35
NIGHTJAR MEETING, l4th JULY, 1982
Twenty one members assembled at 'sssh' promptly
at 9.00 p.m. for the first evening meeting of the
Ornithological Group. During the day there had
been numerous thunderstorms and the meeting was in
doubt until early evening when the weather changed,
this making it ideal for listening to Nightjars.
A walk from the place of assembly through the
hornbeam wood provided no excitement, except that
those attending were asked to make as little noise
as possible, and furthermore, to note carefully the
pathway taken for the return journey.
On our way we heard a few Linnets and Yellow Hammers
singing. The party rested beneath some oak trees
so that we would not be seen. Various members by
now had been, or were being, bitten by midges or
mosquitoes - those who came provided with deterrents,
such as elder leaves, were little troubled.
By 9.30 we had heard nothing, until suddenly at
9.35 there were members pointing in the direction from
which 'churring' could be clearly heard. The
unmistakeable call of the nightjar, a bird not often
seen or heard in Essex. Coming out of our shelter on
the way back we stopped and located the bird on a
dead tree branch; it was seen more than once. One
member even detected some white showing. It was
obviously a male bird. After watching for about
20 minutes we decided to make our way back through
the wood, aided by torches.
We got back to the cars about 10.20, after what
proved to be a unique meeting, one that had been
called for at our A.G.M. held in June 1981. All
members agreed that it was well worth the effort
on such a warm evening, ideal for nightjars.