8 Sep 26

The Flash and Priorslee Balancing Lake

14.0°C> 15.0°C: Cloudy after earlier rain. A clearance in the north-west making very slow progress. Very light westerly breeze. Very good visibility.

[Sunrise: 06:32 BST]

* = a species photographed today
! = a first sighting of the species this year
$ = a new species for me in this area

I avoided the earlier rain and made short visits after the school-run, starting with The Flash.

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 09:20 – 10:20

(202nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the Mute Swan puzzle continues. I am sure there were two when I arrived. Later only one was visible lurking around the north-west reeds. Was I mistaken earlier.
- very few Black-headed Gulls.
- the only two Lesser Black-backed Gulls present when I arrived flew off.
- at least three Swifts were hawking over the trees on the East side of Castle Farm Way, appearing and disappearing. There could have been more.
- at least 100 Barn Swallows were over the water when I arrived. As the cloud lifted the numbers diminished though there were still c.50 present an hour later.
- two of at least 12 Chiffchaffs were heard singing as was one of the two Blackcaps. Strangely none of these was noted in the usual busy Ricoh (West end) hedge.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 7 Wood Pigeons

Counts from the lake area:
- 2? Mute Swans: see notes
- 51 (?♂) Mallard
- 2 (0♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 Moorhens
- 38 Coot
- 24? Great Crested Grebes
- 16 Black-headed Gulls
- no Herring Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: departed
- no Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 3+ *Swifts: see notes
- >100 Barn Swallows

Warblers noted:
- 12 Chiffchaffs: of these two in song
- 2 Blackcaps: of these one in quiet song

Also noted:
Very little in largely cloud conditions with still-wet vegetation.

Bees, wasps etc.:
- Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris

Fungus:
- [I forgot to look!]

On the West end street lamp poles:

Moths:
- 1 *Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 *harvestman from the species pair Dicranopalpus ramosus / D. caudatus

An adult Great Crested Grebe brings a fish to feed one of its brood.

Two of the brood of three are just about visible in front of the drowning(?) Mute Swan.

One of at least three Swifts that were hawking insects blown off the lake and over to the trees alongside Castle Farm Way. My "latest date" for this species in this area, most Swifts having departed in late July / early August.

A Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella still on one of the West end street lamp poles at 11:00.

Also on one of the poles was this harvestman from the species pair Dicranopalpus ramosus / D. caudatus. These species typically rest with their long legs bunched at right-angles to the body. The long pedipalps are also a feature.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Flash: 10:30 – 11:25

(199th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- now six Mute Swans.
- yesterday's Tufted Duck gone.
- now six brownhead Goosander.
- two adult, one immature and *all four juvenile Great Crested Grebe seen. Only one of the adults seemed to be feeding the juveniles, the other consorting with the immature.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 1 Jackdaw

Noted on / around the water:
- 6 Canada Geese
- 2 Greylag Geese:
- 6 Mute Swans
- 35 (?♂) *Mallard
- no Tufted Duck
- 6 (0♂) *Goosander
- 8 *Moorhens
- 26 Coot again
- 3 + 4 (1 brood) *Great Crested Grebe
- 23 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Cormorants
- 2 Grey Herons

Warblers noted:
- 1 Chiffchaff

Noted around the area:
Cloudy and still wet from the earlier rain

Bees, wasps etc.:
- 2 Common Wasps Vespula vulgaris

True Flies:
- 1 $* flesh fly, perhaps Miltogramma punctata aka Spotted Bee-burglar

Are we confused? The four juvenile Great Crested Grebes seem to think they should join the flotilla of brownhead Goosanders. Perhaps they have mistaken the brown heads for their parents with their brownish plumes? [Apologies for the reflection in the water of a lamp post]

Unusual bed-fellows? A trio of Mallard (with one moulting drake), an adult and juvenile Moorhen share space with a Carrion Crow.

This Carrion Crow. Seen well they are far from "all black" with various grey and blue-black feathers.

