13.5°C > 14.5°C: Clear start to E with cloud rapidly approaching from the W, rain from 06:15, heavy after 06:45. Calm start with light / moderate ESE breeze later. Very good visibility reduced somewhat in rain
Sunrise: 05:18 BST
Highlights from today
- Common Sandpiper at the lake again
- 2 adult Common Terns at the lake again
and
- a Swallow Prominent moth on a lamp at The Flash – my first for 4 years at this once annual spot
Priorslee Lake: 04:30 – 06:00 // 06:45 – 07:20
(83rd visit of the year)
The council’s contractors were mowing the area around the running field / cricket pitch / open area next to the Holy Trinity Academy and enthusiastically cutting all the wildflowers on the banks to reduce it all to a neatly mown state – why? At least they seemed to be leaving the scrub
Other notes from today:
- an additional pair of adult Great Crested Grebes present
- a party of at least 14 House Martins overhead at the W end was a good count by recent standards
- a male House Sparrow had again ventured from the estate in to my recording area
and
- no moths on the lamps again: several spiders suggests that at least some insects are attracted to the new lamps
- a few Pearl Veneer (Agriphila straminella) grass moths again
- a Pipistrelle-type bat sp. at the W end (but no larger bats which I would have expected in the conditions)
On with the bird totals
Birds noted flying over the lake:
- 26 Greylag Geese (4 groups) all outbound
- 20 Canada Geese (6 groups) all outbound
- 1 Cormorant again
- 30 Wood Pigeons
- 2 Pied Wagtails
Hirundine etc. counts:
- >14 House Martins
Warblers counts: number in brackets = singing birds
- 2 (2) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (1) Blackcaps
- 1 (0) Common Whitethroat
- 4 (2) Reed Warblers
The counts from the lake area
- 2 + 3 Mute Swans
- 4 Canada Geese
- 25 (?♂) Mallard
- 5 (2♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron again
- 6 + 6 (2 broods) Great Crested Grebes
- 5 Moorhens
- [Coots not counted]
- 1 Common Sandpiper again
- 2 Common Terms again
- 39 (2 juvenile) Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
Clear to the E with cloud approaching from the W with ...
“Red sky in the morning, shepherds’ warning”
Really Red.
Six Canada Geese head out against the sunrise.
A different specimen of the same species.
Here we see a male with the female (I hope you are viewing this after the watershed ...)
Between the lake and The Flash alongside the path
- 1 adult Moorhen at the upper pool
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 06:10 – 06:40
(64th visit of the year)
Other notes from here
- I was wrong about the number of cygnets yesterday – just 4 remain (a photo from yesterday showed only 4 but as I had counted 5 I assumed one was lurking around the corner – not so)
- 2 Grey Herons were unexpected after many mainly blank visits
*** all counts affected by rain
Birds noted flying over
- 2 Wood Pigeons
Hirundine etc. noted
None
Warblers noted
None
The counts from the water
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 18 Greylag Geese again
- 84 Canada Geese
- 1 white feral goose
- 15 (12♂) + 5 (1 brood) Mallard
- 6 (1♂?) Tufted Duck
- 1 + 3 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Grey Herons
- 3 + 1 (1 brood) Moorhens
- 9 + 4 (2 broods) Coots only
- 3 (no juveniles) Black-headed Gulls
(Ed Wilson)
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On this day..........
2013
Priorslee Lake
Willow Tit
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)
Priorslee Lake
Willow Tit
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)