WET FOR WILDFOWL

More rain on the last day of March continued the unsettled and wet pattern for the month. The grazing fields at Cudmore Grove on Friday 31st were as wet as they've been all winter providing ideal conditions for those wildfowl and waders still present. A pair of greylag geese was on the park pond, presumably eyeing up suitable nesting spots.

Also present on the park pond were four pochard.

Four tufted ducks were on the pond on Friday and another eight were on the nearby borrowdyke.

A water rail and Cetti's warbler were heard at the pond while four chiffchaffs and a blackcap were singing at the country park. Two chiffchaffs were seen by the Golfhouse track.

The little owl on Friday was gazing out over the grazing fields from the old kestrel nestbox, although when it started raining, the owl dropped back inside and out of view.

On the fields were 100 brent geese, six shelduck, a pair of gadwall, twenty mallard, four teal, twenty wigeon, three lapwing and 12 black-tailed godwits.

Peering through the rain, six sanderling and ten ringed plovers were on the recently uncovered mudflats and six great crested grebes were in the Colne.

On Thursday 30th Shaun Bater walked the Cudmore circuit and photographed this group of black-tailed godwits on the grazing fields - some of the twenty present. Also seen were a song thrush by the park entrance, 3 chiffchaffs and a Cetti's warbler heard, on the pond were two gadwall, two pochard, two shelduck, five tufted duck, two little grebe and two long-tailed tits here. 

The firecrest was seen again by Shaun, present for the second day along the horseride past the bird-hide, feeding with a tit flock. The bird was first found on Wednesday by Andy Field.

On the grazing fields were a shoveler, ten shelduck, ten redshank, 30 curlew and 400 brent geese.

Two wheatears were found on the Cudmore Grove seawall on Thursday afternoon by Caroline White.

Jon Ward photographed this chiffchaff at Cudmore Grove on Thursday from the bird-hide.

One of two redwing at the park was also photographed by Jon.

A song thrush near the park entrance photographed by Jon.

A redshank was feeding close to the Strood seawall on Thursday morning.

A male yellow wagtail flew off the seawall and crossed over to Ray Island where it landed on the edge of the saltings. Two snipe were flushed off the very wet grass field by the Strood by a couple of walkers. In the middle wet field were 80 brent geese, 16 golden plover, three ringed plover,  Mediterranean gull and 200 starlings. A great crested grebe was in the channel.

A blackcap and chiffchaff were seen in Firs Chase.

A kingfisher was seen catching a few tiddlers in the Strood borrowdyke on Wednesday 29th. It then flew low over the saltmarsh towards the Strood reservoirs.

A male marsh harrier hunted low along the dyke and was later flushed from the reedbed carrying a bird like a moorhen which it carried over to the mainland. A buzzard and sparrowhawk were seen, while in the channel were three great crested grebes, four little grebes, six avocets, 15 teal and four wigeon.

 

Some of the 150 brent geese seen from the Strood seawall on Wednesday were feeding in one of the grass fields. A flock of 20 corn buntings was feeding in the Strood Hill field, 16 golden plover and one ringed plover were in the flooded field.

In the Mersea Quarters there were about 300 herring gulls with most of them following a fishing boat towards the Hard. In Firs Chase two male blackcaps were seen together, presumably one of them being the bird that has overwintered and the other being a new migrant just arrived. A chiffchaff heard singing here and song thrush too.

A barn owl was photographed by Andy Field as it slowly made its way through the alder tree towards the owl nestbox on Wednesday 29th at Cudmore Grove. 

Another owl photographed by Andy on Wednesday at Cudmore Grove was the little owl perched in the kestrel nestbox.

A firecrest was a good find for Andy at the park on Wednesday morning. Last year there were no firecrests found on the Island. This one was found just beyond the bird-hide in the ivy covered trees.

The little owl was still perched in the nestbox later on Wednesday morning for Shaun Bater to photograph. As well as seeing the firecrest at the park, other birds seen during a walk of the Cudmore circuit were song thrush at the park entrance, four chiffchaffs heard and two seen, Cetti's warbler, two little grebes, pair of pochard, water rail heard at the pond. 

