COLCHESTER LOCAL GROUP

Newsletter No 67 August 2013

Group Website – www.rspb.org.uk/groups/colchester

A MESSAGE FROM YOUR COMMITTEE

DOES COLCHESTER LOCAL GROUP HAVE A FUTURE?

The end of year (31 March 2013) financial statement is enclosed within this newsletter and from that you will see that the finances are in a healthy position. As you know, Russell is standing down as Group Leader at the AGM in September. He has completed his 5-year term and the Society recommends that a change of leader after that time is always good for motivation and commitment. Veronica Owen resigned from her fund-raising position earlier in the year but with no replacement has continued in this role but she is adamant that with a change to her personal circumstances she cannot continue. We will therefore be left with just three committee members - Cliff Seaton, our Treasurer, Martin Colley our Web Manager and Beverley Colley, Secretary. As you can imagine, the tasks that the committee have to manage cannot be done by just three. Without more support the Group is in an extremely precarious position. No one has come forward to offer their services as Group Leader and we have no committee members to help with fund-raising, membership recruitment, publicity and displays nor general help with things like distribution of newsletters and administration of the membership records. Hugh Owen, as a volunteer not a committee member, has tirelessly organised and administered our membership database and distributed our newsletters for many, many years (amongst other things) and the time has come for him to step aside too. We do, of course, have our trusty band of volunteers who help out with all sorts of tasks and we would like to thank those of you who are always on hand to make sure the indoor meetings run smoothly. The committee is urgently looking for new members. As far as fundraising is concerned, all that is required initially is for someone to organise our tin collections at supermarkets. This currently involves writing one letter to the Co-op Society and then arranging up to 10 members to undertake two hour slots at three venues. We already have a list of regular and willing collectors so it’s not too difficult, and Veronica will explain the system to anyone interested. These collections raise over £1,000 annually for the Society. Committee members are also urgently required to ensure there is a quorum at meetings – a requirement for decision making. Ideally we would like to recruit another 3 or 4 committee members. We meet about seven times a year. It’s not an onerous task, basically helping to ensure the Group is running satisfactorily and providing ideas for improving our activities for the benefit of the members. As the committee gets back to full strength, new ideas will emerge and the Group will undoubtedly flourish. As we said at the beginning – this is not a financial crisis just a lack of administrative support.

The Committee has decided that to make it easier to administer the Group, membership will cease and the entry fee will be adjusted to compensate for that. From the start of the next season (September) everyone will pay £3 entrance fee for indoor meetings and tea/coffee will be increased to 50p. This will probably mean that you pay little or no more than you do at present. No annual membership, just a slight increase on what you pay ‘on the door’. At present the newsletter is printed and dispatched to all paid-up members of the Group at considerable cost. Some are hand delivered but there are still many that have to be posted and with the continuing rise in printing and postage costs it is not proving cost-effective. As we will no longer have a database of supporters to mail to, the Committee has decided that Martin, our Web Manager, will put our programme of events and articles of interest onto the Colchester Group website – see the website address on the front page. These articles will be updated regularly and anything of interest that you would like included can be sent to Martin by email at martin@essex.ac.uk. Trip reports, news from our local reserves and snippets of information from our own members will all be there for you to see. So, sadly this will be our last newsletter in this form. If you don’t have access to a computer, maybe a relative or neighbour will be able to show you how modern technology has created a cheaper alternative to sharing information. To conclude, can we reiterate the seriousness of the position we find ourselves in? The RSPB will not allow the Group to continue indefinitely without a Group Leader and the future of the Group is now in your hands. All we need is a few members to come forward to join the committee and just one committed RSPB supporter who has the inclination to turn this round and take on the role of Group Leader. Please contact Russell Leavett (01206 399059) if you wish to discuss any of the above or email him at rleavett@btinternet.com. He’s waiting for your call!!!

and a Message from Russell I can’t believe that five years have passed by and the time has come for me to step down from the position of Group Leader. I’ll still come along to as many meetings as I can but I have other interests I have put on hold while leading the Group, and now wish to pursue.

