Having arrived via Normandy Marsh and not seeing much of
interest it was decided to concentrate on Oxey Marsh, particularly as it was
still some 2 hours before LW. It was a bright, sunny morning (if somewhat
chilly) with thankfully light winds. The anticlockwise route took in Eight Acre
Pond, Salterns Lagoon, the bridge across Moses Dock, and a circuit of Oxey
Marsh via the sea wall and Oxey Lagoon.
HCC acquired Normandy Farm at auction in May 1973, followed
by Salterns and Eight Acre Pond in the autumn of that year. Pennington/Oxey
Marshes were acquired in the late 1970s to avert the threat posed to a
large-scale grazing marsh by commercial gravel extraction.
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Grey Heron © Glynis Payne
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Some highlights of the walk: a sizeable group of Little
Grebe (affectionately also known as "Dabchick") on Eight Acre Pond,
often diving under with a little leap and reappearing like a cork. On
Salterns Lagoon male and female Shovelers dabbled in tight,
circular flocks for seeds and invertebrates.
Inside their distinctive bill is a series of sieves and bristles which holds
onto the food it collects by filter feeding, while letting the water drain out.
To reach slightly deeper food they would up-end when the long, pointed wingtips
became especially conspicuous. A Greenshank flew in.
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| Drake Shoveler about to land © Chris Robinson |
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Shovelers feeding © Glynis Payne
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| Greenshank © Chris Robinson |
On Oxey Marsh a Raven had found a tasty morsel,
possibly a rabbit and on reaching the sea wall (and following a break) what might have been a Common Sandpiper was in fact a solitary Dunlin and 3 Spotted Redshank on Oxey Lagoon whilst offshore 2
Slavonian Grebes were in the company of a Great-crested Grebe.
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| Spotted Redshank © Glynis Payne |
The falling tide had, by this time, exposed the
mud of Oxey Lake and Four Acre Pond, where many birds were taking advantage of
this feeding opportunity: Dark-bellied Brent Goose, Shelduck, Oystercatcher,
Ringed Plover, Redshank, Grey Plover, Dunlin, Black-tailed Godwit, Turnstone
and Curlew. These besides the usual suspects seen en route: Mute Swan, Canada
Goose, Wigeon, Mallard, Pintail, Teal, Cormorant, Little Egret, Grey Heron,
Coot, Lapwing, various Gulls, Carrion Crow, Rook and Magpie.Some LymNats were lucky enough to see a Snipe in
flight, a Kingfisher and a Water Rail. Lasting just over 2 hours the walk ended
back at Maiden Lane. Who knows what rarities might have been waiting on
Normandy? BM
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Water Rail © Richard Smith
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Thanks to our photographers for and excellent selection of images from the walk and incidentally nothing unusual was reported from Normandy. Ed.
