A Purple Sandpiper at East Mersea

1st March 2020

It has a been a long while since we visited East Mersea and how it had changed. On our last visit, after two years of low rainfall, the grazing meadows were dry as a bone with no sign of the usual floods that attract so many ducks and waders. But now, after a wet winter and the wettest February on record, the meadows were once again flooded albeit a bit too late in the season to attract large numbers of birds. There was however a sizeable flock of Black-tailed Godwits some of which were moulting into their summer plumage.

There were still plenty of Brent Geese on the field by The Point, but sadly no sign of the White-fronts that had been present for some of the winter

The combination of an incoming tide and commuting from Cudmore Grove to Brightlingsea meant that there was a great deal of activity. Great fun.

Along the borrow-dyke a pair of Stonechats were doing their best to dodge the dog-walkers. At one point the male took refuge in the sea of Alexanders.

On the beach the ever-reliable Turnstones were present, but as the tide came in were moved on giving some great opportunities for some flight shots.

Ringed Plovers were present in larger numbers than usual and were well lit in the afternoon sun.

But by far the commonest wader was the Dunlin which kept on flying in in flocks of 100 or more until the assembled gathering was in excess of 1000 birds, an amazing spectacle as they wheeled around in the sun.

But the star of the show today was a lone Purple Sandpiper feeding with the other waders on the beach at exactly the same location that one had been seen last autumn. I wonder whether it is the same individual? The reason that I raise the question is that just about all of the other Purple Sandpipers that I have ever seen have been on rocks or break-waters and this is the first one that I have seen on a beach. Just like the one last year.

Well, another superb visit to East Mersea and probably the last this winter, but we will be back in late autumn.