PARK TEAL

At Cudmore Grove Country Park on Tuesday 15th, Peter Marchington photographed this teal on the borrowdyke at the park. A few other individuals have been arriving in recent days for the winter.

A ringed teal in the park dyke is an escapee from a wildfowl collection somewhere, as it is native to South America. It has been present for a few days here. Another photo by Peter.

A chiffchaff photographed by Peter Marchington along the East Mersea Golfhouse track on Tuesday.

Andy Field visited Cudmore Grove on Tuesday morning and photographed this Bee Wolf, also six Clouded Yellows seen there.

Birds seen by Andy included a little owl, wheatear at the Point, 15 Sandwich terns, 2 common terns, 9 bar-tailed godwits, 100 black-tailed godwits, 30 dunlin, one -possibly two, ospreys over the Geedons in the Colne Estuary.

Michael Thorley photographed this Clouded Yellow in his East Mersea garden near Meeting Lane on Tuesday.

Birds of note seen during a walk along the Strood seawall on Tuesday morning included a passage of 300 swallows heading west, 5 sand martins also heading west, red kite, 2 whinchats, 2 greenshank, bar-tailed godwit, 100 black-tailed godwits, 20 Mediterranean gulls, 30 linnets, sedge warbler, 2 whitethroats, while willow warbler, 3 chiffchaffs and a song thrush were near the Firs Chase caravan park. A Clouded Yellow was also seen along the seawall.

Martin Cock was at the Victoria Esplanade on Tuesday and saw 6 Sandwich terns, 2 Mediterranean gulls and a merlin flying over the Blackwater. Flying over his house were 200 swallows, house martin and a little egret.

A wheatear along the Strood seawall on Monday 14th, is probably the same bird that has been around for the last few days. Other birds seen included 15 corn buntings, pair of stonechat, passage of 50 swallows and 40 meadow pipits flying west. Along the channel were 40 Mediterranean gulls, 2 Sandwich terns, common tern, greenshank, 3 shelduck and 100 black-tailed godwits.

A pied wagtail was also seen along the Strood seawall on Monday, perched here on the sluice railings.

A grass snake was basking in the midday sunshine by the back door of the Firs Chase house on Monday.

Beside the grass snake was this Hummingbird Hawkmoth making its daily appearance in the Firs Chase garden on Monday.

Martin Cock walked the East Mersea seawall between the Oyster Fishery and Ivy Dock on Monday morning and reported 700 black-tailed godwits, snipe, 7 Sandwich terns, 2 common terns, 12 meadow pipits flying over, sparrowhawk, water rail showing well in the dyke, also two common seals and a Clouded Yellow.

Later at the West Mersea Esplanade, Martin watched 2 or 3 Harbour Porpoises, 20 Sandwich Terns and a constant stream of swallows heading west over the sea.

Peter Marchington saw a grey seal in the sea in front of Shears Court on Monday, also three Sandwich terns offshore.

Mark Thomson visited Feldy View on Monday and reported 3 swallows, four house martins and a willow warbler.

Along the Strood channel on Sunday 13th were a couple of common terns and also two Sandwich terns feeding when the incoming tide had covered all the mud. Waders seen before the mud was covered included 100 black-tailed godwits, a bar-tailed godwit, 5 greenshank, 18 grey plover, 90 ringed plover and five dunlin.

Twenty Mediterranean gulls were seen along the channel on Sunday. Along the seawall were two stonechats, 22 corn buntings, 100 linnets, buzzard, 2 sparrowhawks, with 14 meadow pipits and 15 swallows flying west. Two great spotted woodpeckers and two chiffchaffs were in Feldy View.

A crab spider was waiting beside the flowers on a rosemary bush in Feldy View on Sunday.

A grey seal was seen swimming offshore by Carrie Horwood between Empress Avenue and Waldegraves on Sunday.

Seven avocets were along the Pyefleet channel opposite Maydays farm on Saturday 12th. A common tern and two dunlin were noted along the channel just before the high tide, also a common seal. 