I found this distinctive fly on one of the street lamp poles. It is certainly one of the flesh fly group and seem a good match to Miltogramma punctata which is sometimes known as a Spotted Bee-burglar because the larvae are found in underground bee nests.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2013
Priorslee Lake
Adult winter Mediterranean Gull
(J Reeves)

2011
Priorslee Lake
Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
Kingfisher
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
2 juvenile Ruddy Ducks
(Ed Wilson)

7 Sep 26

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

18.0°C > 14.0°C> 16.0°C: Early breaks giving way to drizzle between 07:40 and 08:30 after which cloud lifted somewhat. Very light south-westerly breeze. Excellent visibility but only good in drizzle.

Sunrise: 06:29 BST

* = a species photographed today
! = a first sighting of the species this year
$ = a new species for me in this area

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 05:05 – 09:05

(201st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the Mute Swan puzzle not entirely sorted. At dawn there were two asleep side by side and then keeping close company as they awoke. A third bird was noted some short distance from them c.07:15 with no sign of aggression. Then at c.08:00 one was chasing another with vigour on the south-west grass and by 08:15 the third bird had gone / was hiding? So: did the residents have a few days holiday away and chase an opportunist away? Is this a new pair with one of the old pair having gone missing and the other now chased away? I may get a clue if I can read any rings but with the man who did the ringing having moved away some years ago many birds cannot be identified nowadays.
- a remarkable count of 60 Mallard. A number unthinkable a few years ago.
- the first two Black-headed Gulls arrived at 05:45. As yesterday eventually c.350 present. Today *this number was on the football field c.07:00. No other gulls were noted in the melee.
- only two Lesser Black-backed Gulls visited early. Eleven noted later. Why so variable?
- no Herring Gulls visited early. Three were noted later.
- a Cormorant visited: the first for a while.
- after yesterday's hirundine bonanza I failed to see a single individual today even during the drizzle.
- a Kingfisher was seen in flight over the water.
- four of at least 13 Chiffchaffs were heard singing as were two of the three Blackcaps.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 19 Canada Geese: a single and a group of 14 few East; a quartet flew West
- 1 Herring Gull
- 23 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 22 Feral Pigeons: two groups
- 3 Stock Doves: together
- 36 Wood Pigeons
- 135 Jackdaws
- 133 Rooks

Counts from the lake area:
- 3 *Mute Swans: see notes
- 60 (?♂) Mallard
- 10 (3♂?) Tufted Duck
- 5 Moorhens
- 44 *Coot only
- 21 Great Crested Grebes again
- c.350 *Black-headed Gulls
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 13 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant arrived
- 1 *Grey Heron
- 1 Kingfisher

Hirundines etc. noted:

None

Warblers noted:
- 13 Chiffchaffs: of these four in song
- 3 Blackcaps: of these two in song

Also noted:
Very little in the drizzle and subsequent wet vegetation.

Bees, wasps etc.:
- Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris

Fungus:
- *as yet unidentified fungus

On the West end street lamp poles around dawn:

Moths:
none

Bees, wasps etc.:
- >6 *Common Wasps Vespula vulgaris
- 1 European Hornet Vespa crabro

Flies:
- 1 midge

Bugs:
- 2 *Red-legged Shieldbug Pentatoma rufipes

Beetles:
- 1 *Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis var. succinea

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spider Larinioides sclopetarius [Bridge Orbweaver]
- 1 *presumed exoskeleton

Mammals:
- a single pipistrelle-type bat was flying above the south-west grass c.05:45.

The pre-dawn sky with cloud moving in from behind me. Note some of the many Mallard present today bottom-centre of the photo.

Just as the sun popped over the horizon there was some colour in those clouds.

Two Mute Swans battling on the south-west grass and scattering the Coots.

Part of the group of c.350 Black-headed Gulls on the football field. Hard to count. What are they eating? During the drought when the grass was brown the gulls were never here.

The parent Great Crested Grebe has a fish. The juvenile wants it.

The parent dropped the now dead fish in front of the juvenile to teach it how to catch and swallow prey.

Unfortunately the action took place too far away for decent viewing and this sequence is heavily zoomed in and edited. The Grey Heron has just plucked a large fish out of the water, the fish hanging out both sides of the heron's bill.

