Key: Plain text- Resident/Regular visitor. Green- Likely to be annual. Amber- Less than annual. Red- Rarity. CAPITALS- New bird for site.
Archive: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
March 2010
1st - A total change to the weather today, dry and very bright with morning WNW winds, that by dusk, had changed direction to SSW. Overall, a glorious day to get out and take advantage of, with several visitors to the Haven doing just that. Besides the bird species, the general comments relate to the extremely flooded marshland and the "water meadow" usually called the scrape. Watch them ducks - you never know!! The site had coverage from morning into afternoon and from both ends of it and while the species were fairly constant throughout, the numbers did vary slightly. A Grey Wagtail was seen on the Sewage Works this morning. GG. On the golf course at mid-day was an adult Med Gull (not one of the two recently at Frinton greensward - moult). PB. Singles of Marsh Harrier, Sparrowhawk and Barn Owl were all noted. Across the scrape and surrounding areas were totals of 2 Dunlin, 7 Turnstones, 3 Ringed Plovers, 4 Snipe, 1 Oystercatcher, 2 Curlew and 40+ Lapwing. Counts also included 7 Gadwall, 14 Shelduck, 2 Shoveler, 120+ Wigeon, 300+ Teal, 2 Little Grebes and 108 Greylag Geese. Located on the sluice were +/- 2 Ringed Plovers during the afternoon. GG/AEC/PB/PRD/JK/MR.
2nd - Another fantastic morning with the sun in a clear blue sky and very light NNW winds. Mid-afternoon saw some cloud appear but it remained dry and bright, however, winds turned to ENE by late afternoon and it became decidedly chilly. Viewing from the hide, mid to late morning, a Common Buzzard was soaring in the distance and observations on this bird, clarified it to be a different individual to the pale Buzzard seen at the Haven over this recent winter period. Other notables on the scrape were 4 Avocets. PRD. A separate visit this morning saw a Grey Wagtail flying over the golf course and the surrounding fields held 3 Song Thrush, a Mistle Thrush and 5 Skylarks. Additional for the scrape were 4 of each Ringed Plovers and Turnstones, 2 Dunlin, a Redshank and 36+ Lapwing. Also 19 Shelduck, 64+ Teal, 48+ Greylag Geese and 4 Pied Wagtails. BS.
3rd - A bitterly cold early morning. E winds, slightly overcast and as the morning went on, the sun tried it's best to break through. Wind direction remained Easterly and conditions stayed dry but cold all day. A very early walk in from the Frinton end and a single Sanderling was located on the shore, while on the golf course were 4 Jays, 1 Song and 1 Mistle Thrush. The surrounding fields were also extremely quiet, with only 2 Red Legged Partridge and a Grey Heron being visible. BS. A late morning visit to the hide provided views across the Lake, oops! the Scrape, of 1 Redshank, 1 Dunlin, 3 Ringed Plovers, 6 Turnstones, 7 Curlew and 110+ Lapwing, 9 Gadwall, 6 Shoveler, 14 Shelduck and 101 Greylag Geese. Also noted were 6 Skylarks and singles of Sparrowhawk and Kestrel. Some of the flood water on the marshland has receded but not to any extent as yet and numerous Wigeon, Teal, Gulls and Corvids were spread far and wide over these areas. MR.
4th - Generally brighter but still cold with ENE winds during the day. These winds changed to NNE going into an icy cold evening. A visit to the hide this morning and the Wigeon and Teal were on a take-over bid across the scrape with their numbers being 200+ and 450+ respectively. 8 Gadwall, 14 Shelduck, 17 Shoveler were the other ducks on there, along with 88 Greylag Geese. A wader count provided 2 Ringed Plovers, 1 Golden Plover, 5 Turnstones, 2 Snipe, 16 Curlew and 80+ Lapwing. A single Little Grebe was noted, as were a pair of Kestrels, 8 Skylarks and 3 Meadow Pipits. Gulls were once again numerous across the site and included 2 colour-ringed Herring Gulls. MR.
5th - Another bitterly cold start to the morning, warming slightly during the day but a rapid drop in temperature again as dusk approached. Bright with mainly blue skies and light to moderate winds, that varied to and from WNW and NW continually. Some 250+ Wigeon had returned to sitting on the sea for today's visit, as opposed to being on the scrape or the flooded marshland this last few days. Located along the shore were 2 Ringed Plovers, whilst 2 Purple Sandpipers were seen on the rocks. Gulls and geese out-numbered all that was "not" on the scrape today, with 84 Greylag Geese, 1 Common Gull, 16 Herring, 8 Blk Headed and 5 L B B Gulls. Amongst these were 2 of each Gadwall and Shelduck, also noted were 2 Red Legged Partridge! Across the surrounding fields were 17 Curlew, 44+ Lapwings, 6 Skylarks and 4 Mistle Thrush. BS.
6th - Extremely bright this morning, a few clouds to start but a much increased cloud cover by mid-day. Again very cold with moderate to strong NE winds that continued into early afternoon. Early morning on the scrape saw highlights of 1 Blk T Godwit, 3 Dunlin, 2 Ringed Plover, 30+ Curlew and 6 Gadwall. A Woodcock appeared to come in/off the sea and headed inland. PL. Along the beach were 7 Sanderling and a single Oystercatcher while 13 (9+4) Siskins headed N. GG. An afternoon's viewing across the scrape and the surrounding marshland added 3 Golden Plovers, 1 Snipe, 1 Redshank, 6 Turnstones, 40+ Lapwings and Dunlin numbers were up to 6. Others noted were 14 Shelduck, 6 Shoveler, 208 Wigeon, 80+ Teal and 80+ Greylag Geese, with singles of Barn Owl and Kestrel were also in the vicinity. Once more Gulls were numerous and again two were noted with coloured rings (Pitsea). MR.