A distant osprey was seen to the north of the Langenhoe marsh as it flew west from the Geedons. Three marsh harriers and a buzzard were seen, while passing west over the fields were 100 swallows, ten sand martins and 8 meadow pipits. A willow warbler and chiffchaff were heard calling from bushes at Maydays.

Four Willow Emeralds were resting on bushes out of the wind at Maydays on Saturday.

A Wall Brown was seen near the Maydays seawall on Saturday.

A peregrine was seen mobbing a raven over the Coast Road by the Company Shed on Friday 11th. The two birds continued tussling with each other as they headed west off the island.

Two wheatears were along the Strood seawall on Friday, while along the channel were 30 golden plover, 2 whimbrel, 40 ringed plover, 70 Mediterranean gulls, 30 little egrets.

An osprey was watched flying west along the Pyefleet channel, then crossed over Bonners Barn and headed in the direction of Abberton reservoir. Three marsh harriers, ten buzzards and a red kite were some of the other raptors on the move that day.

Twenty corn buntings were along the Strood seawall on Friday, also a pair of stonechat, willow warbler, fifty linnets, yellow wagtail over, 200 swallows west with 5 meadow pipits. In Feldy View one willow warbler and 30 goldfinches were noted.

Butterflies in Feldy View included a Wall Brown, Meadow Brown, 3 Common Blue and 3 Brown Argus.

Martin Cock visited Maydays farm on Friday and reported common sandpiper, greenshank, Sandwich tern and lesser whitethroat.

Steve Entwistle visited Coopers Beach on Friday and saw 2 common scoter, Mediterranean gull, Sandwich tern, 30 common terns and 25 turnstones.

Peter Marchington photographed some of the many Firebugs on the beach near Kingsland Road on Friday.

A night survey of Fisher's Estuarine Moths was carried out at Cudmore Grove Country Park on Friday evening, with 22 adults found amongst the hog's fennel plants. This is the highest count of them here.

A couple of resting Clouded Yellows were seen in the torchlight at the park.

Also a Common Blue and Brown Argus were seen resting in the long grass at the park.

A couple of tawny owls were quite vocal as night fell by the pond at the country park.

Moth highlights from the Firs Chase garden included this Ni Moth, the first on the island for ten years.

The dainty migrant Olive Tree Pearl.

Delicate Moth.

Frosted Orange - without the white markings of a Fisher's Estuarine.

A fresh looking Blood-vein.

CEMETERY OWL

A surprise visitor to the Feldy View woodland cemetery on Thursday 10th was this barn owl that was found perched during the morning, high in an oak tree in a quiet corner at the back. It pretended to be asleep but you could see it was staring down at anyone nearby!

It wasn't too hard to see the barn owl as the foliage wasn't too thick. This is the first time a barn owl has been seen in the cemetery, although it's quite likely they occasionally hunt the site after dark.

Also in Feldy View were a willow warbler and four chiffchaffs.

A female Common Blue butterfly was feeding on some flowering rosemary in Feldy View. A Clouded Yellow briefly fed on the yellow flower of a hawkbit, a pair of Wall Brown was seen mating, also eight Brown Argus and two Red Admiral.

A spotted flycatcher was feeding near to Feldy View at the flycatcher corner on Thursday, also a blackcap here. Birds seen along the Strood seawall included 2 red kites, marsh harrier, buzzard, wheatear, 13 corn buntings, 4 meadow pipits, 20 linnets, yellow wagtail, 25 Mediterranean gulls and six ringed plovers. Three Clouded Yellows were flying along the seawall.

Martin Cock visited Waldegraves on Thursday afternoon to look at the offshore shingle island, seeing 30 common terns, 10 Sandwich terns, 14 sanderling and also a wheatear on the beach.

On Wednesday 9th a red squirrel was seen inside the West Mersea allotment field, then climbing into the hedgeline trees, before scuttling high over the East Road to the trees on the other side of the road and into the nearby garden.

A Common Carder Bee was feeding on a dark red flowering buddleia bush at the allotments on Wednesday.

Earlier on Wednesday along Cross Lane six willow warblers were seen, with a couple of birds heard singing quiet subsongs.

