BOAT TRIPS

A yellow-legged gull was seen on Packing Marsh Island in the Mersea Quarters, during a boat trip organised by the RSPB on Friday 2nd to survey the nesting birds on the recharge beaches of Cobmarsh, Packing Marsh, Old Hall Point and Shingehead Point at Tollesbury. Joining Kieren Alexander and Steve Hunting on the Lady Grace boat we were on the water for a couple of hours. There appeared to be nearly a hundred nesting pairs of herring gulls and half a dozen nesting lesser black-backed gulls on Cobmarsh and Packing Marsh.

One Mediterranean gull found nesting among a small colony of black-headed gulls on Great Cob Island in Tollesbury Channel was a nice surprise. The first nesting record of Mediterranean gull for this Island and for the main part of the Old Hall Marshes RSPB reserve.

A handful of common terns were seen during the trip, this one landing briefly on Great Cob Island. 

Half a dozen ringed plover pairs were seen on the various beaches with one small chick spotted on the Shinglehead Point. Also seen were 30 non-breeding ringed plovers, a dunlin and a sanderling. Over a dozen oystercatchers were seen nesting with others in the area too. A couple of brent geese and a great crested grebe were seen too.

The osprey was seen near the Strood Channel early afternoon on Friday by Jonathan Bustard.

Kieren Alexander RSPB site manager Old Hall Marshes organised a trip out with Jim Pullen on Thursday 1st to look at Rat Island in the river Colne for any signs of nesting gulls. Sadly the once large black-headed gull colony disappeared a few years ago and there was no sign of any activity this year. 

Birds on Rat Island were some mainly roosting waders 25 grey plover, 20 curlew, four turnstone also 19 gadwall flew off which was an unusual record for here, 2 brent geese and a mute swan. A few redshank and oystercatchers were seen. A pair of ringed plover was on Langenhoe Point, while on Pewit Island in the Pyefleet four pairs of herring gull and an oystercatcher were nesting on the old Nissen hut. Also two reed buntings on the island, a number of oystercatchers and 25 grey plover - possibly the same flock seen earlier. 

A male marsh harrier flew low over Pewit Island in the Pyefleet as we motored past on Thursday. A flock of 15 common terns flew east down the Pyefleet, a cuckoo called from Langenhoe, while by the East Mersea Oyster Fishery a Cetti's warbler and lesser whitethroat were singing.

A grey seal was seen from the boat in the Geedon channel near Rat Island on Thursday.

Martin Cock visited Cudmore Grove on Thursday morning and noted four sanderling four curlew, three turnstone, two ringed plovers while four pochard were on the park pond.

One of five sanderling seen at East Mersea Point and photographed by Andy Field at on Wednesday 1st June. Also seen during his walk round Cudmore Grove were the barn owl beside the owl box at the pond, a little tern distantly off Point Clear, two reed warblers, two blackcaps, Cetti's warbler, two lesser whitethroats, two chiffchaffs, little grebe with young on her back, four turnstones, ringed plover on a nest cordoned off, also two others seen

A sea holly clump on the East Mersea Point photographed by Andy.

Brown argus photographed by Andy at the country park.

An azure damselfly photographed by Andy at the country park on Wednesday.

A sedge warbler was singing in a willow tree beside the Strood dyke on Tuesday 30th, also reed warbler, yellow wagtail, common tern, three grey plover and a cuckoo on Ray Island were the main birds noted during a brief visit to the Strood channel.

A cream-spot tiger moth was photographed by Chris Burr in his garden in Shop Lane on Monday 29th.

The greenshank was still on the Reeveshall pool on Monday 29th, presumed the same bird seen here nine days earlier. Also here a pair of gadwall, little egret and a pair of shelduck. Two singing corn buntings were near the Reeveshall seawall and a third bird also present.

Ten shelduck were noted during the walk along the Reeveshall seawall on Monday, also three marsh harriers, two buzzards, two greylag geese, cuckoo, two great crested grebes, two lapwing, 12 grey plover and three common terns.

A male marsh harrier was hunting over the Strood fields again on Sunday 28th. A flock of 12 Canada geese and one greylag goose flew down the Strood channel towards the Hard, three common terns also along the channel.

On the fields were a gadwall, eight shelduck, buzzard, green woodpecker, three reed warblers, six linnets and a yellow wagtail, also 15 swifts and two house martins noted over the houses.

Jack Hoy visited Maydays farm on Sunday and reported a red kite heading south-west towards the Strood, also a pair of great tits feeding a brood in a water pump and a peregrine harassing a buzzard on the Langenhoe ranges.

The osprey was seen perched on a distant post beside the Langenhoe solar farm on Saturday 27th. It was seen through the heat haze as it spent its time perched during the mid morning period. It was still perched until the late afternoon when it was seen by Steve Entwistle circling over Pewit Island, heading towards the Colne where it did a couple of unsuccessful dives, before being lost to view as it then headed up river.

Five redshank were seen on the Maydays saltmarsh on Saturday, one lapwing was still sitting on its nest, four marsh harriers and three buzzards flying about, two cuckoos, along the Pyefleet were two great crested grebes and a common tern. Beside the seawall were a sedge warbler, three reed warblers, two whitethroats, two yellow wagtails, singing yellowhammer, four linnets and two house martins by the farmhouse.

Andy Field walked from Shop Lane to Maydays on Saturday and saw the osprey, two hobbies over Langenhoe Marsh, five marsh harriers, six buzzards, four turnstones, greenshank on the Reeveshall pool, common tern, two corn buntings and also a weasel in Shop Lane that got within inches of a song thrush.

Steve Entwistle visiting Maydays mid afternoon on Saturday, as well as seeing the osprey, had several good flight views of a hobby hunting on Langenhoe, cuckoo also there, six lesser black-backed gulls, nine ringed plovers, reed warbler, Cetti's warbler, three marsh harriers, kestrel and a lesser whitethroat.

On Friday 26th during a walk along the Strood seawall, a hobby briefly showed over Ray Island, a marsh harrier, buzzard, male gadwall, pochard, two ringed plovers, three avocets, common tern, Cetti's warbler, three reed warblers, two whitethroats, five yellow wagtails, ten swifts over the houses and a pair of sparrowhawks over Firs Chase.

A poplar hawk-moth was found by Rusty Marshall resting on the side of a house in Fairhaven Avenue on 25th May.

A mass of the destructive box moth caterpillars were removed from the box bushes in Rusty's Firs Chase garden.