Map
12.5°C > 15.5°C: Very mild with low cloud, poor visibility and some light drizzle; started to lift a bit at 08:30 and then some blue patches after 9:00am.
Visibility only improved marginally. Light SE wind.
Best today were
More Wigeon, both at the lake and then Trench.
A 1st year Common Gull at Trench – my first of the year in Shropshire!
Few over flights this morning in poor visibility: most after the cloud lifted and broke.
Today’s over flight counts
- 10 Sky Larks: party of 9 W over The Flash; and one or more heard over Trench
- 1 Meadow Pipit over The Flash
- 5 Pied Wagtails over the lake
- 10 Redwings over the lake
- c.150 Starlings: 118 over the lake (c.40 may have come from a roost); and 36 over Trench (some local birds?)
- >40 Goldfinches but also many of these(?) in the trees around the lake
Another huge count of corvids though difficult to quantify in the poor visibility.
(120th visit of the year)
Other notes
1 Cormorant over
Wigeon seen in flight and surprised to see it wasn't a drake as I thought yesterday’s bird was. The explanation – it was a duck and the drake was elsewhere on the water.
Many more Tufted Duck this morning – somewhat fewer at The Flash would not entirely compensate.
The Coot count was a ‘best estimate’ in the mist and I likely missed many lurking at the edges.
Visited the usual Redwing roost-area pre-dawn: seemed to be unused at the moment.
4 Mistle Thrushes flew S – were these migrants?
Most of the Jackdaws came through in one swirling mass in the very misty conditions and my estimate of c.600 is possibly well understated.
The Rooks drifted through early in numerous small groups, many fewer than current typical numbers.
Counts
1 Little Grebe
4 Great Crested Grebes
1 Cormorant
2 Swans
2 (1) Wigeon
3 (2) Gadwall
13 (7) Mallard
3 (2) Pochard
95 (46?) Tufted Duck
9 Moorhen
137 Coots (weather affected)
c.175 Black-headed Gulls
215 Lesser Black-backed Gulls counted: 132 of these stopped on the water.
7 Herring Gulls noted: just 1 of these stopped on the water.
Corvid roost dispersal: >900 Jackdaws but ‘only’ 66 Rooks
(Ed Wilson)
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Priorslee Flash: 9:07am - 9:48am
Map
(101st visit of the year)
Notes
5 Great Crested Grebes for certain today: 2 stayed close to the nest-site and were perhaps adults, though they looked just as much like juveniles as the others.
All the geese, apart from 6 Canada Geese and the feral goose flew in.
Yesterday’s Pochard gone.
Huge party of c.350 Lesser Black-backed Gulls flew W to the N as the weather cleared
and
6 fruiting bodies of the Shaggy Ink-cap / Lawyer’s Wig (Coprinus comatus) fungus found at S end.
Counts
5 Great Crested Grebes
2 Swans
18 Greylag Geese
1 Cackling-type small Canada Goose
55 Canada Geese
1 all-white feral goose
41 (27) Mallard
1 all-white feral duck
28 (18) Tufted Ducks
3 Moorhen
14 Coots
66 Black-headed Gulls
c.360 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: 2 of these on the water
(Ed Wilson)
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Trench Lock Pool: 9:56am - 10:26am
Map
(44th visit of the year)
Notes
Mute Swan cygnets both gone.
8 of the Canada Geese were passing over towards Middle Pool.
As highlighted 3 Wigeon new in: 2 drakes. My first of the year at this site.
The 1st winter Common Gull also as highlighted: did not stay long-enough for a photo.
and
A Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) found on roof of my car: wherever it came from it ended up here!
The counts
2 Little Grebes
4 + 2 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
1 Grey Heron
2 Swans
42 Canada Geese
3 (2) Wigeon
8 (5) Mallard
29 (12?) Tufted Ducks
9 Moorhens
164 Coots
7 Black-headed Gulls
1 Common Gull
23 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
(Ed Wilson)