26 Oct 18

Priorslee Lake only

7°C > 9°C: Clearing after overnight rain. Light rain showers soon developed. Moderate NW wind. Very good visibility

Sunrise: 07:55 BST

Priorslee Lake: 06:40 – 09:35

(134th visit of the year)

Best bird this morning was the male Peregrine that shot SW low over the lake c.09:50. Only my second sighting here this year

Other bird notes:
- 4 Cormorants came from the E, circled several times but left back to the E: later a single flew S
- 2 Little Grebes seen lurking in different locations: but were they the same two?
- 2 Sparrowhawks seen over the NW area displaying and then diving in to the same area where I have suspected this species has bred for a number of years
- in addition to the 3 migrant parties of 89 Wood Pigeons another 92 flew over low W, mostly in two parties. These birds were flying too low for migrants and seemed likely to have been disturbed from trees / fields to the E. Meanwhile I found just 2 in the trees around the lake

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- 2 (?♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 (?♂) Goosander
- 5 Cormorants
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 1 Peregrine
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 2 Feral Pigeons
- 3 Stock Doves
- 187 Wood Pigeons (89 migrants in 3 groups)
- 296 Jackdaws
- 1 Skylark
- 6 Starlings (2 groups)
- 3 Meadow Pipits
- 1 Siskin
- 1 Lesser Redpoll again

Warblers seen / heard
None

Birds leaving roosts around the lake
- 1 Redwing only

The counts from the lake area
- 2 + 3 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 4 Canada Geese
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall again
- 10 (8♂) Mallard again
- 1 (0♂) Pochard
- 92 (>33♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron
- 2 or 4 Little Grebes (see notes)
- 3 + 1 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Water Rails heard
- 8 Moorhens
- 113 Coots
- 33 Black-headed Gulls

And other notes
- my log today consisted of
- 3 Autumnal-type moth (Epirrita sp.) on lamp poles
- 1 harvestman sp (probably Paroligolophus agrestis) on a lamp pole
- 1 bumble bee sp. in flight
- 1 Grey Squirrel yet again

Sky cleared enough for me to get the shot of an almost full moon. This month it is Hunter’s Moon and was full on Wednesday at 16:45. From this shot you can see why early astronomers thought there were seas on the surface.

Clouds soon developed with light rain showers down the ‘Cheshire Gap’. With the low sun the rainbow was almost a complete arc and the autumn tones showed well.

A Jay lurking: never an easy species to see well.

Down the hatch: a male Blackbird swallows a Hawthorn berry. Note the pale fringes to the feathers of this bird: these will wear off during the winter to leave it a smart glossy black at the start of the breeding season.

The next to go!

This harvestman is almost certainly Paroligolophus agrestis with rather shorter legs than on many species – especially the front pair; and with the legs noticeably thicker on the basal half.

(Ed Wilson)

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

2017
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2011
Priorslee Lake
17 Tufted Ducks
c.400 Lesser Black-backed Gull
(Mike Cooper)

2005
Priorslee Lake
16 Pochard
41 Tufted Duck
212 Coot
778 Fieldfare
199 Redwings
800 Wood Pigeons
Chiffchaff
Possible Firecrest
3 Siskin
18 Redpoll
275 Starlings
(Ed Wilson)