Shaun also saw the kestrel above the park cliffs, two greylag geese in the fields, also 600 brent geese, 20 curlew, 20 teal and wigeon, six tufted duck in the dyke and also fifty curlew feeding in the field behind Bromans Farm. Four brown hares were seen in a field near Bromans Lane by Martin Cock.

Birds noted along the Strood seawall on Tuesday 28th were five Canada geese flying, 26 shelduck, 12 teal, two great crested grebes, four black-tailed godwits and five avocets in the channel, seventy golden plover and a big flock of 800 starlings feeding in the fields. Two chiffchaffs were beside the caravan site and another in Firs Chase, also two blackcaps in the garden here.

SOME EARLY SPRING SUNSHINE

Some early spring sunshine on Monday 27th saw several birds of prey soaring in the skies over East Mersea. On a walk between Shop Lane and Meeting Lane, and areas just beyond each Lane, there were five pairs of buzzards seen - over North Farm, Fishponds Wood, near Shop Lane, Gyants Marsh and also two seen over Meeting Lane.

Some of the buzzards were calling, some circling overhead or perched in trees and there was one bird seen displaying over one of the woods.

A male marsh harrier appeared from Reeveshall and flew over fields near Meeting Lane on Monday.

A pair of sparrowhawks circled briefly together and a kestrel was near Shop Lane.

Ten shelduck were resting beside a wet pasture at the back of Reeveshall on Monday.

Chiffchaffs were heard singing at Gyants Marsh, North Farm and two in Shop Lane, while three Cetti's warblers were singing from hedgerows with one near Meeting Lane and two to the east of Gyants Marsh.

Two red admirals were enjoying the sunshine while sheltering out of the northerly breeze on Monday, just east of Meeting Lane.

At West Mersea a red kite was seen flying over Andy Field's house in High Street North on Monday morning.

Steve Entwistle saw a blackcap and 2 chiffchaffs on the south side of the Firs Caravan park also two red squirrels in the same tree on Monday. Later at Cudmore Grove an adder and a pair of long-tailed tits.

On Sunday 26th a pair of chiffchaffs was in Ron Harvey's garden in Whittaker Way and a chiffchaff was singing in Firs Chase too.

Along the Strood seawall on Sunday during a mid-day walk were 25 shelduck, ten avocets, 75 golden plover, nine ringed plover, three little egrets and two linnets were of interest.

An adder was photographed at Cudmore Grove on Saturday 25th by Andy Field.

Oliver Cottis also photographed an adder at Cudmore Grove on Saturday.

A common lizard was watching Oliver very closely as took this photograph at the park on Saturday.

A fox was photographed at the park on Saturday by Oliver.

Probably the same fox seen at the park on Saturday morning, this time photographed by Andy Field.

Walking the Cudmore circuit round the seawall, Andy noted a siskin, two chiffchaffs, eight pochard, 56 curlews, 14 black-tailed godwits, four lapwings on fields, two Cetti's warblers heard, sparrowhawk and a peregrine.

At Maydays and Reeveshall on Saturday 25th, birds noted there included eight red-breasted mergansers, two great crested grebes, 70 redshank, two Mediterranean gulls, two marsh harriers, buzzard, two Canada geese, four greylag geese, 44 stock doves, two pairs of mute swans, chiffchaff singing, 30 chaffinches, ten goldfinches and ten yellowhammers feeding in a game crop. Four brown hares were chasing each other in a wheat field and a brimstone butterfly flew along a hedgerow.

STROOD GREAT WHITE EGRET

The great white egret was back along the Strood dyke on Friday 24th.

A black-headed gull felt threatened by the great white egret and began mobbing it.

The great white egret waded through the large pools of water in the very wet fields beside the Strood seawall.

A short flight across the field saw the great white egret spread its large wings out as it landed.

