BUNTINGS REAPPEAR

 There was the nice surprise of these two snow buntings feeding on the beach at the East Mersea Point mid afternoon on Wednesday 22nd. The one seen here three days earlier was the first one noted here since the start of December.

Very little else of note from the Point although two sanderling were seen on the beach. The river was very quiet, 24 shelduck were on the water.

This golden plover was at the Point on its own, not normally a place to see them during high tide.

On the grazing fields lots of waders and wildfowl were spread out across the pastures either feeding or roosting. Noted here were 800 wigeon, 50 brent geese, 200 teal, 200 redshank, 100 lapwing, 100 turnstone, 150 dunlin, 50 curlew, 25 black-tailed godwits and 100 starlings.

The barn owl provided a nice fly past late afternoon as it headed over the overflow car park field and over the main field where it quartered the long grass a few times before heading north. The owl was also seen yesterday by Martin Cock over the field to the north of the park.

Four lesser redpolls flew over the car park this morning heading west, the first redpolls noted here for a couple of months at least.

Andy Field did the harrier count from the Shop Lane seawall on Wednesday afternoon and counted 22 marsh harriers and at least two hen harriers going into the Langenhoe Point roost. Ten red-breasted mergansers were seen in the Pyefleet, while off West Mersea a Slavonian grebe was seen in flight.

On Tuesday 21st Martin Cock and Andy watched one tawny owl fly out of the Manwood Grove in Shop Lane at dusk with a second bird calling from there too.
Earlier on Tuesday Martin had seen 10 corn buntings and a green sandpiper at Rewsalls