2 Oct 18

Priorslee Lake and Priorslee Flash 

Priorslee Lake: 06:20 – 09:05

The Flash: 09:10 – 09:50

14°C throughout: Mainly cloudy: a few breaks early. Moderate WNW wind. Very good visibility

Sunrise: 07:12 BST

Highlight today was the juvenile Pink-footed Goose, unringed but of unknown provenance, that arrived at The Flash with a small group of Greylag Geese at c.09:45. My 70th bird species at The Flash this year and perhaps my first-ever here. Certainly precedes my computer records. I recorded a single juvenile Pink-footed Goose in with >200 Greylag Geese at the SOS Reserve at Venus Pool last Thursday (28th). The same bird?

Otherwise it was a very quiet morning

Priorslee Lake: 06:20 – 09:05

(121st visit of the year)

Bird notes:

- Tufted Ducks rather ‘jumpy’ today, flying around and chasing. Counting hard: sexing impossible

- Jackdaws did not pass in a single large party this morning: in 11 singles / groups on various flight lines. Some possibly hedge-hopped to the E – they do this when it is windy – and would have been out of sight for me

- no Chiffchaffs was rather strange: I doubt they have left yet

- but an unexpected Blackcap called and then gave a brief quiet song. Not sure I have heard this species sing in Autumn before

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake

- 2 Cormorants

- 1 Common Buzzard

- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

- 30 Wood Pigeons

- 101 Jackdaws

- 88 Rooks

- 3 Pied Wagtails

Warblers noted

- no Chiffchaffs ...

- 1 (1) Blackcap

The counts from the lake area

- 2 + 3 (1 brood) Mute Swans

- 3 (2♂) Gadwall again

- 3 (2♂) Mallards

- 61 (?♂) Tufted Ducks

- 4 Little Grebes

- 4 + 1 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes again

- 11 Moorhens

- 128 Coots

- 49 Black-headed Gulls

- 7 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

And other notes

- my log today consisted of

- 1 wasp sp. on the lamps

- 1 fly sp. on the lamps

- 1 Common Crane-fly (Tipula oleracea)

- 1 Garden Spider on the lamps

- 1 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestman on the lamps

“Feed me, feed me”. The persistent pleading calls of the juvenile Great Crested Grebe are ever-present around the lake. If it were me I’d clip it around the ear. Perhaps it is as well I don’t have children.

I watched the parent make at least 10 fruitless dives but eventually it surfaced with the goods.

And performed a beak-to-beak transfer to keep the infant quiet for a while.

The adult looking on ready to help if the juvenile drops it.

With many small species of fly still on the wing at this date identification of this specimen on one of the lamps would require an expert. That I am not.

When I saw this I was not sure whether it was a spider with long legs or a harvestman with a large body. Seems it is the harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis, which has medium length legs and which are characteristically thicker in the 40% or so nearest the body.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:10 – 09:50

(98th visit of the year)

Notes from here

- yet again only 1 adult Mute Swan noted. I did not meet anyone who might enlighten me as to the whereabouts of its mate

- Chiffchaffs here even if I could find none at the lake

- not terribly exciting but for my previous 4 visits I have failed to log any Wrens: a timing issue I suspect. Back on the list today

and

- another cluster of fungus at the base of a different tree

- 2 Grey Squirrels

Birds noted flying over or near to The Flash

- 1 Wood Pigeon

- 3 Jackdaws

Warblers noted

- 2 Chiffchaffs

The counts from the water

- 1 + 3 Mute Swans still

- 1 Pink-footed Goose

- 20 Greylag Geese

- 20 Canada Geese also

- 32 (20♂) + 2 (1 brood) Mallard

- 5 (3♂) Tufted Ducks

- 1 Cormorant again

- 2 Grey Herons

- 1 + 1 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebe

- 4 Moorhens again

- 7 Coots

- 19 Black-headed Gulls

Here is the Pink-footed Goose that arrived with Greylag Geese this morning.

It quickly moved in to the shade of the island making sharp and clear pictures difficult. Compare size and bill pattern with the Greylag Goose behind it. The size difference was obvious as the small group of geese arrived, though male and female Greylags differ somewhat in size anyway.

Again with Greylags. Note the very limited pale edging to the feathers suggesting this is a juvenile.

And again.

For comparison here are a few shots of a juvenile Pink-footed Goose that I took in much better weather at the SOS Reserve at Venus Pool last Thursday. Here behind a Greylag Goose. The legs are definitely pink! Those of the Greylag are orange, though rather ‘blown out’ by the sunlight here.

Here it is on its own.

And walking past. We see again the very limited pale edging to the feathers and the few rather larger feathers towards the tail. Clearly both birds are juveniles: but the same bird?

Another clump of fungus has sprung up. We see clearly this is a species with a collar around the stem. Certainly not all those in the previous clumps showed this.

Of interest between the lake and The Flash

- 1 Moorhen on the upper pool

(Ed Wilson)

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

2017
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2013
Candles Landfill Site
1st winter Caspian Gull
2nd winter Yellow-legged Gull.
(Tom Lowe)

2012
Priorslee Lake
Redwing
Swallow
(Ed Wilson)

2008
Priorslee Lake
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
(Mike Cooper)

2006
Priorslee Lake
1 Swallow
1 Chiffchaff
(Ed Wilson)