The great white egret had been feeding amongst the thick stand of club-rush along the Strood dyke. Also in the fields were a little egret, 70 golden plover and three ringed plover.

The kingfisher which has been seen a few times over the last week along the Strood dyke was seen on Friday perched in a bush over one of the ditches running back inland from the seawall.

Along the Strood channel of interest were three avocets, great crested grebe, three black-tailed godwit, forty grey plovers and two Canada geese flying over.

A dark threatening cloud just missed the Strood fields on Friday with a few spots of drizzle, although apparently nearby West Mersea was hit with a torrential downpour of hailstones.

At Maydays a red kite, three buzzards, male stonechat, yellowhammer and a chiffchaff were seen by Martin Cock on Friday morning.

Jack Hoy saw a red-legged partridge perch on a shed roof in Mersea Avenue on Friday.

The Strood kingfisher was found perched beside the dyke in a bramble bush on Thursday 23rd, before it flew off and over the seawall and saltmarsh towards the Strood fishing reservoirs.

A peregrine flew low over the Strood fields scattering the gulls and waders as it made its way rapidly over to Ray Island in the strong wind on Thursday.

In the wet Strood fields were 45 shelduck, 100 golden plover, three little egrets and four ringed plover. 

Four redwing were feeding in the field beside Feldy View.

A Mediterranean gull just coming into its breeding plumage was bobbing on the water along the Strood Channel on Thursday, also a great crested grebe seen.

An adder was photographed by Trudie Beckwith beside the dyke at Cudmore Grove on Thursday. Her dog Indi had seen and smelt it first, and was called quickly away. The adder was then seen sliding into the water and Trudie managed to take this picture with her mobile phone.

On Wednesday 22nd three ringed plovers were seen on the beach, close to the seawall at Cudmore Grove Country park. 

Also on the beach at Cudmore Grove was a skylark feeding amongst the plants.

On the wet grazing fields at the country park on Wednesday were 12 shelduck, 200 wigeon, 30 teal, 70 curlew, 18 black-tailed godwits, and two lapwing.

At the park pond were three pochard, eight tufted ducks, a calling water rail, singing chiffchaff and another in the park, a flyover siskin calling near alders, a Cetti's warbler singing at the pond and another one near the Golfhouse sluice.

Also visiting the country park on Wednesday were Mike Harris and John Slee who reported 200 brent geese, 12 shelduck, 8 shoveler, six gadwall, 252 wigeon, 20 teal, six pochard, stock dove singing, four little grebes, ten oystercatchers, lapwing, ten grey plover, ten ringed plovers, 15 curlew, 17 black-tailed godwits, ten turnstones, 60 knot, 20 dunlin, 20 redshank, three Mediterranean gulls, four green woodpeckers, two skylarks, four long-tailed tits, chiffchaff singing, white wagtail in the horse paddock, four reed bunting and ten tufted duck. At the Strood forty greylag geese and 38 shelduck were noted.

Oliver Cottis visited the Shop Lane seawall on Wednesday late afternoon to count the harriers going into their roost and saw nine marsh harriers, male hen harrier appearing at 18.18 then dropping into the reeds at 18.30pm. Also seen were two great white egrets, three buzzards, red kite and five red-breasted mergansers and also a goldcrest in Fishponds Wood.

Steve Entwistle also visited the Shop Lane seawall on Wednesday afternoon and saw a brief view of the short-eared owl on Langenhoe, also four marsh harriers, 18 grey plovers, knot, 25 dunlin, a great white egret that flew from Langenhoe to Reeveshall and was joined by a second bird, after which they both flew towards Maydays.

The kingfisher was seen perched on a culvert pipe in the Strood dyke by Steve on Wednesday morning.

Steve saw a red squirrel in his Empress Drive garden on Wednesday morning, then two red squirrels later beside Fishponds Wood in Shop Lane, while one was seen the previous day on Tuesday in Empress Avenue.

STROOD KESTREL

A female kestrel perched on top of a tree near the Strood seawall on Tuesday 21st.

