7 Feb 18

Priorslee Lake: then Trench Lock Pool and Trench Middle Pool

-2.5°C > 1.0°C : Clear and sunny. Light mainly NW wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 07:43 GMT

Priorslee Lake: 06:25 – 09:40

(19th visit of the year)

Two new species for me here this year
- a Woodcock seen flying across the lake to roost in the SW copse at 06:45: my 3rd record of birds in this area this winter – in previous years they have tended to roost in the NE area
- a Green Woodpecker was calling along the N side later
My site year-list now stands at 62 bird species
[the Greylag x Canada Goose does not count as not a real species]

Other notes from today:
- even more Mute Swans today
- 2 Little Grebes were my first for several days: I am sure they have been lurking somewhere all the while
- Moorhens do not like frost and stay away from the SW grass where up to 6 birds can be usually found. So a low count today. But where do they go?
- the Black-headed Gulls began to arrive by 06:45 – earlier than usual. Eventually at least 280 – many more than the last few days. However they almost all left. A few also flew straight over
- very few Wood Pigeons in the trees around the lake or flying over: >160 seen in trees to far N
- my attempt to census the Magpie roost this morning was thwarted: for some reason they started making a large fuss at c.06:45 and apparently started leaving before there was enough light to see them. Like the Black-headed Gulls they normally get active much later
- 3 of the Reed Buntings flew out of the NW reeds together with 2 Starlings; another three left a few minutes later. Two singles had already left
and
- the lamps remain empty

Today’s bird totals

Birds noted flying over / near the lake:
- 1 Greylag x Canada Goose
- 20 Canada Geese (6 in 2 parties outbound; 14 together inbound)
- 1 Cormorant
- 13 Black-headed Gulls
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Stock Dove
- 6 Wood Pigeons
- c.275 Jackdaws
- 5 Rooks
- 1 Greenfinch again

Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:
- >34 Magpies (see notes)
- 2 Starlings
- 8 Reed Buntings

The counts from the lake area
- 9 + 4 Mute Swans
- 20 Canada Geese
- 9 (6♂) Gadwall
- 22 (13♂) Mallard
- 4 (3♂) Pochard
- 31 (16♂) Tufted Ducks
- 4 Cormorants
- 1 Grey Heron
- 2 Little Grebes
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 3 Moorhens only
- 77 Coots
- 280 Black-headed Gulls

Unencumbered by any cloud this morning we see the waning super blue moon.

Clear weather means frost and an unexciting dawn. Small amount of ice around the base of the reeds.

Several of the visiting Mute Swans were more obliging and allowed their rings to be read today. Here is Orange 21U. Martin Grant, who keeps track of ringed Mute Swans seen in Shropshire, tells me this was ringed as a cygnet in 2016 at Lakeside Lake, Stourbridge and thereafter on the River Severn at Bewdley until November 2017.

Not only can we read the Darvic ring, here we can almost read the BTO ring as well – looks like VA3821 to me.

And here is an unusual green-ringed bird – CF59. This female was born as long ago as 2001 and ringed on the River Dee at Chester in June 2002. There have been no other reported sightings until it turned up here a few days ago.

This adult Cormorant declined to go and sit on the decking and pose for its photo. All I could get was this flight shot.

Always happy to take a photo of a male Bullfinch.

This female Siskin spent most of its time preening so it looked rather scruffy when it paused and allowed me to get this shot.

(Ed Wilson)

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Trench Lock Pool: 09:50 – 10:05 // 10:50 – 11:50

(8th visit of the year)

c.10% ice

Notes from here
- pair of Shoveler new in
- Pochard back again
- no sign of Monday’s Goldeneye
- the fine weather tempted the Buzzards in to the air – six together
- higher number of Coots probably because ice at the edges had forced birds on to the water. Possibly some influx from small ice-over waters in the area?
- Great Spotted Woodpecker heard calling

Birds noted flying over here [apart from the local Wood Pigeons and Jackdaws coming and going]
- 4 Canada Geese
- 6 Buzzards

New bird species for me here this year were Shoveler, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Chaffinch. My 2018 site total is now 44 bird species

The counts from the water
- 1 + 6 Mute Swans
- 6 Canada Geese
- 6 (3♂) Mallards
- 1 (1♂) ‘feral’ Mallard again
- 2 (1♂) Shoveler
- 7 (6♂) Pochard
- 67 (35♂) Tufted Ducks
- 4 (2♂) Goosanders
- 2 Little Grebes
- 5 Great Crested Grebes
- 5 Moorhens
- 77 Coots
- 34 Black-headed Gulls only
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls again

Duck Goosander time: first compare and contrast the shape with a duck Tufted Duck.

And compare with a Canada Goose.

Dig that hair-style! We can see the serrations along the bill cutting-edge.

The reason for her hair-do was the presence of the drake. She has her mouth wide-open – we cannot see the lower mandible! The serrations on the bill are very obvious. If you ask me he looks a bit of a spiv ...

... and he seems more interested in catching fish.

Gone!

Coots are inveterate nest-builders. This one has started early in the season.

There were six Buzzards circling together overhead for a while. Here are two of them – and rather different in plumage they are too.

And here is an even paler bird ...

And here it is with the sun on the underwing.

Another (I think) heading towards me.

And clearly watching me.

This is a bit of a cheat but makes a point. When I was starting bird-watching I saw corvids harassing a very distant Buzzard. The leader of the nature walk announced them as Crows. I asked how he knew at that range. He replied that only Crows attack Buzzards and I have more or less believed that ever since. Last week I photographed what turned out to be Jackdaws harassing a Buzzard here. This photo, taken over farmland near Newport, clearly shows that Rooks also do so. Moral: use your eyes.

Another species I am always happy to snap is Long-tailed Tit.

(Ed Wilson)

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Trench Middle Pool: 10:10 – 10:45

(8th visit of the year)

c.50% ice

Notes from here
- high number of Black-headed Gulls again
- Redwing in the scrubby trees along the N side: a Song Thrush alongside it

Birds noted flying over here
None

The Redwing was a new bird species for me here this year today. My 2018 site total is now 36 bird species

The counts from the water
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans
- 35 Canada Geese
- 18 (13♂) Mallard
- 2 (0♂) ‘feral’ Mallard again
- 14 (10♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Grey Heron
- 2 Great Crested Grebes remain
- 13 Moorhens
- 45 Coots
- 138 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

(Ed Wilson)

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

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
Velvet Scoter
(Observer Unknown)

2013
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
1 Iceland Gull
(Tom Lowe)

2006
Priorslee Lake
1 Water Rail
c.1100 Black-headed Gulls
131 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
35 Herring Gulls
3 Great Black-backed Gulls
2 Gadwall
14 Pochard
42 Tufted Ducks
162 Coots
1 Water Rail
293 Jackdaw
105 Rook
c.120 Starling
27 Robins
18 Blackbirds
2 Willow Tits
8 Greenfinches
28 Siskins
2 Redpolls
19 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)