NESTING OYSTERCATCHERS

An oystercatcher was perched on a boat near the Dabchicks sailing club on Monday 25th. It's probably nesting in one of the moored boats in the area.
Two pairs of oystercatchers are still sitting on their nests in the Strood fields.
A walk along the Strood seawall on Monday produced a common buzzard, two cuckoos, Mediterranean gull, eight yellow wagtails and a singing sedge warbler. A pair of redshank was seen on the Ray Island saltmarsh at the south-west end. A green woodpecker and sparrowhawk were seen at Feldy View.
An emperor dragonfly was seen hunting over the Strood saltings.

Oliver Cottis reported a great white egret on the shoreline at low tide between Waldegraves and Seaview on Monday morning, also a cuckoo and two whitethroats.

At the Oyster Fishery on Monday, seven pochard and two tufted ducks were seen on the pool by Martin Cock, also two sedge warblers and 3 cuckoos in the area, while a pair of avocets was on the Golfhouse pools. Matt Cock reported a ringed plover nest with two eggs at the Point - the second pair to have bred here this spring.
Steve Entwistle also reported a pair of avocets, pair of common terns, five house martins, blue-tailed damselfly by the Golfhouse on Monday morning.
David Bullock reported that the six pairs of avocets apparently sitting on nests on the Golfhouse pools seen on Saturday, had all given up by Sunday evening.

On Sunday 24th along the Strood, a sparrowhawk, two cuckoos, sedge warbler, three reed warblers, three shelduck and a common tern were noted.

In East Mersea Steve Entwistle reported a pair of common terns and two avocets were on the Golfhouse pools, a pair of ringed plovers with two chicks were at the Point near the pillbox, 25 whimbrel and two common terns flew past the Point, while seven bar-tailed godwit were seen off Ivy Dock
Walking the footpath east from Meeting Lane Steve saw 14 Canada geese flyover, four-spotted chaser, hairy dragonfly, 16 holly blues, 2 red admirals, orange-tip and 50 small white butterflies.

Patches of thrift add a splash of pink colour to the St Peters saltmarsh.

Dark clouds were passing over the Blackwater estuary on Saturday 23, seen here near Waldegraves.
Offshore two common terns were fishing, while at the boating lake near the Youth Camp, a reed warbler, five mallard, five shelduck, little egret, cuckoo and ten swallows were seen. A brood of five mallard ducklings were busy diving underwater at the Waldegraves pond.
A brown hare was in a field by Weir Farm.

The male and female stonechat was seen on Saturday by Steve Entwistle near Coopers Beach play area. A sanderling was reported by Billy Smith near East Mersea Point.
At Meeting Lane there was no sign of yesterday's spotted flycatcher although a willow warbler was heard singing, blackcap, chiffchaff, several whitethroats and seven long-tailed tits were seen by Michael Thorley.

At West Mersea on Saturday a small flock of house martins and sand martins with a few swifts were seen flying over the Strood fishing lakes by Andy Field. A female sparrowhawk flew over Ian Black's Mersea Avenue garden. A small heath butterfly briefly stopped off in the Firs Chase garden.

Along the Strood seawall on Friday 22nd, the regular male marsh harrier was quartering the fields, also a common buzzard flying up-channel. Two sand martins flew over the channel, a pochard flew to the reservoirs, two cuckoos, meadow pipit, two common terns, four shelduck, three whimbrel and a lapwing were noted.

At Meeting Lane on Friday a spotted flycatcher was found by Michael and Sarah Thorley which was present until the evening. East along the footpath were a blackcap, Cetti's warbler and a vocal cuckoo.

A male whitethroat sang from a bush beside the West Mersea Glebe on Thursday 21st. Fifteen swifts were in the skies while beside Wellhouse Farm were ten house martins with another ten around the Wellhouse Green houses.
Twelve male yellow wagtails were noted in the wheat field near Whittaker Way which is the biggest concentration in one area on the Island for many years. Also a cuckoo calling from the wires.
Along the Strood seawall were two Mediterranean gulls, lapwing, sedge warbler and a common tern.
An emperor dragonfly was flying over the rape field near Strood Hill and two speckled woods were tussling together near here.

Several colourful flowers of salsify were seen in the Glebe extension field, their flowers opened up for the morning period.

At East Mersea the long-eared owl was possibly seen again on Thursday by Mike Dawson by his wood near the Oyster Fishery, seen briefly in flight. There was no sign of it from the seawall despite a look. Six pochard, two cuckoos were in this area while two avocets were on Reeveshall pool, seen by Martin Cock.

At the country park on Thursday, Steve Entwistle reported whitethroats were everywhere and a few blackcaps present, with four sand martins by the cliffs. Insects of interest there were two small heaths, four speckled woods, six holly blues and  lots of azure damselflies.

Ian Black reported a great spotted woodpecker in Mersea Avenue on Thursday while in the evening he saw two red squirrels in The Lane.