The heron now has to manoeuvre the unwilling fish so that it goes down the throat head-first and thus any fish spines do not impeded its progress or cut the heron's mouth.

Definitely a struggle.

I wouldn't normally show yet another photo of a Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris but this example, caught with wings akimbo as it was investigating one of the street lamp poles, is sufficiently "different". I am not sure I realised that the yellow on the thorax was quite such a different tone to the yellow on the abdomen.

A Red-legged Shieldbug Pentatoma rufipes. I wonder why they gave it that name?

A Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis of the form succinea. The NatureSpot web site tells me that recently emerged adults frequently have yet to develop some or all of the spots.

I took a similar photo yesterday and discarded it as "spider unidentifiable at strange angle". I now believe it to be the discarded exoskeleton of most likely a Bridge Orb-web Spider Larinioides sclopetarius.

A group of fungus has soon emerged with the recent rain.

I should have done some "gardening". Obsidentify's suggestion was "Brown Rat Rattus norvegicus"! I'll try again if they are still extant tomorrow.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Moths:
- 1 *probable Brown House-moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella
- 1 *! Snout Hypena proboscidalis

Four-winged flies:
- 1 *Common Green Lacewing Chrysoperia carnea

True flies:
- 5 midges
- 1 cranefly from the Limonid group
- 2 moth fly Psychodidae sp. [Drain Fly or Owl Fly]

Arthropods:
none

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 *Large House Spider-type from the Eratigena group.
- 1 *Noble or False Widow Spider Steatoda nobilis
- 1 *! crab spider Xysticus cristatus
- 9 Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata [Silver-sided Sector Spider]

I will get his double-checked as it seems very dark for what I believe to be a Brown House-moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella. I cannot see an alternative and my apps both give vague suggestions of moth families that less unlikely.

This is a Snout moth Hypena proboscidalis. I see this species most years, usually in June. This must be from a second generation that my Field Guide notes is unusual from the Midlands northwards.

A Common Green Lacewing Chrysoperia carnea. Not common in the tunnel. The specific location is beside one of the bolts holding a ceiling strip-light surround.

In addition to the nine Missing Sector Orb-web Spiders Zygiella x-notata hanging between the ceiling and the wall I noted three other species of spider. This looks to be one of Large House Spider-type from the Eratigena group.

The all-red legs and the white crescent around the front of the abdomen suggest this is a Noble or False Widow Spider Steatoda nobilis.

And finally a crab spider that I believe to be Xysticus cristatus.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Flash: 09:10 – 10:15

(198th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- only five Mute Swans seen.
- five Tufted Duck on the open water: at least two drakes.
- four brownhead Goosander seen.
- two adult, one immature and all *four juvenile Great Crested Grebe present and correct.
- it seems strange that while Chiffchaffs remain numerous at the Balancing Lake they seem to have moved away from here even though there seemed to be at least four and probably five breeding territories.

Other bird notes:
I last noted the Ring-necked Parakeet on 19 August. I was told today that posters had asked for the return of a pet parakeet. I know parrots and parakeets are kept as pets even though many species are extremely noisy. Would anyone keep this now-native UK species?

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 1 Greylag Goose
- 1 Jackdaw

Noted on / around the water:
- 5 Canada Geese
- no Greylag Geese:
- 5 Mute Swans
- 27 (17?♂) Mallard only
- 5 (2?♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 (0♂) Goosander
- 7 Moorhens
- 26 Coot
- 3 + *4 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebe: see notes
- 36 Black-headed Gulls
- 3 Cormorants
- 1 Grey Heron

Warblers noted:

None

Noted around the area:

Still wet from the earlier rain

Bees, wasps etc.:
- 3 Honey Bees Apis mellifera
- 4 Common Wasps Vespula vulgaris

All four fast-growing juvenile Great Crested Grebes were briefly together in open water.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2013
Priorslee Lake
Little Grebe
3 Shoveler
Green Sandpiper
Tawny Owl
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Wrekin
Firecrest
(J Shutt)