The regular black brant was feeding with 200 brent geese in front of the Firs Caravan park during the high tide on Tuesday.  A pair of greylag geese was on the flooded field and another four flew up the Strood channel.

A kingfisher flew along the Strood channel and perched on a culvert pipe which was sheltered out of the moderate wind. The kingfisher was seen again late afternoon still on the culvert by Shaun Bater.

On the nearby flooded field were 250 golden plover, 3 ringed plover, 20 shelduck, three Mediterranean gulls, grey heron, little egret, while four linnets were along the seawall.

A great white egret was feeding on the Ray Island saltmarsh on Tuesday.

The regular overwintering blackcaps were still present with the male singing at the Firs Caravan park and the pair in the Firs Chase garden.

A peacock butterfly flew through the Firs Chase garden on Tuesday afternoon.

On Tuesday morning Martin Cock walked the Cudmore circuit and noted two chiffchaffs, two Cetti's warblers, three water rails calling at the park pond, two muntjac deer and a fox in the grazing fields. Also noted by Martin, a Cetti's warbler and a chiffchaff were at the Youth Camp, while a greenshank was seen feeding beside the Strood causeway

On Monday 20th, there was the surprise of a brambling heard calling from the top of a tree at the top of Cross Lane. The bird was glimpsed through the branches for a couple of minutes before it flew off to the north. Half and hour later a second brambling was heard calling in the Waldegraves Holiday park and it was seen flying with a few chaffinches towards the seawall at Decoy Point.

A chiffchaff was singing half-way along Cross Lane, a Cetti's warbler was heard singing at the top of the lane and another at the bottom of the lane. Three great spotted woodpeckers were making a lot of noise in a tree at the top of the lane and two pairs of long-tailed tits noted.

Forty sanderling were on the beach and the offshore island at Waldegraves on Monday, six Mediterranea gulls were in a small gull roost while forty curlew were feeding in a wheat field behind.

The overwintering greenshank was seen at the Rewsalls side-lake on Monday during the high tide period. Other waders on the Rewsalls marshes were 110 redshank, 70 turnstones, 20 dunlin and fifty curlew. Three little grebes were on the side-lake and six great crested grebes were offshore.

One avocet was feeding on the side-lake at Rewsalls during the high tide on Monday.

A kingfisher was seen along the back of the Rewsalls marshes over a ditch on Monday. A Cetti's warbler sang briefly beside the boating lake car park and a rock pipit was on the beach in front of the Youth Camp.

A barn owl and two chiffchaffs were seen at Maydays farm by Martin Cock on Monday.

BACK FROM AFRICA

The first chiffchaffs back from Africa were seen on the Island on Sunday 19th with this one flitting about in bushes along the dyke by the East Mersea Golfhouse. Later in the afternoon two chiffchaffs were also seen by the Strood, one by the dyke and another feeding separately along a ditchline.

A firecrest was a good find at Maydays by Steve Entwistle, also another chiffchaff found there, also two red-legged partridges and a Chinese water deer by a game strip there. A pair of grey partridge was seen at Maydays by Jack Hoy.

The first wheatears stopping off on the island this spring during their migration north, were two seen feeding in a ploughed field by the Bower Hall seawall on Sunday afternoon.

During a walk along the Reeveshall seawall on Sunday, a sparrowhawk flew into a flock of 300 starlings and caught one. It then flew down beside me on the seawall to feed on it.

The sparrowhawk spent several minutes feeding on the starling, before eventually carrying it over the Pyefleet channel to finish its meal on the Langenhoe side.

A brent goose was feeding in the wet horse paddock at the East Mersea Golfhouse on Sunday.

Two red kites were flying low just at tree height as they passed north-west over the Golfhouse, Ivy Farm and on past the Oyster Fishery. A red-legged partridge crossed Ivy Lane.

The leucistic redshank was roosting on the Golfhouse pools on Sunday at mid-day. This bird was seen the previous day in the Pyefleet at Maydays. On the grazing fields were 200 wigeon, 200 brent geese and 12 black-tailed godwits.