7th - A glorious day, bright sun and blue skies, just very, very cold with some Easterly winds. The winds remained a fairly constant E, while the cold got decidedly colder!! Coverage this morning, was from the hide and also of the farm area. The Paddock held 9 Redwing, 2 Song Thrush and a single Mistle Thrush, while the very quiet hedgerows held just 5 House Sparrows. The fields provided a count of 10 Red Legged Partridge. BS. The scrape and it's surrounding area supplied counts of 1 Ruff, 12 Golden Plover, 30+ Lapwing, 60+ Teal, 186 Wigeon, 1 Little Grebe and a male Kestrel. MR.
8th - Slightly cool to start, bright with some cloud cover and NE winds. The day stayed dry and the winds remained somewhat fresh. Visits today began with a search of the paddocks and farm areas, then included checking out the bushes/hedgerows around the carpark, viewing along the beach and also from the hide. 7 Fieldfare, 4 Redwing, 2 Mistle and 1 Song Thrush were in the vicinity of the paddocks, while the arable held 100+ Golden Plover. A Woodpecker was heard drumming but not located. A single Little Owl was in the carpark area and the beach/sluice held 6 Sanderling and 2 of each Turnstones and Oystercatchers. MR. The scrape and surrounding marsh provided totals of 54 Curlew, 1 Redshank, 30+ Lapwing, 4 Gadwall, 2 Shoveler and 3 Shelduck with Wigeon, Teal and Greylag Geese numbers being much as the last few days. Singles of Barn Owl and Kestrel were again noted. No colour-ringed Gulls were seen amongst the variety today, however a 3W Yellow Legged Gull was viewed from 12.15-14.15hrs. MR/PRD.
9th - Overcast from morning into afternoon with variable strength ENE winds (recorded locally - light breeze going up to gusts of c28mph). Not quite so cold as yesterday but still chilly. Some rain during the afternoon but also some patches of blue sky! A visit to the hide at mid-day failed to produce anything of particular interest, however, Curlew numbers were up to 74, the Shoveler count was up to 4 and 1 Blk T Godwit was also noted. Viewed again in the vicinity, was a single Barn Owl. SC. A further report coming in from the Frinton end, gave sightings of a Little Egret across the fields, also 10 Stock Doves, 4 Mistle Thrush, 6 Skylarks and 4 Red Legged Partridge. Seen flying towards the sewage works was a Grey Wagtail, while additions for the scrape were 6 Shelduck, 21 Teal, 15+ Lapwing and a Common Gull. A pair of Kestrels were in the area and a male Sparrowhawk perched itself on the fence in front of the hide. BS. The paddocks and farm areas were also searched with 7 Fieldfare and 6 Redwings located at the paddocks. From the seawall by the golf course, 2 Red T Divers were viewed on the sea, close inshore. PRD. NB. Works on the scrape are still continuing.
10th - Another overcast cold day that just got colder as the day went on. Variable but mostly strong ENE winds. A morning visit coming in from the Frinton end, covered the golf course and surrounding fields, the shoreline and the scrape. Numbers and species on the scrape were 2 Avocet, 1 Blk T Godwit, 1 Redshank, 2 Oystercatchers, c61 Curlew, 1 Common Gull, 9 Herring Gulls, 2 Gadwall, 8 Shelduck, 200+ Wigeon and 6 Greylag Geese. Singles of Barn Owl, Kestrel and Sparrowhawk were also noted across this area. A single Little Egret was again seen on the surrounding fields and further notables were 3 Turnstones, 31 Lapwing, 8 Stock Doves, 6 Skylarks and 100+ Starlings. BS. Additional sightings provided 1 Dunlin, Gadwall numbers up to 7, Curlew up to 68 and a note was made reference to a Turnstone with a ring (left). PRD.
11th - Very grey out there although the sun made a bright but fairly brief appearance mid-morning. Moderate to strong ENE winds insisted on keeping the chill in the air but it was at least, still dry going into late afternoon. A quest to find a Gt.Spotted Woodpecker for a Haven year list, saw today's coverage begin again at the farm and resulted in the locating of 2 Gt Spotted and a single Green Woodpecker! 10 Fieldfare, 1 Mistle Thrush and 3 Redwing were seen on and around the paddocks/farm, while a flock of 9 Redwing were along Church Lane within our boundaries. Moving on down to the hide, views across the scrape gave counts of 2 Little Egrets, 1 Grey Heron, 1 of each Dunlin, Redshank and Blk T Godwit, 2 Ringed Plovers, 56 Curlew and 90+ Lapwing. The duck numbers were 6 Gadwall, 5 Shoveler, 10 Shelduck, 300+ Wigeon and 30+ Teal with amongst these, just 10 Greylag Geese. Also making the notebook, were 140+ Starlings, singles of Kestrel, Sparrowhawk and a superb Barn Owl, with a further note made that the Digger "was not" on the scrape today. MR.