2011
Priorslee Lake
Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
Snipe
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
Kingfisher
(Ed Wilson)

6 Sep 26

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

13.0°C > 17.0°C: *Early breaks giving red sky. Rain between 06:30 and 07:45 after which cloud lifted and broke though little in the way of sun. Increasing south-easterly breeze. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 06:28 BST

* = a species photographed today
! = a first sighting of the species this year
$ = a new species for me in this area

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 05:00 – 09:10

(200th visit of the year)

New bird species:
An addition to my 2026 bird list from this site. A Kestrel was overhead Castle Farm Way and then seen hovering over a field to the East c.06:15. This year's species total staggers to #95.

Bird notes:
- a group of five Canada Geese flew in early from the West. Another joined them. After a while all six departed to the East.
- only one Mute Swan. Very strange. Last Tuesday I noted two additional birds to the resident pair, only one of which departed while I was present. On my later-than-usual visit last Wednesday I noted only a single swan. Then Thursday at first light again just one but another "appeared" later though they did not interact at all and were often well-apart.
- all the adult and juvenile Great Crested Grebes spent most of the time on the surface. 21 birds counted.
- meanwhile Coots remain in low numbers.
- the first two Black-headed Gulls had arrived at 05:50. Eventually c.350 present. Many of these left to the West heading for the football field but something spooked them as I was about to get there: at least 100 flew off, back toward the lake.
- at least 175 Lesser Black-backed Gulls visited early. 16 noted later.
- at least five Herring Gulls visited early. Four noted later.
- a lone Swift flew through c08:40. I only have "latest date" records for the last ten years: this is the latest,
- *during the rain there was at least 150 Barn Swallows feeding over the water. As the weather improved numbers declined and many were flying much higher. I did not see any obvious groups departing, birds merely fading away. Several food passes noted. Possibly the largest number I have seen in Autumn. Bad weather in late April / early May can result in similar numbers.
- a few House Martins were high overhead above the mass of Barn Swallow. At least four, maybe many more.
- two of at least 11 Chiffchaffs were noted singing as was one of the three Blackcaps.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 12 Greylag Geese: two singles flew West; a party of ten flew East.
- 20 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Common Kestrel
- 10 Feral Pigeons: two groups
- 2 Stock Doves: together
- 38 Wood Pigeons
- 170 Jackdaws
- 162 Rooks

Counts from the lake area:
- 6 Canada Geese briefly: see notes
- 1 Mute Swan only
- 47 (?♂) Mallard
- 11 (4♂?) Tufted Duck
- 4 Moorhens
- 25 Coot only
- 21 Great Crested Grebes
- c.350 *Black-headed Gulls
- 9 *Herring Gulls
- c.190 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 1 Swift
- >*150 Barn Swallows
- >4 House Martins

Warblers noted:
- 11 Chiffchaffs: of these two in song
- 3 Blackcaps: one of these in quiet sub-song

Also noted:
Very little in the rain and subsequent wet vegetation.

Bees, wasps etc.:
- Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris

On the West end street lamp poles around dawn:

Moths:
- 1* unidentified plume moth
- 1 *Centre-barred Sallow Atethmia centrago

Bees, wasps etc.:
- 3 Common Wasps Vespula vulgaris
- 1 *ichneumon wasp

Flies:
- 1 midge

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 *Furrow Orbweaver Larinioides cornutus [Furrow Spider]
- 1 harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis

Mammals:
- several pipistrelle-type bats were flying above the south-west grass c.05:45.

An excellent sunrise again. Just starting.

A dramatic cloud-scape at times.

Even better.

Maximum colour. Note the Grey Heron on one of the platforms bottom centre. The weather looked good but turning 120 degrees and...

 ...here comes the rain complete with a disappointing rainbow.

An adult Herring Gull in wing moult with the two outermost primaries still to be dropped. Strangely inner primaries (or outer secondaries) look to be regrowing. These are usually the first to be dropped and regrown. Note too the winter head-streaking is beginning to emerge. I am not sure why this bird seems to show no red spot on the lower mandible.