Twelve red-breasted mergansers were in the river Colne with this other pair were in the Pyefleet channel on Sunday. Also three Canada geese were in the Colne, later on Reeveshall, also two greylag geese on Reeveshall. Five great crested grebes were in the Colne and Pyefleet, while 30 knot flew down channel with some grey plover.

The great white egret was seen in a field beside Broad Fleet at Reeveshall before it dropped down into the fleet out of view. There were 70 stock doves feeding on the Reeveshall grass field.

On Langenhoe the short-eared owl was at the western end, six marsh harriers were flying about.

Five pintail and fifty golden plover were seen from the Maydays seawall.

Several finches and buntings were feeding in fields by the Bower Hall seawall with this female yellowhammer one of seven birds noted, also a stonechat, four fieldfare, two redwing, ten chaffinches and a red-legged partridge. A peregrine was seen feeding on prey in a middle of a ploughed field. 

A flock of 12 corn buntings were perched in a tree by the Bower Hall seawall, also with two fieldfares.

Along the Strood seawall on Sunday a red-legged partridge was calling from a field near the top of the Strood Hill. Also noted were four Canada geese, ten avocets, two marsh harriers and eighty golden plover.

Andy Field counted the harriers heading into the Langenhoe roost on Sunday late afternoon and saw eight marsh harriers and a male hen harrier, as well as barn owl and the short-eared owl.

A pair of buzzards flew over Mersea Barns on Sunday morning, earlier a buzzard flying high on passage flew north-west over the Firs Chase garden heading to the mainland. A sparrowhawk overhead and blackcap were seen in the garden too.

Two red squirrels were seen running along a garden fence at the bottom of The Lane by Ron Harvey.

On a drizzly and breezy Saturday 18th a walk along the Maydays and Reeveshall seawall, birds noted included two marsh harriers, buzzard, four greylag geese 64 stock doves, two great crested grebes, ten lapwing, two coots, 20 chaffinches, five yellowhammers, two linnets and ten goldfinches.

A couple of distant record shots in poor drizzly conditions of a flock of fourteen ruff seen on the wet field by the Strood seawall on Friday 17th.

The ruff seen here included a male with a white head which stood out, otherwise this flock looked like redshank at first glance. They did feed faster and were almost running about to feed between the pools of water. After a few minutes the flock took off and flew high and fast east over the Strood causeway towards the Pyefleet. It has been several years since a flock of more than a dozen ruff has been seen on the Island.

Other waders seen in the wet field on Friday were 180 golden plover and fifteen ringed plover.

Also seen from the seawall were two red-breasted mergansers, two great crested grebes, marsh harrier, buzzard, 14 corn buntings perched on some wires, meadow pipit and a linnet.

Steve Entwistle saw the great northern diver and eight sanderling from the Esplanade on Friday.

The regular overwintering pair of blackcap was in the Firs Chase garden again on Friday, also the other regular male was singing again by the Firs Caravan park in the morning.

This colour-ringed redshank was seen in the Strood channel on Thursday 16th and has been tracked back to the north Kent marshes where it was ringed by the Swale Wader Group near Harty on the Isle of Sheppey in autumn 2021. Unfortunately part of a ring is missing, so the actual individual can't be identified.

A female pied wagtail was feeding along the Strood seawall on Thursday.

A flock of 1000 brent geese was seen over the Feldy marshes, while along the Strood channel were 78 shelduck, three great crested grebes, 75 golden plover, 35 black-tailed godwits, buzzard and twenty linnets.

The night-time weather improved enough for the moth trap to operate in the Firs Chase garden on Thursday 16th and on an ideal cloudy evening 32 moths of five macro moth species were noted. One early grey moth pictured, was the first one of the spring. 

Two clouded drabs were noted, one shown here, also 26 common quakers, chestnut, and an oak beauty.

Three nights later a twin-spotted quaker was noted in the moth trap on Sunday 19th, also 20 common quakers, three hebrew characters, two clouded drabs, small quaker and and early grey.