24 May 18

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

9.0°C > 11.5°C: Mainly cloudy with a very few spots of rain. Moderate ENE wind. Moderate visibility.

Sunrise: 05:00 BST

Priorslee Lake: 12:30

2 Common Tern and also  > 50 Swift and dozens of hirundines

(John Isherwood)

Priorslee Lake: 05:40 – 06:15 // 07:15 – 08:55

(58th visit of the year)

Notes from today:
- the same ‘resident’ 6 Mute Swans: the long-term pair have 5 cygnets (not 4 as I logged yesterday). The pair in the NE area are still sitting but the cob seemed very agitated today chasing the 3rd pair
- a pair of Tufted Ducks was first noted at 08:00: they left 08:20. The birds seen earlier at The Flash?
- two rather late Common Sandpipers, presumably on passage
- the same(?) two Common Terns first noted 05:55 and present until they disappeared at 08:15
- big party of at least 60 Swifts overhead with at least 5 House Martins amongst them
- 13 Starlings noted on the now less than pristinely kept ‘football field’. This is a most unusual sighting and suggests they are still finding nest holes around the estate
- Mistle Thrush singing near the Teece Drive gate for a while: new location
- 2 Linnets seen leaving the dam-face were unusual at this date

and
- nothing on the lamps again this morning
- a Common Roller (Ancylis badiana) [a Tortrix moth] flushed from the vegetation
- many Common stretch-spiders (Tetragnatha extensa)
- several Alder flies (likely Sialis lutaria) still on the sluice entrance
- also on the sluice entrance were several damselfly exuvia
- several Common Crane-fly (Tipula oleracea)

The following plants in flower are in addition to the list I provided yesterday (in no particular order)
- Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata)
- Yellow Rocket (Barbarea vulgaris)
- Birds foot-trefoil or Bacon and Eggs (Lotus corniculatus)
- Broom (perhaps Cytisus scoparius)
- Broad-leaved dock (Rumex obtusifolius)
- Crab Apple (Malus sylvestris)
- Common or Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica)

Today’s bird totals

Birds noted flying over / near the lake:
- 1 Black-headed Gull
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Stock Dove
- 2 Wood Pigeons only

Hirundines seen today
- >60 Common Swifts
- 1 Barn Swallow
- >5 House Martins

Warblers noted: figure in brackets is singing birds (not all the males seen might have been singing)
- 4 (4) Chiffchaffs
- 13 (13) Blackcaps
- 3 (3) Garden Warblers
- 1 (1) (Common) Whitethroat
- 4 (4) Reed Warblers

The counts from the lake area
- 6 + 5 (1) Mute Swans
- 10 (9♂) Mallard
- 4 + ? Great Crested Grebes
- no Moorhens again
- 21 Coots
- 2 Common Sandpipers
- 2 Common Terns again

So the resident Mute Swans have 5 cygnets. Always possible they lost a few after hatching.

The rather unexpected Common Sandpiper – usually passed through by this date.

The Common Terns were still about so managed a few ‘update’ shots. One, tail-spread, about to drop on a fish.

My best fly-by.

Or perhaps this one?

Compare and contrast time and a very lucky shot. On the left a Common Wood Pigeon and on the right a Stock Dove. Juvenile Wood Pigeons lack the white neck-patch but always show white on the bend of the wing. The slightly more compact Stock Dove always shows black patches in the wing.

A Common Starling on the ‘football field’ grass. I have never seen them use it before but perhaps when it was maintained as a sports facility it was too short to provide food.

Eventually there were as many as 13 – here are 11 of them.

A Common stretch-spider (Tetragnatha extensa) gets to work on breakfast. Its prey is too wrapped for me to identify.

Not just in Autumn: here is a Common Crane-fly (Tipula oleracea).

A damselfly exuvia: no idea of the species.

This small micro moth is Common Roller (Ancylis badiana)

This is the very common Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata).

One of those plants with many vernacular names – Yellow Rocket (Barbarea vulgaris) also called bittercress, herb barbara, rocketcress, yellow rocketcress, winter rocket, and wound rocket.

Another plant with many vernacular names – about 70 local names are known. I’ll stick to Birds foot-trefoil or Bacon and Eggs (Lotus corniculatus).

Likely planted or an escape – Broom (perhaps Cytisus scoparius though there are many cultivars).

After my confusion over what turned out to be Common Sorrel (Rumex acetosa) yesterday here is Broad-leaved dock (Rumex obtusifolius).

Most of the flowers nor over (while I was away). Just a few left from this Crab Apple (Malus sylvestris).

Not sure whether I can count this as a ‘flower’ as they are almost invisible – it is the top of a Common or Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica).

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:25 – 07:05

(43rd visit of the year)

A Reed Warbler that sang briefly from the scrub alongside Derwent Drive near the new fishing platform that destroyed the reeds found here was new for my site year-list which now stands at 60. This bird was probably provoked to sing by a passing party of Long-tailed Tits. I record this species here about one year in every two. As far as I know none has stayed to breed

Less unexpected were my first Swifts of the year here: species 61

Notes from today
- the long-term Mute Swan Yellow 52F was standing on the island: I could not see whether there was another bird on a nest somewhere. The 4 other birds were clustered in the NW area
- new brood of Mallard ducklings: at least 6 ducklings
- just 1 pair of Tufted Ducks: they seemed to disappear – see notes for the lake above
- only 1 Great Crested Grebe seen: with one of the large willows having collapsed under the snow and now in full leaf there is plenty of scope for a hidden nest
- no juvenile Coots seen again
- numbers of Swifts and House Martins hard to determine with birds wheeling overhead
also
- I do not note all the plant species here as there are many exotic garden escapes: just to note that the Yellow Flag irises are much more advanced than at the lake

Birds noted flying over
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull
- 1 Stock Dove

Hirundines etc. seen today
- >25 Swifts
- > 5 House Martins

Warblers noted: figures in brackets is singing birds (not all the males seen might have been singing)
- no Chiffchaffs
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 3 (3) Blackcaps
- 1 (1) Reed Warbler

The counts from the water
- 5 Mute Swans (see notes)
- 13 Canada Geese
- 10 (9♂) + 6 (1 brood) Mallard
- 2 (1♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 4 Moorhens
- 20 Coots

The ‘resident’ cob 52F stands on the island. I could not see a mate on a nest anywhere – he lost his original mate in March when she had to be put down after breaking a wing. He seemed unconcerned by ...

These four. Birds 1 and 3 have brighter more adult bills and birds 2 and 4 showed a hint of brown in the wing.

Rather distant: the brood of 6 Mallard ducklings with Mum.

Here the Yellow Flags (Iris pseudacorus) are more open. A bee sp. climbs along the markers to the nectar.

A Long-tailed Tit posed briefly.

Noted between the lake and The Flash
- a Moorhen heard calling from the upper pool
- 1 (1) Blackcap at the upper pool

(Ed Wilson)

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

2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2007
Priorslee Lake
Cuckoo
(Ed Wilson)