DAWN TO DUSK

Well worth the early rise on Saturday 7th at 4am to check the moth trap. The picture above shows the sun rising into a bright orange sky over Brightlingsea. Confirming what the article said in the Sunday Times magazine published earlier this year that watching the sun rise from Mersea Island was one of the top 100 things to do this summer!
The scene below was the sky just a few moments before the sun came up, producing a wonderful pink tinge to the clouds.
While admiring the sun casting its orange glow across the sky, a huge swift passage was taking place. At least 400 were counted in that first hour of daylight in a continuous stream over the park as they headed west following the coast. Distant black specks of the birds were easy to pick out in the distance against this fiery orange backdrop.

What I wasn't expecting to see was the larger profile of a dashing falcon with the swifts, which passed over the car park at 5am as I headed back into the house. The hobby was in a hurry and must have decided that he needed to find some breakfast. He banked sharply over my back-garden and then raced back to the cliff-top where he no doubt would've hoped to have surprised the sand martins.

The moth trap was worth putting out for the six or so hours of darkness and managed to attract about 80 moths of 34 species which seems like a reasonable return. One of the biggest and chunkiest moths on the park paid the trap a visit which is this oak eggar moth pictured above. One or two came to the trap last summer during July and in some summers you can occasionally catch a brief glimpse of one of these large brown moths flying very fast during the day, maybe fleeing after being disturbed.

The largest moth in the trap was the privet hawk, also poplar hawk and elephant hawk too. A few first records for the year included scalloped oak, brown-line bright-eye (not to be confused with the commoner here, bright-line brown-eye!), common rustic, scarce footman, lunar-spotted pinion, several sharks and this colourful buff arches below with its intricate fine lines.

The weather during Saturday was fine sunshine which brought many of the butterflies out in force. A couple of purple hairstreaks were seen in their usual site high up in the oak trees, flitting between oak leaves. They have been present in the park for about ten years and rarely come down to ground level and their identification is best confirmed with binoculars.

Usual masses of meadow browns everywhere and good numbers of hedge browns too, while amongst the long grasses can be found small skipper and Essex skippers, as well as the small heath. Along the hedges and on the bramble flowers were seen red admiral, small tortoiseshell, some fresh commas, peacocks, speckled woods, several large whites and small whites and large skipper.

Anyone passing through East Mersea will have been struck by the large fields of the blue crop of borage. In recent years it has become more of a familiar sight and a very eye-catching scene making a change from the plain crops of winter wheat.

On such a still evening, a stroll along the Pyefleet Channel beckoned for the last two hours of the day. I passed one family in that time so the place was really busy! One or two yachts were anchored in the Pyefleet for the night but you had to look to the mainland for any signs of human activity anywhere, where the drone and dust could be seen from a couple of combines in the rape fields.

The walk along the seawall was enlivened by the typical coastal grassland chorus of several skylarks, meadow pipits and the jangling of corn buntings. The Reeveshall pool still has plenty of water in it and three non-breeding swans seemed to tower above four tiny shelducklings who looked a little lost with no sign of their parents nearby. A green sandpiper flew along the edge of the pool and three spotted redshank were the first returning birds of the summer to be seen here.

Walking to the halfway point of the Island, there is a good vantage point along the Pyefleet, although the summer evenings are not the best of times because of looking into the sun and the heat haze. However I did manage to spot two large brown cylindrical shapes lounging on the mud in the distance, which were two common seals. They seemed to have been absent from the area this spring which is unusual for them.
Marsh harriers as always catch the eye and at least four were seen on Langenhoe while a male and a female were seen flying over Reeveshall on the Island. Still looks as if there has been a nest here but need more proof from the adults, such as carrying food.

The receding tide had already uncovered lots of mud with a group of ten spotted redshanks in their dusky black plumage the main attraction. Twenty five avocets flew along the Channel with their black and white wings flickering in flight.

Having started the day with the sun-rise, I had to find out what the sunset would be like - and it didn't disappoint. At about 9.10pm the orange beam shone across the water and mud for a few minutes. As I headed home the regular summer roost of sand martins passed overhead with about 200 birds flying about. Four little egrets also headed east to their roost on the mainland and the lonely shelducklings were finally joined by their mum and dad on the pool for the night.

