High Tide at East Mersea

8th March 2024

Not long now before the winter waders will be returning to their breeding grounds so time for one more visit to East Mersea before they go. Our customary pit-stop at Abberton produced very little, just a male Goldeneye and a lone Green Sandpiper.

Once at Cudmore Grove we made our way past the hide and the flooded grazing fields which a few years ago would have been alive with Teal, Wigeon, Shoveler and a large flock of Black-tailed Godwits. Then the fields dried out for a few years but, although they are now flooded again, are totally devoid of birds.

So now on to the borrow-dyke where you can always rely on Wigeon putting on a display, and today was no exception.

And they often get spooked which gives some great opportunities for flight shots.

And there was the occasional interloper, one of the 20 or so Curlews present.

So now on to the Golf House high tide roosting pools where instead of the hundreds of waders normally present there was just 60 or so, mainly Dunlin, Redshank and Turnstones.

Now on to the bay by Stone Point and wait for the tide to recede exposing the mud for the waders coming out of roost, not that Cormorants or Brent Geese need mud.

Similar to the high tide roost what was most noticeable was just how few waders were left with apparently most already taken the trip north. The first birds to arrive was this Redshank and Turnstone....................

.....................followed by a raucous pair of Oystercatchers.

Next to appear was a long Ringed Plover. Ringed Plovers are so unpredicatable. Sometimes they will fly when you are still 50 yards away, but this one was quite comfortable standing just 10 yards away!!!

But the star of the show today was this female Sparrowhawk that was displaying over the trees in front of the hide. Absolutely amazing to watch with slow deliberate wing beats follwed by steep stoops.

East Mersea never disappoints.