Priorslee Lake: 07:15 – 09:10
Location
Sunrise: 08:13 GMT
5°C > 7°C: Often very low cloud and mist; some clear bits early; drizzle at 08:00 and then light rain later. Calm with a light E wind later. Moderate visibility at best, sometimes poor
Gave up early in rather gloomy conditions
(169th visit of the year)
A very quiet day
Notes from today
- all duck numbers lower than on my last visit (Saturday). Not just today’s poor viewing conditions, there were many fewer present
- not sure about the number of Black-headed Gulls on the lake: I recorded >200 arriving low over the W end from the Ricoh area toward the lake. None of my scans of the lake revealed anything like that number on the water. So where did they go?
- Fieldfare roosting around the lake is unusual even if I logged only 2 birds
and
- female Winter Moth (I think) on the lamps
Counts of birds flying over the lake (in addition to those on / around lake)
- 10 Canada Geese
- 1 (1♂) Mallard
- 14 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 3 Feral Pigeons (1 group)
- 2 Wood Pigeons only
- 59 Jackdaws
- 1 Pied Wagtail
- 3 Fieldfares
- 4 Redwings
- 3 Greenfinches
- 3 Goldfinches
- 4 Siskins
- 1 Linnet
Birds leaving roost around lake
- 47 Magpies again
- 2 Fieldfares
- 6 Redwings
The counts from the lake area
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 4 (3♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Shoveler
- 6 (4♂) Pochard
- 38 (23♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Little Grebe again
- 5 Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Water Rails heard only
- 13 Moorhens
- 45? Coots
- >200 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
There is not much to go on here and female moths with no or vestigial wings are hard to separate. I think this is a female Winter Moth, mainly from the spurs on the legs. This feature is shared with Northern Winter Moth, but on females of that species the vestigial wings are larger. The all-dark body is more like a Dotted Border female but females of that species have even larger, but still vestigial wings; and none of that group of species shows spurs on the legs.
(Ed Wilson)
The Flash: 09:15 – 09:30
Location
(127th visit of the year)
Notes from here
- all 4 of the Canada Geese were keeping well away from each other
- Grey Wagtail here
Birds noted flying over
None
The counts from the water
- 2 Mute Swans
- 4 Canada Geese
- 1 all white feral goose
- 1 Great Crested Grebe again
- 29 (20♂) Mallard
- 3 (3♂) Pochard
- 34 (20♂) Tufted Ducks
- 13 (1♂) Goosander
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 3 Moorhens
- 12 Coots
- 15 Black-headed Gulls
(Ed Wilson)
Location
Sunrise: 08:13 GMT
5°C > 7°C: Often very low cloud and mist; some clear bits early; drizzle at 08:00 and then light rain later. Calm with a light E wind later. Moderate visibility at best, sometimes poor
Gave up early in rather gloomy conditions
(169th visit of the year)
A very quiet day
Notes from today
- all duck numbers lower than on my last visit (Saturday). Not just today’s poor viewing conditions, there were many fewer present
- not sure about the number of Black-headed Gulls on the lake: I recorded >200 arriving low over the W end from the Ricoh area toward the lake. None of my scans of the lake revealed anything like that number on the water. So where did they go?
- Fieldfare roosting around the lake is unusual even if I logged only 2 birds
and
- female Winter Moth (I think) on the lamps
Counts of birds flying over the lake (in addition to those on / around lake)
- 10 Canada Geese
- 1 (1♂) Mallard
- 14 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 3 Feral Pigeons (1 group)
- 2 Wood Pigeons only
- 59 Jackdaws
- 1 Pied Wagtail
- 3 Fieldfares
- 4 Redwings
- 3 Greenfinches
- 3 Goldfinches
- 4 Siskins
- 1 Linnet
Birds leaving roost around lake
- 47 Magpies again
- 2 Fieldfares
- 6 Redwings
The counts from the lake area
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 4 (3♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Shoveler
- 6 (4♂) Pochard
- 38 (23♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Little Grebe again
- 5 Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Water Rails heard only
- 13 Moorhens
- 45? Coots
- >200 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
(Ed Wilson)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Flash: 09:15 – 09:30
Location
(127th visit of the year)
Notes from here
- all 4 of the Canada Geese were keeping well away from each other
- Grey Wagtail here
Birds noted flying over
None
The counts from the water
- 2 Mute Swans
- 4 Canada Geese
- 1 all white feral goose
- 1 Great Crested Grebe again
- 29 (20♂) Mallard
- 3 (3♂) Pochard
- 34 (20♂) Tufted Ducks
- 13 (1♂) Goosander
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 3 Moorhens
- 12 Coots
- 15 Black-headed Gulls
(Ed Wilson)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On this day in ...........
2015Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here
2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here
2013
Priorslee Lake
1 ‘Nelson's Gull' but also colloquially ‘Viking Gull
3 Yellow-legged Gulls
1 Little Grebe
2 Siskins
4 Gadwall
2 Teal
4 Pochard
87 Tufted Duck
3 Goosander
236 Coots
1 Snipe
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
45 Redwings
(Ed Wilson/JW Reeves)
2012
Priorslee Lake
Ring-billed Gull hybrid
1800 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
500 Black-headed Gulls
100 Herring Gulls
2 Yellow-legged Gull
6 Greater Black-backed Gulls
1 Common Gull
1 Little Grebe
3 Redwings
1 Teal
9 Pochard.
40 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
c.170 Coots
3 Redwings
c.300 Jackdaws
(Ed Wilson / Tom Lowe)
2010
Priorslee Lake
2 Goldeneye
2 Sky Larks
c.25 Redwing
c.8 Fieldfare
12 Bullfinches
c.30 Siskins
1 Redpoll
(Ed Wilson)
2009
Priorslee Lake
Little Grebe
Black-necked Grebe
4 Great Crested Grebes
31 Swans
2 Greylag
33 Pochard
1 Willow Tit
c.35 Goldfinches
3 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe
26 Pochard
44 Tufted Ducks
73 Coots
7 Lapwings
>1500 Black-headed Gulls
>1300 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
38 Herring Gulls
1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
24 Robins
13 Blackbirds
5 Fieldfares
11 Redwings
1 Willow Tit
132 Jackdaws
7 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)
2005
Priorslee Lake
Wigeon
Water Rail
c.1500 Black-headed Gulls
2 Little Grebes
5 Great Crested Grebes
13 Pochard
40 Tufted Duck
235 Coot
270 Jackdaws
154 Rooks
2 Redpoll
5 Siskins
12 Pied Wagtails
2 Redwings
10 Fieldfares
21 Reed Buntings
13 Greenfinches
(Ed Wilson)