EVENING ENTERTAINMENT

For once we had a day without rain although Friday 6th was windy. A very productive walk around the country park in the early evening was much more rewarding than sitting in front of the TV.
In the car park the sweet chestnut trees are in full flower with masses of golden yellow strands like the old fashioned pipe-cleaners. There was a faint sickly smell from the flowers close up which was effective enough to attract a few flies and bees. My eye was caught by a butterfly high up in the tree flitting from leaf to leaf. Using the binoculars I was able to see it was a purple hairstreak which was good to see. This is the first of the season and seeing it in the car park is well away from their usual haunt in the park close to the oak trees.

Calling from the thick bushes on either side of the car park were a pair of nightingales who were easy to hear and locate but impossible to actually see. Even standing five metres away from the bird as it repeatedly called and croaked like a frog, it didn't want to come out into the open.

A sunny corner sheltered from the wind was where I saw the first hedge brown, or gatekeeper, butterfly for the year. This one pictured below was resting on the leaves of bushes and was content to keep its wings tight shut unless it flitted to another branch. Hedge browns are a very common summer butterfly all over the Island and especially along hedges and the edges of grassy fields.

Several other butterflies were seen including small tortoiseshell, red admiral, speckled wood, comma, large white, small white, small and Essex skippers, and masses of meadow browns.

Checked out the sparrowhawk nest and I could just make out the white down of one of the chicks. The previous day I had managed to see the female standing beside at least two downy feathered chicks, their sharp little beaks already very evident.

The other bird of prey highlight was a male marsh harrier that suddenly appeared over the pond resulting in lots of loud anxious squawking from the waterfowl. The female tufted duck seemed to shout the loudest but then she probably had the most vulnerable brood with seven tiny ducklings. The harrier turned away and headed back over the grazing fields, flying low over the ditches and creeks for 5 or 10 mintues, maybe hoping for a young coot or duckling.

The colours of the clouds and the sky became very eyecatching late on in the evening. The photo above was in the last hour of daylight while the one below was closer to sunset but with a very different colour tone.

As the light faded I stood and watched a male kestrel feeding into the darkness as it caught summer chafer bugs that were buzzing around the tops of the bushes and trees. The kestrel perched on the car park signs scanning the nearby bushes and then it would dash out and snatch one of these small but chunky bugs with its talons. It would fly onto another perch to feed on the bug before carrying out more scanning for supper.

I noticed that the local barn owl came into the park once the gates had been closed and the site was empty of people. It could now hunt the long grass in peace.

Whilst walking along the seawall I noticed this large hairy brown caterpillar of the ground lackey moth, close to the ground. Last summer I found a group feeding on saltmarsh plants such as sea purslane and sea lavender nearby to this same spot. It is listed as a nationally scarce moth as it is mainly found only on the saltmarshes of the south-east of England and one or two coastal sites in the south west. Hopefully I will get one of the adults at the moth trap later in the summer, as happened last year.

It has been really good news seeing the sand martins returning to the sandy cliff to nest. The colony seemed to get abandoned last spring probably because it was so cold. Signs didn't look promising for this spring but since early June, there has been a small flock around. This evening there looked like there were about 30 holes in use and actually flying over the nearby fields were about 100 birds.

Whilst on the trail of breeding birds I went to look at the avocets on the saltmarsh pools near the Golfhouse as there was a report that the birds were possibly sitting on nests. Sure enough on one pool there was the distinctive black and white head with the long upcurved beak, neatly concealed amongst a colourful clump of sea lavender. The male was happily feeding in the shallow water close-by. In the neighbouring pool the second pair were also doing the same thing with a female sitting tight while the male did a spot of feeding before having a snooze.

One or two plants caught my eye along the beach such as sea rocket and this big clump of sea kale. This plant maintains a tenuous toe-hold on the Island as it flourishes just above the high tide mark making it very vulnerable to high seas. Sea kale only returned back last year to the park beach after an absence of about 20 years.

