STROOD WHINCHAT

A whinchat perched beside the Strood dyke on Tuesday 8th. Earlier it had been feeding in the middle of a grass field, perching on top of some tall plants. This is the first whinchat seen this autumn on the Island, there should be several more seen over the coming month.

A willow warbler was feeding in a single hawthorn bush beside the Strood dyke, four others were feeding in the Feldy View cemetery and another couple of willow warblers seen near the Firs caravan park seawall. Two whitethroats were also seen near the caravan park on Tuesday.

A peregrine circled over the Strood seawall after flying down the channel and spooking all the gulls and waders off the mud on Tuesday. Another sighting later over Feldy Marshes was presumed to be the same bird. A female marsh harrier flew over Ray Island and a male seen over Feldy Marshes, while two buzzards and three kestrels were over the Strood fields.

Waders seen along the Strood channel on Tuesday morning during the low tide were 25 black-tailed godwit, one bar-tailed godwit, 150 redshank, forty curlew, 32 grey plover, five oystercatchers, two greenshank, two golden plover, whimbrel and three lapwing. Ten Mediterranean gulls and three common terns were also seen along the channel.

A yellow wagtail was gathering food along the Strood seawall on Tuesday, also two others seen over the fields. A flock of forty linnets was flying around and feeding in one of the Strood grass fields. Two swifts were seen over the houses.

In East Mersea Andy Field visited the Reeveshall seawall from Shop Lane on Tuesday morning and noted two ospreys still on the Geedon Marshes, two green sandpipers by the pool, 22 black-tailed godwits ( including ORB-OLO ringed at Levington in Dececember 2018), 35 dunlin, four grey plover, 3 Mediterranean gulls, two willow warblers, chiffchaff, fifty swallows and two house martins.

Martin Cock walked between the East Mersea Oyster Fishery and Reeveshall on Tuesday and reported seven golden plover, whimbrel, two avocets, four dunlin, turnstone, 100 black-tailed godwits, leucistic redshank, immature stonechat, willow warbler at Oyster Fishery and also one of the green sandpipers on Reeveshall.

At Coopers Beach late afternoon on Tuesday, Steve Entwistle saw 25 common terns flying to the shingle island off Waldegraves, two Mediterranean gulls, lots of herring gulls, and five reed buntings.

On Monday 7th Martin Cock saw three common sandpipers in Maydays creek in the morning while at Cudmore Grove in the afternoon one barn owl was in the box and another outside, four teal, six whitethroats and a willow warbler also noted there.

Andy Field visited Coopers Beach on Friday 4th and noted a Cetti's warbler, sedge warbler and four whitethroats. At Rewsalls there was a common sandpiper, three grey plover, 30 common terns, two Cetti's warblers, four willow warblers, six whitethroats and 13 Mediterranean gulls.

 Later at Cudmore Grove Andy saw a garden warbler feeding in the "hedge of plenty" at the back of the pond, also barn owl in the box, four reed warblers, willow warbler, six whitethroats, six lesser whitethroats, eight blackcaps and two buzzards seen.

The osprey was seen by Martin Cock on Friday morning fishing unsuccessfully off Ivy Dock, six grey plovers, two bar-tailed godwits, 100 dunlin and a leucistic redshank.

A flock of 21 long-tailed tits was seen on Friday by Michael Thorley in his East Mersea garden near Meeting Lane while in West Mersea Steve Entwistle saw his first hummingbird hawkmoth of the summer in his Empress Drive garden

A male kestrel perched in a tree over the footpath down the side of the Firs Caravan park on Wednesday 2nd. Over the Strood fields a male marsh harrier was seen quartering, ten swifts were over the houses, while from the Strood seawall were 25 black-tailed godwits, four common terns, two whitethroats and two yellow wagtails.

A brown argus was enjoying the sunshine in Feldy View on Wednesday 2nd.

At Cudmore Grove on Wednesday Martin Cock saw the kingfisher at the park pond, also 12 little egrets, blackcap, lesser whitethroat, whitethroat, reed warbler, buzzard, a few sand martins, barn owl in the nestbox and also a brimstone butterfly.

A ground lackey moth was in the Firs Chase garden moth trap on Tuesday 1st.

Two gypsy moths were noted on the 1st.

Canary-shouldered thorn on 28th July.

A dusky thorn noted on 25th July, the second garden record.

An iron prominent on 28th July.

Michael Thorley found two red underwings resting on his conservatory wall in his East Mersea garden on Thursday 3rd.