A large mixed tit flock with several long-tailed tits, was also briefly with the willow warblers along Cross Lane on Wednesday.

Heading west over the fields were 150 swallows, four house martins and a sand martin, also meadow pipit and four yellow wagtails. A flock of 100 linnets were feeding in a field by Waldegraves and a red kite flew west.

A little grebe was on the pond beside Cross Lane at Sanderlings Reach on Wednesday.

A Mediterranean gull and 15 common gulls were resting on the East Mersea Youth Camp field on Wednesday. Offshore from Waldegraves a mixed flock of terns gathered on the shingle island before and also just after high tide. The terns seen were a juvenile black tern, 2 juvenile little terns, 15 common terns and 30 Sandwich terns, also 20 Mediterranean gulls just after high tide, with 3 sanderling and 48 oystercatchers.

A pied flycatcher was seen feeding in the alders along the bottom of the East Mersea Vineyard on Wednesday. Two willow warblers were also in the alders, while nearby the duetting calls of two little owls were heard coming from the trees at the back of the golf driving range.

A common sandpiper flew along the front of the Youth Camp, while on the Rewsalls side-lake at high tide were 6 knot, 4 dunlin, 60 ringed plovers, 100 redshank, 15 little egrets, 2 yellow wagtails, 400 starlings, two buzzards and 30 swallows heading west.

A Painted Lady was on buddleia in front of Waldegraves on Wednesday.

A Clouded Yellow was in the field to the east of Waldegraves and another by the boating lake on Wednesday.

A Wall Brown was in the car park field of the boating lake on Wednesday.

Three Common Blues and a Small Copper were near the boating lake on Wednesday.

At Cudmore Grove an escaped ringed teal was seen on the park borrowdyke by Martin Cock on Wednesday morning. In the evening Daniel Woollard had an evening stroll at the park and reported a barn owl showing well along the borrowdyke, also a willow warbler, the first returning wigeon, teal and avocet of the autumn.

Birds noted on a very wet Tuesday 8th during a circuit including Feldy View and the Dabchicks, were a Sandwich tern, common tern, Mediterranean gull, two great spotted woodpeckers in Feldy View, lesser whitethroat, yellow wagtail and a flock of 50 goldfinches around Feldy View.

On Monday 7th a spotted flycatcher was still in flycatcher corner, while two willow warblers and a lesser whitethroat were in Feldy View. Along the Strood seawall were a whinchat, wheatear, stonechat, 50 linnets, 2 yellow wagtails, 100 swallows and two sand martins trickling west, marsh harrier, buzzard, 10 ringed plovers, 5 dunlin and 150 black-tailed godwits near the Dabchicks.

Four Wall Browns were seen in and near Feldy View, with a Clouded Yellow along the seawall.

On Sunday 6th, a spotted flycatcher was showing well in the flycatcher corner beside the Firs Chase caravan park. A willow warbler was seen in Feldy View.

Alan Reynolds also photographed the spotted flycatcher at flycatcher corner on the Sunday.

Two wheatears were feeding along the Strood seawall on Sunday, also 30 linnets in the fields and four reed buntings in the bushes.

A distant small wader with very pale underparts seen along the Strood channel on Sunday was a curlew sandpiper- the first for a few years. Seen here beside a dunlin on the far side of the channel, unfortunately the bird didn't come any closer. It was feeding with six dunlin and four ringed plovers, before flying down the Hard, although difficult seeing a white rump of the curlew sandpiper as the flock flew away.

Also along the channel were 15 grey plover, 3 greenshank, ten Mediterranean gulls, 5 little grebes and a sparrowhawk.

Butterflies noted on Sunday along the Strood seawall were 5 Clouded Yellows, Wall Brown, 2 Painted Ladies and 3 Common Blues. In Feldy View, Wall Brown, Common Blue, four Brown Argus, Small White and Red Admiral were noted.

A Hummingbird Hawkmoth was in the Firs Chase garden on Sunday.

 

Moths of interest in the Firs Chase garden moth trap in recent nights included a Four-spotted Footman.