SUMMER COLOURS

When the sun shone it felt very warm and summery and at this time of the year the old part of West Mersea along The Lane looks very picturesque. Many of the old cottages have lots of hollyhocks, red valerian and evening primroses in flower with lots of the buddleia bushes starting to attract insects.

A walk out onto the Strood seawall on Monday 2nd provided views of several kinds of butterflies enjoying the sunshine. Peacock, comma, large white, small white, meadow brown and small tortoiseshell were all in evidence although the breeze kept many close to the ground.

As one group of yellow flowers starts to die back, another species takes its place. It is now the turn of the bristly ox-tongue to line the seawall and provide more splashes of yellow. On many parts of the saltmarsh, the colour is the eye-catching purpley-blue of the sea lavender.

One of the notable bird flocks seen was a group of about fifty house sparrows feeding on some ripening wheat. Large flocks of house sparrows are becoming scarce on the Island these days and especially around fields, although there are still house sparrows in many gardens in West Mersea.

The usual reed warblers, sedge warblers, reed buntings, corn buntings, linnets and yellow wagtails were all busy flying about, singing or gathering food for their young along the walk.
A common tern tried his luck at fishing along the borrow-dyke with some success as he swooped down to pluck some small fish fry from the water.

In the distance the large outline of a male marsh harrier could be seen crossing near the Strood causeway as it left the Island, being harassed by some oystercatchers. The incoming tide had nearly covered the mud although one or two little egrets, a few curlews and some redshank did some last minute wading.

BACK TO SEA LEVEL

After a week in the Lake District dodging the rain and trying to get used to climbing up hills, it was back to Mersea to find out what wildlife changes there have been. Top of the list was to check out the small clump of common spotted orchids growing in Willoughby Car Park in the middle of West Mersea.

Five flowering spikes were just visible amongst the tall grass with the majority all fully out and at their peak. Apart from a neighbouring garden, this is the only site on the Island where these common spotted can be enjoyed.

On a nearby clump of thistles there were a few small white butterflies, meadow browns and a small skipper making the most of the short sunny periods between the showers.

The stiff breeze whipped up the sea and at high tide in the early afternoon, waves were crashing onto the beach.
Visited the hide overlooking the park pond and was amazed at the population explosion of tufted ducks that appears to have taken place in recent days. A week ago it was only three or four adults to watch, normally dozing around the edges. Today three proud mums kept watchful eyes over three different broods of about seven fluffy balls each. All the little dark brown ducklings were busy diving down for their food with ease as if they had been doing it for months previously. Tufted ducks have bred here before but never three families all at once. What was also unusual were all the other tufted ducks that were also on show with about 15 adults enjoying the scene.

One little grebe family were busy feeding a noisy chick, while a pair of moorhens also fed their two young chicks. Towering over all these small youngsters were the six week old swan cygnets who have grown noticeably over the last week and a half.

Darting over the water surface were various dragonflies and damselflies, the latter trying to stay sheltered from the stiff breeze. Emperor and black-tailed skimmers hawked along the edge whilst azure and common blue damsels could also be seen.

Around the park there were less butterflies to be seen as the wind was too strong. However a few meadow browns, small whites, comma, red admiral and small skipper were all noted.

PLANET ESSEX

Word has got out. BBC Essex Radio came to Mersea Island on Thursday 21st to find out for themselves what makes Cudmore Grove such a unique and special place. As part of BBC Essex's Planet Earth day looking at environmental issues, most of the main breakfast show was broadcast live from the country park.

After a cloudy dawn, the sun soon broke through and spurred all the birds to sing and the butterflies to perform making it a memorable morning for those special few who had come along.
There aren't many places in a busy county like Essex, where you could gaze across a meadow in full flower, where the only sounds you hear is the birdsong and in the distance the sea sparkles with the bright morning sunshine.

The BBC Essex presenter Sadie Nine along with your local blogger at her side, trying to convey to the listeners all the different kinds of wildlife that we had just seen on our short walk. Birds such as two great spotted woodpeckers, skylarks, meadow pipits, sand martins nesting in the sandy cliff, oystercatchers, curlews, meadow brown butterflies and a selection of moths kept over from the nights moth-trapping.

