REEVESHALL MERLIN

 

A male merlin was seen perched on a distant fencepost on Reeveshall on Monday 16th, whilst I was carrying out the monthly wildfowl count along the north side of the island. The merlin spent at least an hour on the post and wasn't seen to fly away. Earlier a small raptor was seen in the area being mobbed by a carrion crow, which might've been this same bird seen from a distance.

A peregrine was seen taking off from a Maydays field and flying up the Pyefleet, spooking all the waders and wildfowl.

In the Pyefleet were 16 pintail, 14 red-breasted mergansers, 300 knot, 145 avocets, 136 teal, 200 shelduck, 300 brent geese on Maydays and seven Canada geese on Reeveshall.

A great northern diver and black-throated diver were seen offshore from West Mersea by Charlie Williams on Monday.

Two male blackcaps were feeding in an ivy bush in the Firs Chase garden on Monday morning.

As well as 63 sanderling seen at the East Mersea Point on Monday, the shorelark was still seen feeding along the strandline. Four bar-tailed godwits were by the Point, 400 wigeon in the grazing fields, 300 brent geese by the Golfhouse and 11 shoveler on the park pond with 60 teal and 60 mallard.

Earlier on Monday Martin Cock saw the purple sandpiper at the East Mersea Point, also 45 sanderling, merlin trying to catch small birds, rock pipit, stonechat and a mistle thrush near the Golfhouse.

At Barrow Hill, a woodcock was flushed by Rob Lee on Monday, and later a male hen harrier and a marsh harrier were seen by him over Bower Hall marsh.

On Sunday 15th it was high tide over the Rewsalls Marsh beside Coopers Beach, where a kingfisher, 20 snipe, 170 teal, 12 shelduck were noted. Also 20 great crested grebes offshore, a knot on the beach, 30 curlews in the field with 5 Mediterranean gulls, six fieldfares by the church, Cetti's warbler and two rock pipits noted.

The shorelark was seen at East Mersea Point on Sunday by Zane Sargent, but no sign of the snow bunting seen the previous day.

A flock of 300 brent geese was feeding in the wheat field at Maydays farm on Saturday 14th.

When the brent flock got spooked off the Maydays field, they dropped down into the nearby Pyefleet for a while on Saturday morning. Also in the Pyefleet were 6 red-breasted mergansers, 8 great crested grebes and 300 knot, while also noted in the area were four marsh harriers, three buzzards, 45 fieldfares, five redwings, two stonechats, sixty meadow pipits and a Cetti's warbler.

At Cudmore Grove on Saturday, James Taylor saw the snow bunting at East Mersea Point, also a peregrine chasing a flock of waders.

On Friday 13th it was unlucky for Jonathan Bustard trying to see the shorelark as there was no sign of it, however he did find a snow bunting at the East Mersea Point instead, also a rock pipit.

The large field near Feldy View had a big feeding flock of 100 rooks and 100 jackdaws in it, also a buzzard there, while three bar-tailed godwits were feeding near the Dabchicks on Friday morning.

The shorelark was still feeding on the East Mersea Point on Thursday 12th. Other birds noted in the area were rock pipit, stonechat, 200 knot and four great crested grebes in the river, while a mixed finch flock was by the Golfhouse with ten chaffinches, ten greenfinches and eight goldfinches seen. 

Andy Field was surprised to have this kestrel perch so close to him at Cudmore Grove, that he could take this photograph of it, on a very dull Thursday. He also saw the shorelark earlier in the day and thirty sanderling, rock pipit and a chiffchaff.

Michael Thorley saw a great spotted woodpecker in this East Mersea garden on Thursday, the first sighting of the year there.

On Wednesday 11th a great northern diver was seen offshore from the Esplanade by Steve Entwistle, while a Slavonian grebe was reported off Cudmore Grove.

A brief walk in front of the Firs Chase caravan park on Wednesday provided views of ten avocets, three bar-tailed godwits and three buzzards.

The shorelark was seen on Tuesday 10th at East Mersea Point by Shaun Bater, which was reassuring to hear following the lucky escape from the clutches of a pursuing merlin the previous day.

Along the Strood on Tuesday were 100 wigeon, 150 teal, 23 little grebes, 300 golden plover, 52 avocets, 50 knot, while in and around the fields were three buzzards, 100 rooks, 100 jackdaws, two stonechats and a Cetti's warbler.