CUDMORE CIRCUIT

Two male tufted ducks were enjoying the morning sunshine along the Cudmore Grove borrowdyke on Monday 13th.

Another ten tufted ducks were also feeding along the park dyke on Monday - one pair seen here. The pair of mute swans was still along the dyke too.

Five pochard were on the park pond on Monday, as well as 12 gadwall, 14 mallard, six teal, little grebe and a shoveler.

The park's grazing fields were being well grazed on Monday with a flock of 1000 brent geese feeding with 1000 wigeon. Two greylag geese were seen, with one snipe and one black-tailed godwit noted too.

Nice to see a big flock of brent geese feeding in the fields, as they've mainly been feeding elsewhere in East Mersea this winter. Several hundred were also on the eastern side of the Colne and then flew onto feed on the Brightlingsea marsh.

In the Colne were five red-breasted mergansers, while from the Point a snipe was flushed, 100 oystercatchers were feeding on the mud.

A mistle thrush was singing near the top of the Oyster Fishery lane.

A female kestrel perched on a tv aerial on a caravan at the Firs Caravan park on Sunday 12th.

A male sparrowhawk flew low in front of the Firs Caravan park and landed on the saltmarsh for a minute before flying off on Sunday.

Birds of note along the Strood channel as the tide covered the mud on Sunday were 30 avocets and 20 black-tailed godwits.

A brown hare was in a field near the Bower Hall seawall on Sunday. In nearby fields 30 meadow pipits, three corn buntings, six stock doves and ten reed buntings were seen.

A pair of stonechat was seen along a ditch at Maydays also a marsh harrier seen, while in the Pyefleet were five red-breasted mergansers, 200 lapwing, 50 avocets and 20 black-tailed godwits.

On Reeveshall 2000 brent geese were feeding, also 60 stock doves and a green woodpecker in a field.

Earlier on Sunday morning two great white egrets and two red-legged partridge were seen at Maydays by Martin Cock.

Steve Entwistle from the Esplanade on Sunday saw four great northern divers offshore, as well as Mediterranean gull, 11 great crested grebes, two common gulls and the peregrine on Bradwell power station. From Coopers Beach 545 great crested grebes were seen feeding offshore by Steve - one of the largest flocks seen from the Island.

A inch-long pellet with small bone fragments, possibly a shrew jawbone, was found on a post on the Reeveshall seawall on Saturday by Andy Field. Birds noted during his seawall walk were three short-eared owls, five marsh harriers and four buzzards on the Langenhoe ranges. Along the Pyefleet were 200 knot, 1000 dunlin, 100 grey plover, four red-breasted mergansers and on Reeveshall 800 brent geese. 

Two red-legged partridge were seen by Andy in a field near Bocking Hall from the East Mersea road.

From the West Mersea Esplanade on Saturday, Andy noted an eider, great northern diver, 350 great crested grebes and a Mediterranean gull.

A walk along the Maydays and Reeveshall seawall also on Saturday morning provided views of a perched merlin on a tree, three stonechats, bar-tailed godwit with 20 black-tailed godwit in the Pyefleet. On Reeveshall 15 greylag geese flew off, 1000+ brent geese feeding in the field as were 42 stock doves.

On Friday 10th three buzzards were seen during a walk between Shop Lane and Meeting Lane.

A pair of sparrowhawk was displaying over Fishponds Wood at Shop Lane in the Friday morning sunshine

A peregrine was seen disturbing the 1500 brent geese off Reeveshall, as well as wood pigeons, stock doves and lapwings.

Two great spotted woodpeckers, green woodpecker, 14 stock doves, five skylarks, 14 goldfinches, goldcrest and two song thrushes were between Shop Lane and Meeting Lane on Friday.

A red squirrel was sitting on a branch beside Fishponds Wood as I walked past on Friday morning.

Steve Entwistle saw a mistle thrush near the East Mersea bus turning circle on Friday.

A great white egret flew out of the Strood borrowdyke with big powerful wing-beats, on Thursday 9th.

The great white egret flew onto the nearby wet field where it then stood for half an hour. It later walked back over to the dyke to continue feeding. Two little egrets, grey heron, 300 golden plover and 30 lapwing were also seen in the fields.

A flock of 55 avocets was feeding along the Strood channel on Thursday, as were 15 black-tailed godwits and 300 dunlin. A marsh harrier, buzzard, kestrel and sparrowhawk were seen during the walk.

A singing blackcap was heard and a mistle thrush seen along the top of the Firs Caravan park, and a red squirrel ran across the park entrance and up into the tall poplars.

At Cooper Beach on Thursday two Slavonian grebes and a red-throated diver were seen offshore by Martin Cock.

Steve Grimwade did well to see this snow bunting on the Reeveshall seawall in foggy conditions while leading his Swallow Birding group on Wednesday 8th. Despite the very poor visibility Steve managed to see during his seawall circuit from Cudmore to Shop Lane, six goldcrest, drumming great spotted woodpecker and a red squirrel in Shop Lane, eight red-breasted mergansers in the Pyefleet, male peregrine at Cudmore Grove, a few rock pipits, and three pochard on the park pond.

The fog was slow to clear along the Strood on Wednesday morning but when it did 100 golden plover, 50 ringed plover, 20 lapwing, 70 black-headed gulls with 4 common gulls, two little egrets, buzzard and stonechat were in the Strood fields. Along the channel were 45 avocets, 30 shelduck, 200 dunlin and three rock pipits beside the seawall. A redwing was feeding in Feldy View.

The fog parted late morning on Wednesday over the flat waters of the Strood, revealing the blue sky above.

A pair of mute swans was just about visible through the thick fog along the Strood channel on Tuesday 7th. Not much else noted during the seawall walk other than 30 golden plover, 12 black-tailed godwits, a buzzard, two little egrets and a grey heron. Two song thrushes and seven goldfinch were near the caravan park.

Viewing conditions differed considerably between Tuesday morning above, and the previous day below - as shown in these two pictures of the same orange fishing boat in the Strood channel.

Flat calm and bright sunshine along the Strood on Monday.

At a foggy Cudmore Grove on Tuesday, Andy Field reported six pochard, ten gadwall on the park pond, 12 tufted ducks on the dyke, 200 wigeon, 50 teal, two greylag geese, a goldcrest, song thrush, buzzard and a little owl heard calling in the thick fog.

Martin Cock saw three great northern divers and an eider off Seaview and a red-throated diver off Coopers Beach on Tuesday.