Local Mersea schoolchildren were invited to ask two of the main local politicians live on radio a variety of environmental questions such as what they personally were doing to help the planet.

Finally managed to catch our little furry friend, a brown long-eared bat having his midnight snack inside the ladies toilet. His long rams-horn shaped ears are very striking and pronounced. Underneath him was the tell-tale evidence of his recent snack with the discarded wings of a large yellow underwing moth scattered on the floor. Most recent nights he appears to fly around at night to catch a moth, retreating to the cool interior of the toilet building where he can tuck into his moth-meal in peace. This bat has been doing this here for at least the last six or seven years and is probably the same moth involved.
If any ladies are squeamish about bats, then they need have no fear about sharing their moment of need with this furry friend as he only visits at night.

The moth trapping was a great success with two traps run for the very short period of darkness. Well over 200 moths of 45 species were identified of which the main stars as ever were the hawk-moths such as this lime hawk above, dressed in its special army combat markings. Also on show were a privet hawk, poplar hawk and the pretty pink elephant hawk.
The moth trap wasn't just full of dull brown moths but a good variety of colours made it very interesting. The red and black of the cinnabar, the yellow of the brimstone, the green of the common emerald, the white of the brown-tail, the speckled of the peppered, the bronze of the burnished brass and the black and white combination of the magpie moth.

This rather uninspiring looking moth the bordered straw, probably deserves the medal for travelling the furthest to get to the trap having originated from mainland Europe. His long journey across the sea probably explains the buckled antennae, as it battled its way head-first here. The bordered straw is a scarce immigrant to the Essex coast with a few managing to reach inland.

A couple of other interesting moths was the first Archers dart, a mainly coastal moth but first record for the Island and the bird's wing moth with its strange pale markings on its black wings.

NEW DAWN

It was worth being up at dawn on Tuesday 19th just to admire the pink sky from the country park. The moth trap had been running all night and it was important to switch it off and clear the trap away before the jays came looking for breakfast. They could have had quite a feast as the tally was about 190 moths of 40 species.
A few new ones for the year included the swallow-tailed moth, dusky brocade, brown silver lines, bordered pug, broad-barred white, white plume, small magpie and the magpie moth pictured below. There was also a privet hawk-moths and a couple of elephant hawk-moths.

Several lime trees are in full flower at the moment and you can certainly notice the sweet fragrant smell whenever you walk close to one of the trees. If you stand under one of these lime trees it feels like it's starting to rain, as the tiny drops of honey-dew drop from the leaves.
During the day there is a constant buzzing sound from the tops of the trees as the bees, flies and other insects are busy visiting all the flowers.

The insect night-shift takes over after dark and below is a large yellow underwing probing its long proboscis-tongue after the sweet nectar. Several pale arches were also busy visiting the flowers after dark and in one flowering clump, a red admiral butterfly was spotted in the torch-light looking well camouflaged as it snoozed with its wings closed.

As the day started to brighten up, the familiar sound of the turtle dove could be heard beside the car park. Sightings of turtle dove this year have been very poor with very few returning from Africa to nest here. The occasional one that is seen in the park appears to be the one normally seen along the nearby Bromans Lane.

The nightingales showed well in the car park early in the morning, calling out loudly to each other. Although the birds stopped singing about two weeks ago, they can still be located by their "wheet-wheet" calls. They seem to get quite agitated if you can mimic the calls and one of the birds perched in the hedge providing really good close views even without binoculars. The bill opened really wide as the bird put lots of effort into each "wheet" call, whilst cocking its nice orangey tail upwards at the same time. Occasionally one of the birds would croak with its strange frog-type call.

A pair of common whitethroats are frantically trying to feed their demanding chicks with enough food, flying back and forth across the car park. The nest is in my front garden hedge so the birds are rather anxious if anyone interrupts their flightpath or loiters too close to the hedge.

