PINK FEET BY FELDY VIEW

A family of four pink-footed geese was found resting in the recently cultivated maize field next to Feldy View on Monday 4th. A rare visitor to the Island.

The pink-footed geese seemed very settled in the field with most of the group sitting down in the field for the duration they were being watched. They were present for a few hours until a metal detector walked into the field which unfortunately flushed them mid afternoon. The last time pink-footed geese were seen on the island was in 2013, when 11 flew off Reeveshall.

A peregrine was seen disturbing the 500 wood pigeons feeding in the old maize field on Monday, while along the Strood seawall were five bar-tailed godwits, two Cetti's warblers and three stonechats.

Robin Burroughs saw a black-necked grebe below the Firs Chase caravan park, as well as the black brant there too on Monday. 

On Sunday 3rd a velvet scoter was seen offshore by Andy Field, as it was flying past Cudmore Grove and heading west, appearing to land opposite Coopers Beach. Other birds noted during the Cudmore circuit were a possible brambling with a chaffinch flock beside horse paddocks near the bus turning circle, also two goldcrests, 2 Cetti's warblers and a stonechat at the park, 300 brent geese at the Golfhouse.

Tawny owls were very vocal in West Mersea on Sunday night with one heard by Martin Cock near the Coverts, David Nicholls hearing probably the same one in Queen Ann Road, while another one was calling in Firs Chase.

On Saturday 2nd a great white egret was feeding along the Pyefleet channel opposite Maydays / Reeveshall. Also in the channel were three great crested grebes, five avocets, ten black-tailed godwits, 20 knot and 200 dunlin. A kingfisher was perched on the usual spot on the seawall sluice, three marsh harriers were noted. 

Small birds at Maydays included two stonechats, two rock pipits, two corn buntings and eight reed buntings, while fifty chaffinches were by the farm.

After a bit of light drizzle fell on Saturday, there was a colourful rainbow over the Pyefleet and Langenhoe.

There was a faint trace of a second rainbow over Langenhoe on Saturday.

At West Mersea a brambling was seen on the garden feeders of Martin Cock at the Coverts on Saturday, while in the Firs Chase garden a blackcap and goldcrest made appearances.

The regular black brant was back in its usual spot in front of the Firs Caravan park on Friday 1st. It has been returning to this part of the Strood channel for several years now. Also seen along the Strood seawall were a peregrine, eight corn buntings, six stonechats and six rock pipits.

On Thursday 31st it was high tide along the Strood channel late morning and the main bird of note was an osprey that passed overhead near the Firs Caravan park as it headed from the Hard to the Strood fishing lakes. It circled over the lakes a few times and dropped down three times to catch fish but wasn't seen taking anything away. Also seen were 40 Mediterranean gulls, bearded tit calling from the corner reedbed, three fieldfares flying north, two stonechats, two rock pipits and ten avocets.

Andy Field photographed some of the 60 Mediterranean gulls seen along the Strood channel on Wednesday 30th.

An immature Mediterranean gull photographed by Andy along the Strood channel on Wednesday. Also two possible yellow-legged gulls, a dark phase buzzard on Ray Island while a stonechat and two Cetti's warblers also noted along the Strood seawall.

At the East Mersea boating lake on Wednesday a kingfisher was seen on the flooded Rewsalls marsh, a grey wagtail flew over the car park calling and 25 great crested grebes were seen offshore. Roosting on the side-lake were 25 ringed plover, 30 dunlin, knot, black-tailed godwit, 26 little egrets and 25 little grebes.

A ringtail hen harrier was seen by Mark Thomson on Wednesday flying over the field below the Rewsalls farm at East Mersea.

The regular male kestrel perched beside the Strood seawall on Tuesday 29th, also a second bird noted too. A peregrine flew over the fields chasing wood-pigeons and six buzzards were also seen.

There were plenty of Mediterranean gulls along the Strood channel on Tuesday, many of them in the area because of the tractors working the fields on either side of the channel. At least 100 Mediterranean gulls were counted with presumed several more in the area. Along the channel were ten common gulls, 28 avocets, 9 bar-tailed godwits, 90 black-tailed godwits, 70 dunlin, while two stonechats, three corn buntings and 50 linnets were in the fields and a female blackcap was by Feldy View.

On Monday 28th a peregrine flew over the Strood channel, bar-tailed godwit, 100 brent geese, three stonechats, two rock pipits, corn bunting and 50 linnets were seen, while six redwing flew north-west past the caravan park.

Martin Cock saw a common scoter and a red-throated diver offshore from the bottom of Kingsland Road on Monday morning.