Dusky Thorn.

Pebble Hook-tip.

A rather battered Old Lady.

An Orange Pine Tortrix.

MAYDAYS GREENSHANKS

A greenshank was feeding along the Maydays creek on Saturday 5th - one of five seen during the walk along the Maydays and Reeveshall seawalls. Other waders seen along the Pyefleet channel during the low tide were 115 grey plover, 2 golden plover, 8 ringed plover, 6 avocets, 2 knot and 10 dunlin, while 2 great crested grebe were also in the channel and 20 shelduck seen over Langenhoe Marsh.

Six species of birds of prey were seen on the Maydays walk on Saturday, the osprey was seen circling over the Pyefleet and then headed to the Colne, a red kite over Langenhoe, also 3 marsh harriers, 2 buzzards, 3 kestrels and a sparrowhawk. A large flock of 500 swallows was feeding low over the Reeveshall fields during the morning, also two sand martins seen amongst them, while 500 starlings were also in the fields. Six yellow wagtails and 15 linnets noted too.

A Willow Emerald damselfly was resting on a bush at Maydays on Saturday. Three Clouded Yellow butterflies were along the seawall. 

Later a Clouded Yellow was seen flying across Empress Avenue on Saturday.

Two spotted flycatchers were in Feldy View on Friday 4th for the second day running but no sign of the Pied Flycatcher.

Along the Strood seawall a big flock of 200 linnets were feeding in the fields, 2 corn buntings and 3 reed buntings also there, a marsh harrier and four Mediterranean gulls seen too. By the Dabchicks was the flock of 90 black-tailed godwits.

At East Mersea Martin Cock reported on Friday morning seeing at Ivy Dock 450 black-tailed godwits, 40 dunlin, 10 grey plover, 150 redshank, 4 ringed plover and a Sandwich tern.

Jack Hoy reported a hobby at the Barrow Hill saltings on Friday.

Thursday 3rd was another flycatcher day with a pied flycatcher seen at "flycatcher corner" near the Firs Caravan park along with a spotted flycatcher, while two more spotted flycatchers were in the nearby Feldy View cemetery.

The spotted flycatcher at the flycatcher corner was very confiding and put on a good show beside the footpath on Thursday. 

Both spotted flycatcher and the pied flycatcher were feeding in the same bush beside the Firs caravan park - the spotted is pictured top left, pied lower right.

Two other spotted flycatchers were feeding together in the nearby Feldy View on Thursday, putting on a nice display of catching insects which were buzzing about the flowering ivy bushes. A willow warbler and chiffchaff were also in Feldy View, while down by the Dabchicks were 190 black-tailed godwits.

Spotted flycatcher in Feldy View on Thursday.

Good numbers of Ivy Bees were buzzing about the ivy flowers alongside Feldy View on Thursday.

At Cudmore Grove Country Park a female /immature type common redstart was found on Thursday on the track between the car park and the bird hide.

On Wednesday 2nd Martin Cock visited Cudmore Grove and saw two water rails showing well at the park pond, also at the park were a wheatear, whitethroat, blackcap and chiffchaff.

A little egret was feeding along the Strood channel on Tuesday 1st - fifteen were counted during the morning walk. Also along the channel were 150 black-tailed godwits, 2 greenshank, common tern, 3 grey plover while a family of mute swans was in the dyke with their two cygnets.

A flock of 100 swallows was passing slowly over the Strood fields on Tuesday and a swift was noticed with them. At the same time a hobby was also seen high up over the Glebe before heading north over to the Peldon side. A sparrowhawk and two buzzards also seen on the walk.

 

The first meadow pipit of the autumn was on the Strood saltmarsh briefly on Tuesday. In the fields were a whinchat, pair of stonechats and fifty linnets. Two willow warblers were in Feldy View.

A Wall Brown was in Feldy View on Tuesday, also eight Clouded Yellows, 2 Painted Ladies and 4 Common Blues along the Strood seawall.

Jon Ward photographed this Wall Brown in Feldy View on Tuesday.

Clouded Yellow photographed along the Strood seawall on Tuesday.

