west to east with three buzzards and a marsh harrier. 

Also along the back of the Island were seen seven marsh harriers and ten buzzards, two red-breasted mergansers, 280 shelduck, 15 lapwing, 26 golden plover, 200 dunlin, Cetti's warbler and six meadow pipits. Four siskins were feeding with ten chaffinches in the pines in Fishponds Wood.

Along the Strood on Sunday afternoon there was a buzzard, 32 black-tailed godwits, ten grey plover while in the fields was a flock of 30 linnets.

The blackcap and song thrush were in the Firs Chase garden.

A male adder was basking on the top of the Maydays seawall on a sunny Saturday 25th, coiled up amongst some dead grass just a metre to the side of the well trodden path.

Also basking in the sun on Saturday at Maydays was this common seal on the mud in the Pyefleet.

A greenshank was seen at Maydays on Saturday, also 240 shelduck, 300 dunlin, a pair of Mediterranean gulls, a distant red kite drifting west from Meeting Lane to Bocking Hall, six buzzards and four marsh harriers.

Andy Field watched a siskin and a male blackcap in his High Street North garden on Saturday morning.

A flock of 400 brent geese was feeding in the Cudmore Grove grazing fields on Friday 25th, along with a pale-bellied brent goose. Also at the park were seen four buzzards, a distant red kite flying west over the Colne, 200 wigeon, 80 teal, six tufted ducks, a snipe, 70 dunlin, six great crested grebes in the Colne, three Cetti's warblers including one singing in the car park, three singing chiffchaffs while two little owls perched on a barn at Bromans Farm.

Andy Field walked from Shop Lane to Meeting Lane on Friday morning and watched a red kite over Fishponds Wood, as well as a brambling and three siskins in the pines there. Six buzzards were in the area, peregrine, five redwing, Cetti's warbler and three chiffchaffs along the footpath and two more buzzards over West Mersea later in the morning.

Steve Entwistle saw two buzzards over Bromans Lane on Friday, also two over Manwood Grove at Shop Lane, then later a sparrowhawk and two peacock butterflies by the Strood layby.

Four early grey moths were in the moth trap on the cold and clear night of Saturday 26th along with four common quakers, two hebrew characters and a clouded drab.