During the rain the entire surface of the lake looked like this. Barn Swallows everywhere.

I am not sure what was happening here. A group of the swallows broke away and started flying at the flowering sedges along the front of the dam. There are five birds in this view. One of them could be plucking an insect from the vegetation. As soon as I approached for a closer look the swallows flew away.

One I managed to photograph later when it had stopped raining and the light was better. This I think a juvenile: insignificant tail-streamers and the red on the face looking washed out. No gape-line visible though.

This moth was flying around a West end street lamp and then briefly settled on vegetation. At the time I assumed it was a Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla but the pale areas in the outer part of the rolled up wing suggest otherwise. I have been unable to match the pattern against any illustrations in the Field Guide and none of my apps has been prepared to go further than "plume moth".

Trying to hide around the inaccessible back of a street lamp pole was this Centre-barred Sallow moth Atethmia centrago. My last record of this species here was in 2020.

An ichneumon wasp. No chance of a more specific identify from the huge group of similar insects.

I think this spider is a Furrow Orbweaver Larinioides cornutus. Obsidentify was 100% sure whereas Google Lens suggested the related species Bridge Orb-web Spider L. sclopetarius which is common on the street lamp poles pre-dawn but always appears much darker.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

The now regular early pre-dawn visit:

Moths:
none

Bees, wasps etc.:
- 1 Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris

Flies:
- 3 midges
- 2 moth fly Psychodidae sp. [Drain Fly or Owl Fly]

Arthropods:
none

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 6 Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata [Silver-sided Sector Spider]
- 2 *unidentified spiders

Unidentified spider #1. The pale stripe down the abdomen is from the camera flash and not part of the markings.

Unidentified spider #2. Note the tiny insect (a springtail?) living dangerously.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Flash: 09:15 – 10:20

(197th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- eight Mute Swans. One was in chasing mood, without success
- *two duck Tufted Duck were noted tucked up alongside the island.
- *three brownhead Goosander seen
- one adult and one immature Great Crested Grebe were noted. Three of the four juveniles were glimpsed tucked up under overhanging vegetation around the island. It was quite possible the fourth was lurking there. The adult was seen on several different occasions and there could have been more than one bird involved.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 19 *Canada Geese
- 2 Greylag Geese:
- 8 Mute Swans
- 18 (?♂) Mallard only
- 2 (0♂) *Tufted Duck
- 3 (0♂) *Goosander
- 5 Moorhens
- 19 Coot
- 2 + 3 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebe: see notes
- 34 Black-headed Gulls
- 5 *Cormorants
- 2 *Grey Herons

Warblers noted:

None

Noted around the area:

Still wet from the earlier rain

Butterflies:
none

Moths:
- 2 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 1* Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla

Bees, wasps etc.:
- 1 Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris

Hoverflies:
none

True flies:
- 1 *long-legged fly Dolichopus ungulatus or similar
a few other unidentified flies seen.

Bugs:
none

Beetles:
none

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 harvestman Opilio canestrinii

Fungus:
- *Blushing Bracket Daedaleopsis confragosa

One of the brownhead Goosanders. An annoying wavelet makes the lower mandible look odd.

From the left: a Cormorant; two duck Tufted Duck asleep against the island; a Canada Goose; and a dishevelled Grey Heron.

This first-winter Black-headed Gull does not seen to care it is sitting on what the council determine is an "unsafe structure".

This IS a Common Plume moth Emmelina monodactyla.

A long-legged fly Dolichopus ungulatus or similar. The leaf it was standing on was blowing around in the breeze: the fly seemed unconcerned and never in any danger of falling off. Must have suctions pads on its feet.

A Blushing Bracket Daedaleopsis confragosa fungus from above and...

 ...from below. I was dangling my smart phone to get underneath the fungus and trying to fire the shutter. Seems I was a bit too close!

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2011
Priorslee Lake
Common Sandpiper
(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill
2 Yellow Wagtails
(John Isherwood)

2006
Priorslee Lake
Spotted Flycatcher
(Ed Wilson)