It saddens me to leave at a time when the Group is struggling to find a new leader and committee members but I’m sure this will resolve itself in time and the Group will flourish – after all, we have a significant number of committed members in Colchester and the surrounding villages. I am still hoping that someone will come forward before the AGM.

Over the past five years I have been supported by committee members and volunteers which has made my role that much easier. I would like to thank each and every one of them for their help and support and wish the Group well for the future.

FUNDRAISING

Thanks to the efforts of a willing band of collectors we raised the princely sum of £362.95 at the tin collection at Manningtree Co-op.

Further collections have been arranged for 27 July at the Co-op at West Mersea and on 26 October at the Co-op, Stanway.

If you can spare two hours on 26 October I would be pleased to hear from you. Please call me on 01206 735006.

Veronica Owen

OBITUARY – JOE FIRMIN

I am very sad to report that Joe Firmin passed away on 18th March. He was a life-long campaigner for wildlife and was well known locally for his 'Watching Wildlife' column in the Essex County Standard for over 50 years. Joe was one of the founder members of the Colchester Natural History Society and was a leading figure since its inauguration. He was also a keen supporter of the RSPB and for the last five years he often handed me polythene bags of loose change that he had saved. The total that I banked was a remarkable £312.33 - of which the RSPB was very appreciative.

Hugh Owen

Note from the Editor……I am also aware that many of the books we sell at Group meetings were donated by Joe and the Group are very grateful for the additional funds raised by the sale of these.

BIRD FOOD Thanks to John Nicholls and Clive Pougher we are able to offer bird food for sale in small quantities at our indoor meetings. Should you wish to purchase larger quantities, such as 25kg bags, please contact John on 01206 797719 to place an order and arrange collection from him. We are extremely grateful to John and Clive for making this service available to our members and others.

DONATIONS OF STAMPS Don’t forget that used postage stamps from home and abroad can be turned into much needed cash. Cut your stamps off the envelopes, but please don’t cut too closely around them. Some arrive minus their perforations which renders them worthless! If you have time to sort them into foreign and British that helps too. If you bring your used stamps along to our Group meetings, or give them to a Committee Member, we will pass them on to The Lodge for you. If you have large quantities we can arrange to collect them.

DONATIONS OF BINOCULARS AND TELESCOPES

We continue to receive donations of binoculars and telescopes for which we are most grateful – these are serviced and eventually find their way into the hands of wardens of nature reserves in developing countries, often in Africa or Asia. Giving support to emerging nature conservation organisations in this way is a very important aspect of the Society’s work. Often

donations of equipment come our way as the result of a family’s loss of a loved one. What better way to celebrate their interest in birds than to pass their equipment on to someone who really appreciates it but can’t possibly afford it. Please bring any such equipment to an indoor meeting or contact us so it can be collected.

……….and Natural History Books We also sell a selection of second-hand books about natural history at our indoor meetings and would be grateful for donations. We regret that we cannot accept novels! All profits from these sales go into Group funds and eventually reach the RSPB through our donations to them.

FIELD TRIP HIGHLIGHTS

COACH TRIP - RAINHAM MARSHES - This February day was cold with a bitter wind and the stay in the hides was definitely extended with the heated one proving the most popular for a lingering Birdwatch!

There were very few waders early on but some mobile flocks of lapwing, golden plovers and dunlin appeared later. Most of the Group had brilliant views of a kingfisher and a most confiding water rail. Raptors of the day included distant views of a sparrowhawk, marsh harrier, kestrel and a peregrine. Towards the end of the day the major highlight was a visit to the tea room. On the way to the coach three green woodpeckers were seen perched on a fence.

CAR TRIP TO CAVENHAM HEATH AND LYNFORD ARBORETUM - This March excursion took place on a cool windy day and although scanning the heath for a couple of hours we did not manage to locate any stone-curlews. I gather one turned up next day but it was later reported on the news that eight dead stone-curlews had been found in East Anglia due to the lack of food. We did see several buzzards and a stonechat in the 27 species that were spotted.

