24 Oct 17

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

13.0°C > 15.0°C: Some clear areas to E to start, otherwise low cloud with occasional light rain. Fresh SW wind. Very good visibility. Very mild again

Sunrise: 07:51 BST

Most of the interest was at The Flash this morning. However the best bird of the day was probably the adult winter Common Gull at the lake

Priorslee Lake: 06:55 – 09:30

(128th visit of the year)

Other notes from today:
- 4 Mallards overhead few very high W; presumed the same flew lower E a few minutes later
- now four duck Gadwalls: now 4 pairs and 1 ‘spare’ duck
- Jackdaws field-skimming this morning: usually they have to fly up and over the M54 and I can see at least most of them. Today the initial group comprised no more than 25 individuals. So where were they?
- no Starlings seen leaving any roost again
- 3 Grey Wagtails seen flying off high S: another? on the dam-face later
- a lone Meadow Pipit overhead – rather unusually heading N
and
- 1 November Moth-type flew past me
- nothing on the lamps today

On with today’s bird totals

Birds noted flying over the lake:
- 41 Canada Goose (2 groups inbound)
- 4 (?♂) Mallard
- 2 Cormorants
- 3 Common Buzzards
- 18 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 29 Wood Pigeons
- 123 Jackdaws only
- 6 Rooks
- 13 Starlings (1 group)
- 3 Pied Wagtails
- 1 Meadow Pipit
- 30 Fieldfare (2 groups)
- 36 Redwings (7 singles/groups)
- 2 Skylarks yet again
- 4 Greenfinches
- 5 Goldfinches

The counts from the lake area
- 2 + 3 Mute Swans
- 9 (5♂) Gadwall
- 10 (5♂) Mallard
- 39 (16♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron again
- 1 Little Grebe
- 6 + 3 Great Crested Grebes again
- 1 Water Rail heard
- 6 Moorhens
- 149 Coots
- >110 Black-headed Gulls
- 21 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Common Gull

 It was not a bad start.

Both taken before the ‘Telford hat’ of low cloud came over and turned it very dull.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:35 – 10:15

(93rd visit of the year)

Notes from here
- the Greylag Geese somewhere else this morning
- 4 Goosanders were my first of the season here and my first here since 12 March: one obvious drake and another moulting in to drake plumage
- 1 Grey Heron: my first here since 05 August
- an additional adult Great Crested Grebe today
- 10 of the Jackdaws went up in response to the over flying Sparrowhawk, as did the 14 Starlings
- as I arrived 46 Redwings landed in the trees around The Priorslee pub (along with 9 Goldfinches). Later c.35 flew out of other trees around the lake. Nine, probably of the original 46 flushed out of trees. At least 5 more overhead had nothing to do with these birds
- the 3 over-flying finch sp. proved that Murphy’s Law is alive a well: they chose to fly over just as the only car for many minutes chose to drive-by, drowning any flight calls

Bird noted flying over
- 1 Sparrowhawk again
- 1 Feral Pigeon again
- 23 Jackdaws
- 14 Starlings
- 5 Redwings
- 1 Greenfinch
- 2 Goldfinches
- 3 unidentified finches

The counts from the water
- 2 + 2 Mute Swans
- 1 Greylag x Canada Goose again
- 35 Canada Geese again
- 1 white feral goose again
- 31 (21♂) Mallard
- 29 (16♂) Tufted Ducks
- 4 (2♂) Goosander
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Grey Heron
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 4 Moorhens
- 14 Coots
- 34 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

The drake and a brownhead Goosander.

The right-hand bird here seems to be moulting in to drake plumage: a different brownhead with it.

This was my first observation of this behaviour at The Flash and it is some years since I have noted it at the lake , and then more usually in mid-summer. These Black-headed Gulls were hovering over and diving in to the tops of these Alders. They are certainly not trying to land and I have always assumed they are gleaning insects. Just what this might be at this time of year.

This one ... 

... certainly seems to have found something.

This one is diving in to the top of willows – it was normally Poplars at the lake.

This one certainly seems to be homing in on something ...

 ... and it does not have its feet out trying to land.

... and here apparently plucking something off the leaves.

(Ed Wilson)

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On this day..........

2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2010
Priorslee Lake
733 Wood Pigeons
11 Sky Larks
151 Fieldfare
20 Redwings
2 Brambling
2 Linnets
2 Redpolls
(Ed Wilson)

2009
Priorslee Lake
5 Wigeon
1 Little Grebe
(John Isherwood)

The Flash
1 Shoveler 
1 Teal (female)
1 Common Gull
(John Isherwood)