COLOURFUL KINGFISHER

A colourful kingfisher spent over half an hour feeding in a reed-lined ditch beside the East Mersea boating lake on Thursday 2nd.

The kingfisher was seen diving down into the water and then flying back to its perch.

For once the view of the kingfisher wasn't obscured by the reeds in the line of sight.

A marsh harrier flew low over the Rewsalls marshes where roosting waders included 90 curlew, 100 turnstones, 100 dunlin, 45 black-tailed godwits, ten ringed plover. Also in the area were 20 teal, sparrowhawk, ten fieldfares, two little egrets, 30 linnets, 30 skylarks and offshore were 120 great crested grebes.

A nice display of winter aconites in front of East Mersea church was buzzing with over a dozen honey bees on Thursday.

At Cudmore Grove on Thursday morning Steve Entwistle reported seeing a song thrush, six sanderling, four greylag geese, fifty dunlin, 390 wigeon, 25 ringed plover, six tufted ducks, pair of mute swans and eight gadwall.

A redwing was feeding with two mistle thrushes in the horse paddock by the East Mersea Golfhouse on Wednesday 1st. Also here were four rock pipits, meadow pipit and two linnets.

Some of the 100 wigeon in the park's grazing field were resting beside the borrowdyke on Wednesday, another 100 were on the nearby saltmarsh and 15 shoveler also seen.

In the grazing fields were a snipe, 12 black-tailed godwit, four greylag geese and 40 curlew.

A pair of mute swans was on the park dyke on Wednesday - first ones seen here for many months.

On the mud near East Mersea Point were 180+ oystercatcher, while in the river were a pair of red-breasted merganser and three great crested grebes.

On the mud behind East Mersea Point were 800 dunlin and 26 shelduck.

Twenty-five ringed plover were on the mud by the Point as the tide ebbed with two sanderling seen too.

A female pochard was on the park pond on Wednesday with a female gadwall waiting nearby for any food disturbed by the diving pochard.

Six tufted duck were also on the park pond.

A dozen gadwall were feeding in the middle of the pond, following the diving pochard and tufted ducks. Twenty mallard were resting around the edge of the water.

A buck muntjac was seen beside the park pond before it disappeared inside a bramble bush.

A buzzard perched in a tree at the back of Bromans Farm.

On Tuesday 31st a great white egret was seen flying over Ray Island then dropping behind and out of view. Other birds noted along the Strood Channel were two grey herons, little egret, 300 brent geese, 70 lapwing, 50 avocets, 68 grey plover and 24 black-tailed godwits. Three redwings flew over Feldy View.

A red squirrel paused on a branch beside the footpath near the Firs Caravan park on Monday.

A mistle thrush was high up in the poplar trees near the Firs Caravan park, also a redwing here on Monday.

A flock of 500 brent geese was feeding and having a bathe in the Strood fields on Monday.

When a peregrine flew high over the brent in the fields, the geese quickly flew off and landed in the Strood Channel. A marsh harrier was seen flying along the Peldon seawall.

Along the Strood channel on Monday were 58 avocets, also 59 shelduck.

Also along the Strood on Monday were 100 wigeon and 100 teal as well as 200 golden plover.

The pair of shoveler was still feeding along the bottom of the Strood channel at low tide.

The snow bunting was seen on the Reeveshall seawall on Monday morning by Martin Cock.

The male snow bunting was still on the Reeveshall seawall on Sunday 29th.

Also on Reeveshall were 1500 brent geese, 200 lapwing, ten golden plover, 30 stock doves and a sparrowhawk was in Shop Lane.

In the Pyefleet were 6 red-breasted mergansers, 70 avocets, with six marsh harriers on Langenhoe.

A stonechat and 12 reed buntings were near the Bower Hall seawall while birds of note along the Strood channel were a marsh harrier, buzzard, 200 golden plover and ten black-tailed godwits.

Shaun Bater photographed this group of geese with a hybrid barnacle goose feeding with some of the fifty greylag geese in the country park grazing fields on Sunday 29th. Also in the fields were 300 wigeon, 30 curlew and 50 lapwing, while on the park pond were four tufted ducks, six gadwall and a little grebe. Shoveler were on the Golfhouse saltmarsh pools and a great spotted woodpecker by the bus turning circle.

A flock of 100 fieldfares was seen in a field near the East Mersea road by Rewsalls Lane on Sunday by Shaun.

A little egret perched on the Reeveshall seawall sluice on Saturday 28th. At Maydays there was a stonechat, buzzard, two song thrushes, fifty chaffinches with at least one yellowhammer. In the Pyefleet were 150 shelduck, fifty avocets, 16 black-tailed godwits and eight little grebes. 

On Langenhoe two short-eared owls were seen flying about and one perched on a fence-post, also two marsh harriers there.

Jonathan Norgate photographed this great northern diver on the sea with a herring gull near to it, from the Esplanade on Saturday.

This ringed Mediterranean gull was photographed at the Esplanade on Saturday by Oliver Cottis who also saw an eider, three great northern divers, six red-breasted mergansers in perfect viewing conditions with no wind or waves in the Blackwater river. Three Mediterranean gulls were seen here later by Steve Entwistle.

Shaun Bater saw fieldfare at East Mersea Youth Camp.