CAR TRIP TO BOYTON MARSH - This day in April was dull with some rain during the morning and a keen wind for most of the day. On arrival at the car park Alan spotted an impressive redstart which remained in the area for all of the morning. Other good sightings here were marsh harrier, buzzard, several house martins, a few ruffs, a couple of yellow wagtails and the visit ended with good views of a barn owl. We moved off to Shingle Street where lunch was taken but birds were very low in number. It was decided to visit Hollesley Common and almost immediately we were rewarded with excellent views of a red kite. This was followed by views of a stonechat and a woodlark. After a brief visit to Sutton Heath a pair of peregrines was spotted under the Orwell Bridge where they have once again nested.

CAR TRIP TO MINSMERE - This was the annual May event for the Group in an attempt to see or hear 100 species of bird in a single day. It proved a most enjoyable day for 8 of us with some excellent sightings and a failure, by only 3, to reach our target - although Dennis did visit Dunwich Heath later in the day and added a further 3 species.

A visit to the heathland on the way to the beach led to us seeing a single stone-curlew, a prolonged view of a bittern in flight and a nightingale which was singing nearby. The highlights of viewing from the East hide and Public Viewpoint were a Mediterranean gull, a kittiwake and numerous ducks, waders and terns. We apparently just missed seeing the spoonbill on The South Levels but from the west hide we viewed the ferruginous duck. After lunch in the car park a tawny owl

was pointed out to us in a tall conifer and we then visited the Bittern Hide and saw the ever present marsh harriers, a water rail and two red deer strolling by just below us. As we advanced to the Island Mere Hide we had fine views of a garden warbler and a couple of hobbies overhead. Moving onto the Scotts Hall Farm area we saw six species of tits and further on towards the Centre a nuthatch, buzzards, and a sparrowhawk appeared. A slow-worm then slithered across the path in front of us. For some it was then fish dishes at the Eels Foot Pub to end a most enjoyable day. COACH TRIP TO LAKENHEATH - The weather was fine and sunny for this May trip to the RSPB Reserve at Lakenheath. We soon arrived at the first clearing in the trees where a group of people

had gathered and soon spotted a male red-footed falcon perched on a short dead tree. After a while it took to the air and gave us excellent views of its plumage. All day long double figures of hobbies could be seen flying and catching insects. We then moved to the next viewing point over the vast reedbed and after a while a common crane gave us excellent views as it flew across the top of the reeds. Later one could also be seen foraging in some short grass and finally another took to the air in the distance. On the return to the

Centre an out of season whooper swan was seen on the river. Unfortunately the golden orioles were not forthcoming although some of our group caught snatches of its song. Overall we had a most enjoyable day which included good number of summer migrants such as reed and sedge warblers as well as numerous marsh harriers.

CAR TRIP TO MINSMERE - We were spared the rain on this June day with reasonable weather, although a little windy. Only four members appeared in the morning and an additional one in the afternoon. All members who missed this day missed an excellent day of birdwatching. It commenced with a stroll through the woods where one of the first birds heard was a bittern, with many more calling throughout the day. Then in the trees around the Bittern Hide we heard the distinctive call of a golden oriole. Lunch in the car park was followed by a stop next to the heathland, north of the visitor centre to see a stone-curlew. The next wonderful but brief sighting was a red-backed shrike from the Public Hide. From East Hide and the South Levels we had good views of numerous waders, notably good numbers of black-tailed godwits, a curlew sandpiper and a couple of spotted redshanks. A group of kittiwakes was also present on the East Scrape. Two hobbies were also spotted during the day. Then a welcome visit was made to the Eels Foot public house for fish and chips and after watching a barn owl at East Gates it was off to Tunstall Forest for late evening birdwatching. We soon had good views of a few nightjars with one male displaying by rising high in the sky. What an excellent end to the day with nearly 80 species being seen!