At Cudmore Grove on Tuesday Mollie Kirk and Daniel Woollard found a pied flycatcher near the car park in the evening. Also two barn owls showed well over the grazing marsh, whitethroat, reed warbler and willow warbler. Hawking after insects in the sky were 300 black-headed gulls, common terns and a Mediterranean gull.

Carrie Horwood reported a spotted flycatcher fly over her garden in Fairhaven Avenue and stop off briefly in a tree a couple of gardens down on Tuesday. A few common terns were also seen hawking after insects over Fairhaven Avenue in the evening.

At Maydays farm on Tuesday Martin Cock reported common sandpiper, 6 yellow wagtails, yellowhammer, 2 corn buntings, whitethroat, chiffchaff, 300 swallows, sparrowhawk and a buzzard.

A male redstart was found on Monday 31st feeding along a hedge in a paddock beside the Firs Chase caravan park. The bird stayed into the evening where it was photographed by Graham Ekins, shown here.

 

The redstart seemed to favour the leeward side of the hedge between two paddocks, keeping out of the fresh south-westerly breeze. 

Later on Monday Steve Entwistle saw a wheatear on the old wooden jetty, as well as seeing the redstart in the paddock.

Two willow warblers were in Feldy View during the day.

A red kite was seen circling over the Strood channel on Monday.

The red kite swooped down onto the mud in the Strood channel although not seemingly picking up anything. Two buzzards were also seen during the walk on Monday.

A greenshank was feeding along the Strood channel on Monday, also 5 grey plover, 15 golden plover, 2 ringed plover, 70 curlew, 130 black-tailed godwits and 15 little egrets. The family of four mute swans was in the Strood dyke. A whinchat and corn bunting were in the fields while 30 swallows and a sand martin passed through.

A Clouded Yellow was seen along the Strood seawall on Monday.

In Firs Chase the long-staying ring-necked parakeet was seen and heard squawking over nearby gardens on Monday. Also four sand martins flew west over the garden and a Hummingbird Hawkmoth was seen.

On Sunday 30th five whinchats were seen during the walk along the Reeveshall and Maydays seawalls - this one at the Maydays end. Two green sandpipers flew out of the Maydays dyke calling as they headed to the nearby farm reservoirs, two common sandpipers were in the nearby creek. A Sandwich tern, 3 common terns and great crested grebe were in the Pyefleet, while a Peregrine flew over, marsh harrier and two buzzards seen too. 

Hawking over the fields were 400 swallows with five house martins and two sand martins seen. Also 300 starlings in a big feeding flock, while 2 yellow wagtails, willow warbler, sedge warbler and two whitethroats seen too.

A Migrant Hawker was at Maydays farm on Sunday.

A buzzard was seen flying over the Firs Chase garden on Sunday.

In Feldy View on Sunday the spotted flycatcher was seen by Steve Entwistle and also two willow warblers and a sparrowhawk there. Earlier along the Strood seawall three whinchats were seen by Steve, as well as 2 corn buntings, lesser whitethroat and ten linnets.

Jo McDonough saw two Sandwich terns and a Clouded Yellow from the Shop Lane seawall.

Michael Thorley saw the barn owl flying west along the East Road on Sunday, as well as reporting a grey squirrel in his East Mersea garden on Friday and one seen dead on the nearby road the next day.

On Saturday 29th two willow warblers and lesser whitethroat were in Feldy View, while 75 black-tailed godwits, 3 common terns, 50 swallows, sparrowhawk and a whitethroat were seen on the circuit to the Dabchicks.

Three willow warblers were new in at Cudmore Grove seen by Daniel Woollard with fifty swallows seen flying west. 

A report that barn owls nested successfully in Bromans Farm this summer raising three young.

A mothing highlight in the Firs Chase garden was finding this Fisher's Estuarine moth in the moth trap on Wednesday 2nd. In the westerly breeze this moth probably came over from Copt Hall or Abbotts Hall to the west.

A few Centre-barred Sallows in recent nights.

Several Saltmarsh Knot-horns most nights recently too.