TWITCHERS from across the country have been flocking to a corner of Colchester in a bid to catch a glimpse of an American bird lost on its travels.

The rare Lesser Yellowlegs is native to Canada and normally flies down to south America to migrate for the winter.

But it seems the creature has taken a disastrous wrong turn and for the last week has been spotted wading at Hythe Lagoons, between the Hythe and Rowhedge.

Bird watcher Phil Carter said: "It was seen by someone else first, local birdwatcher Alf Mullins, last Saturday.

"I thought it looked suspiciously like a Lesser Yellowlegs and I went down Sunday and retraced it.

"It seems happy enough and it is feeding and was still there this morning."

Mr Carter, of D'Arcy Road, Colchester, said he was confident he'd correctly identified the bird, which is characterised by its yellow legs.

"I have seen one many years ago in this country in the south west somewhere.

"You do get one or two every year but they are usually in the west, it is very unusual for them to come to Essex."

It is thought the bird either mistakenly flew the wrong way or got accidentally blown towards the UK in a storm.

Mr Carter suspected the bird may stay here for the winter but it is more likely it will carry on migrating south in the hope of reaching South America.

He added: "Obviously it is now on the wrong side of the Atlantic for that to happen but there is a chance it could end up in Africa and then, next spring, head north again and find itself back in the UK.

"Unfortunately, as with a large proportion of birds making their first migration, there is also a very good chance of it perishing somewhere on the journey, whether as prey or through not being able to find suitable feeding areas."

In the meantime, the bird's attracted quite an audience.

Mr Carter added: "Normally I bird watch down there and don't see anyone but there has been a steady stream of people, about 100 over the last week.

"It has been there over a week now and today there was someone from Kent and someone from Suffolk."

The Lesser Yellowlegs measures about 25 cms.

Their breeding habitat is clearings near ponds in the Boreal forest region from Alaska to Quebec, Canada.

They migrate to the Gulf coast of the United States and south to South America.

They mainly eat insects, small fish and crustaceans.