Hugh Owen

HOLIDAYS - A WALK IN MAJORCA

As I travelled south on the bus from Port de Pollenca, a strong wind was blowing across the bays of Pollenca and Alcudia. Arriving at Can Picafort I started my walk out to the sea front. There were few people about due to this being very early in the season (March) and the fact that strong winds were blowing! This resulted in good close up views of yellow-legged and Audouin’s gulls, resting on the beach.

Continuing south along the coast towards Son Real, the beach is backed by heathland of rosemary and heathers mixed with coastal pine woods. As I turned inland I noticed Dartford and Sardinian warblers in this area, and further along I flushed stone curlew from the side of track. Hoopoes, too, were feeding in the more open spaces.

Reaching the road I turned back towards the Parc Natural de S’Albufera. At its southern end are former saltpans on which I spotted a number of pairs of red crested pochard, and on the adjoining grassland, yellow wagtails were feeding. Arriving at the start of the reedbeds and from the viewing platform which overlooked one of the many open shallow lagoons, I could see a number of little and cattle egrets

together with spoonbill, snipe, garganey and gadwall on and around the water, whilst a number of marsh harriers glided over the reeds. Continuing along the track towards the visitor centre, I passed a small group of white Carmargue horses grazing on the marsh – obviously being used in the same way that the Konik ponies are at Minsmere and other reserves in the UK. Further on, Park Rangers were netting one of the shallow lagoons, and catching a number of carp of a size I would be pleased to catch on rod and line! From one of the hides overlooking a shallow lagoon I was able to compare ringed, little-ringed and Kentish plovers whilst a solitary curlew sandpiper was feeding on one of the many small islands. There were also fish in this lagoon but these appeared to be mullet. I think the water in the marsh must vary between fresh and brackish/salt water. Having crossed a bridge over the channel that divides the marsh, from which I saw red-knobbed coot and purple swamphen (gallinule), there was another hide. Again overlooking a much larger lagoon and from here I was delighted to see, and hear because they were very noisy, 100+ black winged stilts together with a few snipe and black-tailed godwits. Leaving the reserve by the main track which runs alongside the channel which is fringed with trees, I was lucky enough to locate a roost of some 20+ night herons, whilst within the channel a number of terrapins were sunning themselves on floating debris. Being March, many of the migrants for which the area is noted had not yet arrived. April/May would probably be a better time to visit from an ornithological point of view, but I can certainly recommend this northern corner of Majorca for a holiday.

John Cowlin

ALMOST A CHAIN SAW MASSACRE

During October 2012, after a typical seasonal overnight storm, my friends, who live close to Abberton reservoir, discovered the next day that an ancient oak tree had blown over in their bottom paddock. The oak was dead and part of the main trunk had hollowed through time. So they commenced to saw up the tree for their log burner. Whilst slicing the tree, rubbish was found within the trunk. They pulled out the last pieces of rubbish, which appeared to be old nesting material. However, this material then started to move! Within a complete ball of down, five pairs of barn owl eyes stared out at our friends looking rather puzzled at their introduction to daylight and the outside world. Fortunately the baby owls had come to no harm whilst they were logging. They were carefully removed and temporarily placed in a safe barn. After getting some useful advice they were put in touch with the Owl Trust who took the owls to their sanctuary in Rowhedge. They were successfully cared for over a period of approximately four months and returned to my friends at the end of March as planned. Currently they are being housed in a large hut, being fed twice daily for a further month and the final stage will be to leave a door open for the owls to come and go, with food being left out for them for the first few days. Eventually this will cease – the aim being for them to return to their natural habitat and feed for themselves. There is evidence in another barn that an adult, possibly one of the parents, has continued to hunt and maintain a presence in the area. My friends are delighted to have the owls back and hope that some of the brood remain in the neighbourhood.

