Wildlife and Conservation Review of 2000
One result of the poor summer was that the breeding season of some birds was significantly extended.
In some species such as Blackbirds, this continued until the end of August. Otherwise, the focus
was on migration, mainly sea birds and waders. Old Hall Marshes had two Temminck's Stints,
two Wood, six Curlew and 20 Green Sandpipers, and the Forster's Tern appeared yet again. The
rarest wader was a Marsh Sandpiper at Vange Marsh, and other vagrants included an Ortolan
Bunting at Foulness and Hoopoe at King George V Reservoir. Seabird movements included several
Pomarine Skuas and a Ring-billed Gull off Canvey, and a Sooty Shearwater off Bradwell, while
Yellow-legged Gull numbers continued to build on the Thames, to 150 at Rainham and 294 at East
Tilbury. Drifting raptors included a Honey Buzzard at Bradwell and a Montagu's Harrier at The
Naze.
Invertebrates too were still turning up surprises, including further records of the Wasp Spider Argiope
bruennichi in the Basildon area, another recent colonist which seems still to be consolidating. A
contender for expansion to the UK is the European Map butterfly, as it is now resident up to the
Channel coast. A single specimen was reported in Hainault Forest in August, but as is usual with this
species its origins are considered to be suspect. Then at Alresford, David Scott located a breeding
colony of the endangered wasp Odynerus simillimus - a rarely-recorded species anywhere, and
probably the first ever discovery of a breeding aggregation. Even the worst of summers can come up
with the goods!
During August, the identification of Diarrhetic Shellfish Poisoning in the Cockle stocks of the
Dengie and Buxey Sands led to drastic action. Given the severity of this poisoning, Maldon District
Council issued a temporary prohibition order to prevent commercial harvesting, and also took steps
to safeguard the public by posting notices and restricting access points. Around the same time,
another problem arose in the food production sector, an outbreak of Classical Swine Fever which,
though centred in Suffolk, extended into north Essex. With hindsight, these episodes were a foretaste
of events to come with the 2001 outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease.
Autumn
At the risk of becoming repetitive, we should not have been surprised, considering the past few
months, that this was an autumn of rain and more rain. Surface and ground-water levels rose and the
floods commenced, in some places not subsiding until the following spring. County and country-
wide, soils were so saturated that almost every subsequent shower led to rivers being placed on
flood alert.
September had 50% more rain than normal, and only 80% of the expected sunshine, while still
providing a brief flirtation with summer during mid-month as temperatures rose to 24°C. But then
5cm of rain fell in just two days on the 15th and 16th - the rot set in. During October, the south-east of
England suffered appallingly under the deluge of twice the normal rainfall.
As usual, migrant birds were one of the key features of September. Four Dotterel were at Little
Walden, in one of their more tradition staging areas, and Pectoral Sandpipers were seen at Old
Hall, Colchester Hythe and Rainham. Six Sooty Shearwaters were off Canvey and a couple of
Long-tailed Skuas off the Dengie Peninsula. A large movement of Sandwich Terns in mid-month
was not restricted to the coast, with parties seen well inland following the river valleys. Rare migrant
passerines included a Booted Warbler at Gunners Park and Yellow-browed WTarhler at The Naze,
while Wrynecks were found at The Naze and Fairlop.
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Essex Naturalist (New Series) 18 (2001)