Friday 3 June 2022

SHOP LANE- MEETING LANE DELIGHTS

A whitethroat perched along a hedge in East Mersea between Shop Lane and Meeting Lane on Thursday 2nd.

Another whitethroat was watched taking food into a nearby bush west of Shop Lane.
Three other whitethroats were heard singing between Shop Lane and Meeting Lane.

A male yellowhammer was singing beside the path to the west of Shop Lane, while another one was also heard singing nearby.

A male blackcap appeared briefly in the trees alongside the path - a couple of other males singing.
Also seen on the walk on Thursday were a buzzard, kestrel, two green woodpeckers, two Cetti's warblers, two chiffchaffs and a song thrush, while a male pochard was on a pond to the north-east of Shop Lane.

A muntjac deer was browsing in a field beside Shop Lane on Thursday.

Several butterflies were enjoying the sunny but breezy conditions such as this small tortoiseshell west of Shop Lane.

A painted lady was along the side of one of the fields near Shop Lane.

A handful of small heaths were flying in a grass field beside Shop Lane.

On Friday 3rd Andy Field walked some of the footpaths near Shop Lane and as it was quiet birdwise, there were some interesting flowers photographed such as this common spotted orchid in an area known as Dairy Lane. I think these are the first common spotted orchids to be found growing in the wild at East Mersea.

In the same field near Dairy Lane Andy saw lots of yellow rattle in the grassland - a parasitic plant on grass.

A grass vetchling photographed by Andy, has become more established in grassy areas in East Mersea in recent years.

A male broad-bodied chaser dragonfly was photographed by Michael Thorley in his East Mersea garden near Meeting Lane on Friday.

A pair of azure damselflies was photographed by Michael in his garden.

Also photographed by Michael in his East Mersea garden was this small tortoiseshell. There seem to be quite a few on the wing at the moment.

Off West Mersea a pair of Egyptian geese was seen by Martin Cock on Cobmarsh Island on Thursday morning.

At Cudmore Grove Country Park in the evening of Wednesday 1st, Steve Entwistle watched a barn owl flying over fields next to the car park before it flew back in the pond direction. On the pond were a pair of pochard, tufted duck, little grebe, female gadwall, Cetti's warbler, sedge warbler, while in the park were four whitethroats, two green woodpeckers and a common tern offshore.
Steve on Wednesday evening also saw a little owl perched on a barn at Bromans Farm and at Coopers Beach the breeding pair of mistle thrushes.

A hobby was seen flying over the country park on Wednesday morning by Simon Patient.

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