Alan Blois

NEWS FROM THE LOCAL RESERVES – RSPB STOUR ESTUARY,

WOLVES WOOD AND THE FLATFORD WILDLIFE GARDEN

The Stour Estuary team has just gone through a small but very important restructure, so I thought I’d tell you about that this quarter. As you know, our Flatford Wildlife Garden is going from strength to strength, and we are concentrating a lot of our efforts there, particularly to do with engaging with the public. So, from mid June Mark Nowers has become Visitor Services Manager for the Stour Reserves, and Shirley Boyle has become the Head Gardener/Stour Warden. Mark will be responsible for co-ordinating all our people operations across the Stour Reserves, but focussing most of his attention on Flatford. Shirley moves from controlling all the operations at Flatford to managing the garden and estate there, and progressing on to managing our reserves. The next few months will see us inducting Mark and Shirley into their new roles, and although they’re familiar with many aspects of their new jobs, this will require a fair amount of input from all of us in the team, to make sure that they get to know their new roles really well and are comfortable doing them. It’s really important we get that aspect of our work right, particularly as the Flatford Wildlife Garden is the epitome of what our new Brand is all about – what more apt theme could we have come up with for a wildlife garden, than Giving Nature a Home. The Wildlife Garden was chosen to be the site where all media attention was focussed on our Brand launch day on 20 June, so we’re really proud to have been playing our part in these exciting times of new uniforms (a return to blue, from our previous black) and really, really powerful messages we can give out to our visitors about gardening, nature and how we can all play a part in restoring the UK’s threatened wildlife. I can’t sign off without a quick update about Cattawade Marshes, right next to the office where I’m sitting writing this piece for you to read: the slow start to the year has all been forgotten, the reed alongside the river Stour is bright green and almost completely masks last year’s, now dead, growth. Over 50 lapwing nests were found on our marsh this spring, with a slightly lower number

of redshanks, but the lapwing nests is the highest number we’ve ever had the privilege of monitoring! In theory we could be helping to fledge around 100 chicks, in practice it may be lower than that, but you never know. All I know is that, a few weeks ago, if you were a crow flying over Cattawade – you didn’t stand a chance of landing or even of flying low over the marsh, there were that many angry waders mobbing the crows and gulls it made it seem like watching the Battle of Britain. All thanks to our excellent electric fence, and a lot of hard work by staff and volunteers. And some cows munching the grass, of course.

Rick Vonk

A SPRING OF SORTS There were a few highlights from the 2013 spring season at Cudmore Grove Country Park, although generally it will be remembered for being cold and wet. The weather had a big impact on all sorts of wildlife. We all had to make the most of any sunny days that came along as they were few and far between. Spring migrants were held up by the cold weather, including snow in early April, with birds only trickling back from Africa. Some migrants either turned up late or didn’t appear at all such as our two pairs of nightingales while our colony of sand martins was reduced to just one pair in the cliff. The cuckoos did come back to the Island but they seemed more elusive and quieter this spring.

Amongst the passage birds a female redstart and a firecrest were highlights in April while a garden warbler heard singing one day in May was of note. There was an interesting

movement of chaffinches east over the park in early April with 350 birds heading off to their breeding grounds. Two great northern divers in the mouth of the Colne in early April was an unusual sight. Even stranger were 90 brent geese flying out of the estuary at the end of May, almost two months after they should have left for their Siberian breeding grounds. Although water levels stayed high in the grazing fields, none of the four pairs of lapwings or pairs of oystercatchers or redshank managed to produce any young. Predation by foxes or crows was probably the likely cause of failure. The only passage waders of interest that stopped off in the fields were a few whimbrel, a single greenshank and a ruff that stayed for several days. There seemed a few more wildfowl around than previous springs with gadwall, shoveler, pochard and tufted duck all present throughout the

