Bird Reports for May 2000
01/05/00 - Wakering Stairs 0830: An early morning walk at the Stairs produced the following species: Shelduck, Sparrowhawk, Kestrel (one male and one female), Oystercatcher (200+), Little Ringed Plover, Grey Plover, Turnstone, Redshank, Bar-tailed Godwit, Curlew, Common Tern, Cuckoo, Swallow, House Martin (small flock of eight), Sedge Warbler (two singing males), Whitethroat, Linnet. Two Tree Island 1530: Stonechat (x2), Black tailed Godwit, Whimbrel and eight Avocet. Reported by the Essex Ranger Service at Hadleigh CP, was a Hobby early this morning. Abberton Reservoir, Black Kite. NB. this is a very good time to find those waders that are still resident on our shores as most of them are in breeding plumage and, therefore, very easy to identify. reported.
02/05/00 - Report from David Jobbins of the East Tilbury Website. Pomarine Skuas have been remarkable off East Tilbury in the past week or so - the lads at Cliffe reported 6-7 on Friday and Saturday of last week. There are also rumours of a sub-adult Purple Heron that may be visiting the Essex shore but roosts on the Alpha pool at Cliffe. And a bonus was the 5/6 pairs of Avocet at Tollesbury Wick with nearby nesting Little Terns...fingers crossed for the next few weeks!
04/05/00 - Wakering Stairs, 1900: One Whimbrel and Two Swift observed. (from feedback) Five Whimbrels seen at Barling Gravel Pits on Saturday 29/04/00 at 0815hrs. Observer: John Knott.
09/05/00 - (From Essex Ranger Service) Not much to report of late. Four Whinchat on the marsh on Sunday 7th. 13 Whimbrel and a Common Sandpiper on/around Two Tree lagoon. Yesterday a colleague was on the train and thought he saw a Red-backed Shrike on the old red brick railway bridge just below the castle. Steve went down straight away but had no luck.
10/05/00 - Old Hall Marshes, Pacific Golden Plover reported.
11/05/00 - Gunners Park, 1700: Hobby observed perched on the Essex Wildlife Trust reserve sign, flew off towards trees on M.O.D land. Many Whitethroats in evidence.
12/05/00 - Abberton Reservoir, 17 Black Terns observed from visitor centre at 1305.
13/05/00 - Wakering Stairs 1100, Two Hobby sighted heading north and Turtle Dove. also, the bushes at the Stairs are alive with Willow Warbler and Whitethroat. Gunners Park 1700, One male, one female Wheatear. Spoonbill reported at Old Hall Marsh.
17/05/00 - (from feedback) Hanningfield Reservoir, 1930. Male and female Red Crested Pochard seen. Observer: John Knott.
20/05/00 - Wakering Brickworks Ponds, (off of Star Lane) 0830 - 1400. Species observed at this very productive location were: Great Crested Grebe, Grey Heron, Kestrel, Red-legged partridge, Moorhen, Coot, Black-headed Gull, Common Tern, Collared Dove, Turtle Dove (one pair of these increasingly rare birds), Cuckoo (three observed in one tree earlier at Barling Gravel Pits), Swift, Skylark, Swallow, House Martin, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Song Thrush, Blackbird, Lesser Whitethroat, Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler, Cetti's Warbler (another two heard), Reed Warbler (at least a further 12 heard), Willow Warbler, Goldcrest, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Starling, House Sparrow, Linnet, Goldfinch and Greenfinch.
23/05/00 - (from feedback) A quiet weekend! At Hanningfield on Saturday (May 20) there were just a few Common Terns and very very few hirundines and Swifts. Even the Garden Warblers which had been showing well the previous weekend had reverted to type. The only curiosity was a drake Ringed Teal (very pretty but unlikely to have made it from South America without assistance from a wildfowl dealer!
Went to Wat Tyler in the pouring rain on Sunday am. We had a Hobby (briefly) and two Bearded Tits - one a juvenile with down. But the best birds were two Mediterranean Gulls (one a full summer adult and the other in second summer plumage. The younger bird was often seen to solicit food from the adult, and occasionally presented it with vegetation (nest material). Difficult to judge the nature of the relationship!
The older bird was ringed (a blue possibly plastic ring on the lower left leg and a smaller metal ring on the upper right (above the joint).
There had also been a Marsh Harrier (young male) quartering the red beds for at least an hour on Friday May 19. Author David Jobbins, Birds of East Tilbury.
26/05/00 - A Spoonbill is reported back on Old Hall Marshes in the Iron Gate Flash area.
27/05/00 - As part of the Foulness area Breeding Bird Survey for the WeBS Steve Sanford and your author were at Wakering stairs between 0800 and 1100. Amongst the species observed were: Grey Heron, Shelduck, Mallard, Marsh Harrier (1 female, by Havengore bridge), Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, Pheasant, Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Redshank, Curlew, Common Tern, Turtle Dove, Cuckoo, Swift, Skylark, Swallow, Meadow Pipit, Wren, Robin, Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler, Willow Warbler and Reed Bunting.
29/05/00 - 1400 -1630: Cetti's Warbler and a pair of Cuckoo seen at Wakering Brick works. Fleethead Creek: at least 3, possibly 4, Marsh Harriers observed from Potton Island bridge. Also seen was a Yellow Wagtail and two Little Egret.