Rob and I had an early start one Sunday morning to set up the RSPB gazebo at the East Essex Heavy Horse Show held at the Museum of Power in Langford. It was a great event with lots of interesting stalls and things to see and do.
“If I keep munching this hay maybe he’ll go away”
After several cancellations, the planned bird survey by boat was finally going ahead. Unfortunately Suzanne was on holiday that day, so I took her place to go with Paul instead. We drove to West Mersea and met our skipper for the day and Jonathan Smith the Warden for the Essex Wildlife Trust at Tollesbury Wick Marshes. The crew now assembled, we boarded our craft and promptly set off. Our aim was to identify whether there were any little terns nesting on the Black Water Estuary. Unfortunately we didn’t see a single little tern but we did manage to count the number of herring gull chicks around several spots off West Mersea and record the numbers of black headed gull chicks, nests and eggs on Great Cobb Island. Our trip took us around the coast and it was great seeing the reserve from a different perspective, onboard a boat.
Withy’s placed strategically by local Fisherman and sailors to navigate safely through the channels bypassing the many hidden hazards along this part of the coast.
I helped to construct and erect a 'no landing sign' on the East Quarters Spit. Their aim is to act as a deterrent to those wishing to land craft and use the beach during nesting season. Unfortunately, despite these measures illegal landing and anti-social behaviour is still a problem on this part of the reserve, especially during the peak summer months. In June we had a party of revellers that may have been partially responsible for the abandonment of nesting activity of the little terns, which is incredibly frustrating to observe. Improved measures are in place to reduce disturbance next year, but more could be still be done to protect these and many other breeding birds we have on this fragile area of the reserve.