3 Feb 16

Priorslee Lake: 11:40 – 13:30
Location

c.7°C. Passing showers; moderate / fresh WNW wind; very good visibility except in showers

(13th visit of the year)

Notes
- most things on the water in lower numbers than on Monday – perhaps because Wednesday’s is the day for the Model Boat Club to sail on the lake. That said the birds that were present did not seem to be taking any notice of the boats or the assembled operators
- Tufted Duck numbers bucked the trend – presumably back from The Flash because the wind had died down somewhat
- Cetti’s Warbler still present: heard calling briefly in the NW area and then glimpsed even more briefly in flight
also
- a Pale Brindled Beauty moth found freshly dead in a spider’s web – my first moth of the year
- Blackthorn (Sloe) beginning to flower
- Red Campion (Silene dioica) in flower

Overhead were
- 15 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls

 The counts from the lake area
- 2 Mute Swans
- 3 (2?) Gadwall
- 5 (3?) Mallard
- 20 (17?) Pochard
- 36 (16?) Tufted Ducks
- 5 Cormorants
- 17 Great Crested Grebes
- 8 Moorhens
- 89 Coots
- 52 Black-headed Gulls
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls

This moth trapped in a web and blowing in the strong wind can be identified from the wing-edge pattern as a Pale Brindled Beauty – but only when the camera is used to mostly stop the movement.

One of my better attempts to photograph the normally shy Jay. There were several of us on the footpath at the W end and the Jay seemed confused as to how it kept tabs on us all and as a result I was able to get this shot.

Must be Spring? Not really as Red Campion (Silene dioica) flowers throughout the year. That said these do look like fresh flowers.

I thought I was doing well to see a few early flowers of Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) until ...

... I found this sheltered area where the branches were already thick with blossom.

(Ed Wilson)

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 The Flash: 13:40 – 14:00
Location

(9th visit of the year)

Notes
- numbers of most species reduced here as well

 Birds noted flying over
None

The counts from the water
- 2 Mute Swans
- 9 Canada Geese
- 1 all-white feral goose
- 26 (17?) Mallard
- 82 (52?) Tufted Duck
- 1 all-white feral duck
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 2 Moorhens
- 17 Coots again
- 23 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull

(Ed Wilson)

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On this day in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014
2014
Priorslee Lake
1 Yellow-legged Gull
1 Viking, or possibly a dark Iceland
(J Reeves)

 Telford Crematorium
1 Caspian Gull
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Tom Lowe)

2013
Priorslee Lake
12 Wigeon
6 Gadwall
3 Pochard
32 Tufted Duck
2 Reed Bunting
(Tony Beckett)

 The Flash
15 Pochard 
53 Tufted Duck
3 Goosander
(Tony Beckett)

 Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
1 Glaucous Gull
1 Glaucous x Great Black-backed Gull
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Tom Lowe / Andy Latham)

2012
Priorslee Lake
26 Pochard
29 Tufted Duck
>5000 gulls
Ring-billed Gull hybrid
2 Yellow-legged Gulls
4 Great Black-backed Gulls
(Roger Clay / Ed Wilson / John Isherwood / Martin Grant)

 Trench Pool
Snipe
(Dave Tromans)

 2011
Priorslee Lake
8 Pochard
14 Tufted Duck 
77 Herring Gull
5 Pale Brindled Beauty moths
(Ed Wilson)

2010
Priorslee Lake
Merlin
(Observer Unknown)

2009
Priorslee Lake
3 Sky Larks
4 Fieldfare
c.55 Redwings
(Ed Wilson)

 2007
Priorslee Lake
17 Pochard
37 Tufted Ducks
1 Goldeneye
3 Lapwings
30 Robins
14 Blackbirds
1 Fieldfare
11 Song Thrushes
3 Redwing
3 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

 2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Gadwall
2 Wigeon
19 Pochard
77 Tufted Ducks
151 Coots
1 Water Rail
15 Robins
13 Blackbirds
90 Siskin
5 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)