season. Small numbers of greylag and Canada geese paid their usual spring visit to the fields during April and May but never showed any interest in breeding. At East Mersea Point one pair of avocets appeared to be on a nest for a fortnight on a small saltmarsh lagoon until washed out by high tides. On the beach a pair of ringed plovers held onto territory but with no proof of nesting. Little terns and common terns have been regularly seen in the river as have the Mediterranean gulls. Also seen in the river this spring were 3 harbour porpoises, a grey seal and one or two of the common seals as well. A pair of kestrels nested again in the nestbox at the back of the grazing fields and the young were still being fed inside up to the end of June. Two common buzzards passed over the park in early June at the same time as two hobbies circled over. This is the first year common buzzards have summered in East Mersea although there were very few sightings of them actually visiting the park. Insects fared badly in the spring with the cold and wet weather. Numbers of butterflies may have been low but as they waited for warm weather it meant the season was more prolonged. A green hairstreak was still on the wing on the 25th June which is almost a month later than in a normal warm spring. One painted lady was seen on a couple of dates in mid-June on the Point. The one highlight of a generally poor moth trapping season was the sight of six species of hawkmoth in one night in late June.

Dougal Urquart

Site Manager Cudmore Grove Country Park

NEW LOGO AND STRAPLINE FOR RSPB

Have you noticed the new RSPB logo and strapline on the front page? Giving Nature a Home is the latest RSPB campaign. This is the start of an integrated advertising, engagement and support-building campaign to start changing the public perceptions of the RSPB. The aim is to galvanise individuals and families across the UK to create homes for nature in their gardens, making people aware that nature on their doorstep is in trouble and RSPB can show them how they can help. Take a look at the website www.rspb.org.uk/homes where you can sign up to receive your personalised garden plan to give nature a home. The campaign will also encourage the public to support the RSPB’s work building homes (habitats) for nature in the wider countryside by donating or joining the Society. RSPB events on and off reserves, membership recruitment, community fundraising, trading and press releases will all carry the ‘Giving Nature a Home’ message over the summer. You may have seen the TV advertising campaign featuring a young girl creating homes for nature in her garden. The ‘wildlife stars’ include starling, hedgehog and a variety of bugs. This advert ran from 5 – 28 July and should have reached over 40 million people (85% of the UK population). A direct response TV advert will also run from July through to December which will feature barn owl, otter and mountain hare. Viewers will be able to text to donate £3 or join the Society to help give nature a home in the wider countryside.

Margaret Leavett

NEWS FROM OUR SISTER ORGANISATIONS

Colchester Natural History Society

24/09/2013 Bob Seago The Changing Nature of Essex through the lens of Reg Arthur 22/10/2013 Mike Logan-Wood Secret Lives of Birds 19/11/2013 Shirley Boyle Flatford Mill - Wildlife Garden/Gardening for Wildlife 28/01/2014 AGM Starts at 7.30 pm 25/02/2014 Chris Gibson My fingerprints on the Landscape 25/03/2014 Members evening

Essex Wildlife Trust

The Colchester branch of EWT holds regular indoor meetings at the Shrub End Community Hall

(where we meet). Their meetings start at 7.45 pm, doors open from 7.15 pm. RSPB Local Group members will be made very welcome

Unfortunately programme details were unavailable as we went to print so please visit their website

for information.

Future News

Thanks to those of you who have provided interesting articles for this newsletter over the years. As you will have seen on page 1, this is the last one in this form. If you have interesting birds visiting your garden, or have something you would like to share with other members in the area, please email details to our Web Manager, Martin Colley at Martin@essex.ac.uk who will put things onto the Colchester Group website. If you don’t have access to a computer and would or would prefer to hand-write your article then please don’t hesitate to send it to me at 10 Grove Road, Brantham, CO11 1TX and I’ll type it up and forward on to Martin.

Margaret Leavett

The RSPB speaks out for birds and wildlife, tackling the problems that threaten our environment. Nature is amazing – help us keep it that way.

Colchester RSPB Local Group is run by volunteers. We hold regular events to which RSPB members and members of the public are welcome. If you would like more details, or are interested in helping out, please visit our website – details on the front page.

RSPB Eastern England Office, Stalham House, 65 Thorpe Road, Norwich, NR1 1UD

Bird illustrations from RSPB Publishing resources CD-ROM – Line drawings by John Busby, Mike Langman and D Powell.The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: England and Wales no. 207076, Scotland no. SC037654