FALCON FRENZY

I was able to enjoy the Maydays area on the north side of Mersea on Sunday 17th thanks to the farmer giving me permission (saving me a much longer walk otherwise). The clouds parted in the middle of the day and it felt like a summer's day. The photo shows the Maydays saltmarsh at high-tide. I walked along the seawall to meet up with Andy Field who had walked from the eastern end. It was a good time to look out for birds of prey as several were out hunting, perched or enjoying the thermals.

There were the usual handful of marsh harriers that could be seen on Langenhoe Marsh but our interest was in the female over Reeveshall. She has been seen recently favouring one section of the reedbed which is promising for a potential breeding attempt. The male is already paired up with a female on Langenhoe, as he has been seen flying regularly across the Pyefleet.

Whilst scanning the distant Langenhoe, we could see two or three kestrels hovering and flying about. One falcon appeared dark grey and with thin rakish wings, beating deeply as it flew, this was a hobby. Shortly after a large pale falcon could be seen in the distance stooping several times onto a flock of waders, the pale buff wings showing up in the bright sunshine.

About ten minutes later Andy shouted out that there was a large bird of prey directly opposite us, hurtling along the Pyefleet low over the water in hot pursuit of a grey plover. The plover looked exhausted and several times flopped onto the water to escape. Each time the falcon came back and at the near moment of contact, the plover dropped again with the falcon surprisingly not willing to pluck it from the surface. In the end the plover made his very lucky escape and hurriedly disappeared west along the channel.

What was puzzling about this big falcon was that it had the size, shape and flight of a peregrine but was otherwise a very pale buff bird that had us thinking of some type of escaped falconers' bird like a lanner. However it seemed to stocky for a lanner falcon. The forehead of this bird was cream, the wings brown with lightly streaked underparts and the face was a buff colour with dark brown moustachial stripes. We decided to leave the identification as a pale brown peregrine although this may be the same mystery falcon seen in this area a couple of times last summer.

We continued to watch the bird as it headed back along the Pyefleet, then turn onto Reeveshall closing its wings tight for a low level, high speed surprise attack along the reedbed. To our surprise the one bird that got the fright of its life and desperately needed to take evasive action was another hobby! The big falcon soon realised he had met an equally fast flying raptor and they both spiralled on a thermal high into the air, where they soon vanished as tiny specks in the sky.

Other birds of note seen were a pair of Mediterranean gulls, cuckoo, pair of grey partridge, 4 singing corn buntings, 3 singing yellowhammers, little and common terns, 10 grey plover, dunlin, knot, 5 turnstone, turtle dove and a dabchick chick on the farm pond.

Striding along the seawall lots of butterflies and bees wafted into the air as I passed and there was the lovely warm honey-like smell coming from the numerous sea beet flowers. The pink common mallow flowers added the splash of colour to the walk and the meadow brown butterflies were busy with lots of the bees visiting the flowers.

Butterflies such as this small skipper were out feeding along the seawall, this one feeding in a clump of ox-eye daisies. The orange tips to the antennae help separate this species from the black ones of Essex skipper but as in this photo, you have to get close-up and personal to sort them out. Several large skippers were also seen on the walk, as were red admiral, painted lady, small tortoiseshell small heath, common blue, holly blue and the small white pictured below.

Keeping low to the path were three or four Mother Shipton moths, pictured below - a day flying moth over meadows and grasslands. With a bit of imagination you can just about make out the facial markings of the old lady on its wings!
The sunshine brought out a few dragonflies with the first ruddy darter of the year and also a black-tailed skimmer and an emperor were seen.

The tide filled all the creeks and channels at high tide and a glance to the Strood causeway in the distance showed the water covering the road making Mersea an Island again. (I would've loved to have seen the look of horror on the face of the driver in a red open-top car as he approached a fast moving white van sending a 6 foot wall of water up in front of him!)

Lots of black-headed gulls, a few mallard and several little egrets scanned the incoming water as it crept along narrow creeks and rills, hoping to pick up some of the small fish fry that appeared to make the water bubble near the surface in some parts.
Appearing in lots of areas of the saltmarsh are pockets of sea lavender. Sometime next month all the saltings come alive with the carpets of lavender buzzing with the sound of insects visiting the flowers.
Red stalks of glasswort provide a nice contrast with the sea lavender.