16 Dec 18

Priorslee Lake and The Flash: then Trench Lock Pool and Trench Middle Pool

Priorslee Lake:  06:25 – 09:45
The Flash:  09:50 – 10:35
Trench Lock Pool:  10:45 – 10:55 // 11:30 – 11:55
Trench Middle Pool:  11:00 – 11:25

2°C > 6°C:  Clear and frosty start. Some high cloud from the W later. Calm start with light SE breeze later. Very good visibility

Sunrise: 08:16 GMT

Priorslee Lake:  06:25 – 09:45

(181st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the Mute Swans went for a fly-around this morning. Quite unusual to see them flying unless they have someone to chase off
- 3 Tufted Duck flew off W at 07:20: too dark to sex these
- 2 Goosanders flew W at 07:45; then 5 flew E at 08:10; 1 briefly on the lake at 08:30. All brownheads
- Tawny Owl heard calling from Teece Drive area 07:15
- Green Woodpecker seen along the N side. Had apparently been feeding on the ground of the construction site. What is it going to do when the houses are built?
- a check of the Magpie roost this morning: 64 is about 20 fewer than a typical winter maximum. Numbers are likely to increase over the next few weeks
- Coal Tits are unobtrusive outside the breeding season. One was singing this morning and another seen in with Long-tailed Tit party
- amazing total of 12 Reed Buntings flew out of the W end roost in three groups. At least one other still calling

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- 1 Greylag Goose
- 7 (0♂) Goosanders
- 2 Cormorants
- 15 Black-headed Gulls
- 5 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Stock Dove
- 39 Wood Pigeons
- 93 Jackdaws
- 1 Redwing
- 1 Siskin

Birds recorded leaving roosts around the lake
- 64 Magpies
- 12 Reed Buntings
Redwing roost area not visited

The counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 10 (5♂) Gadwall
- 12 (8♂) Mallard
- 10 (10♂) Pochard
- 98 (>44♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 (0♂) Goosander
- 2 Cormorants
- 1 Grey Heron again
- 2 Little Grebes
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Water Rail heard
- 10 Moorhens
- 87 Coots
- c.240 Black-headed Gulls

My log of other things, all on lamp poles
- 1 Winter Moth
- 1 stretch spider (Tetragnatha sp.)
- 2 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestman

The ‘wrong way’ sunrise showing the incoming high cloud from the west.

Two Moorhens. Note the bird on the left does not have the red shield over the base of its bill and the plumage is rather browner. It is a late brood juvenile from 2018 still to moult.

Against the light and between many branches I managed to persuade the camera to focus on this Green Woodpecker. It does not usually let me get close. Not 100% possible to tell against the light but does not seem to have any red in the moustache and therefore is a female.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  09:50 – 10:35

(140th visit of the year)

Bird notes from here
- another record number of Goosanders for me. Hard to count when numbers get this high
- no sign of the Great Crested Grebe. It can be surprisingly hard to find amongst Goosanders. I checked several times
- Coat Tit singing here as well as at the lake

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull

The counts from the water
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 2 Canada Geese still
- 32 (20♂) Mallard
- 13 (5♂) Tufted Ducks
- 125 (>16♂) Goosanders
- 3 Grey Herons
- [no Great Crested Grebe]
- [no Moorhens]
- 12 Coots
- 52 Black-headed Gulls

I reckon there are 21 brownhead Goosanders (and 4 Black-headed Gulls) on and around this spit of the island. Just under a fifth of the total on the water this morning.

(Ed Wilson)

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Trench Lock Pool:  10:45 – 10:55 // 11:30 – 11:55

(29th visit of the year)

Bird notes from here
- pair of Shoveler new in
- just 4 (2) Goosanders when I arrived. 66 at least when I returned from Middle Pool. Lots of chasing and diving. A higher proportion of drakes than seen at The Flash earlier suggests (some?) may have flown in from elsewhere
- further decline in Coot numbers

Birds noted flying over / near here
None

The counts from the water
- 1 Mute Swan again
- 2 Canada Geese
- 4 (3♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) ‘feral’ Mallard reappeared
- 2 (1♂) Shoveler
- 24 (11♂)Tufted Ducks
- 4 (2♂) >66 (17♂) Goosanders (see notes)
- 1 Grey Heron again
- 2 Little Grebes
- 1 Great Crested Grebe again
- 1 Moorhen only
- 111 Coots
- 18 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull

More Goosanders I am afraid. Not sure I realised that the drakes and ducks have very different head profiles. I knew only the ducks had the wispy crest, but not really appreciated the steep forehead was only on the drakes.

Lots of flapping and bathing today. Note that the duck on the right shows a steep forehead when she is flapping.

Note on this flapping duck that the alula feathers at the bend of the forewing are sticking up. These feathers are an important part of controlling flight, preventing the wing stalling at low speed. They are the equivalent of the leading-edge slats on modern airliners.

The same thing on another bird from a different angle.

Just a few of the Goosanders at Trench Lock Pool today.

Ageing large gulls is hard because they moult and wear throughout the winter and look very different in March from what they did in October. This seems to be a 1st winter Herring Gull – a 2nd winter would have much more extensive blue-grey on the mantle and the base of the bill would be more extensively pink.

‘This is my better side’!

(Ed Wilson)

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Trench Middle Pool:  11:00 – 11:25

(28th visit of the year)

Notes from here
- the drake Pochard been here a month now
- 1 Great Crested Grebe back again
- another record count of Coots

Birds noted flying over / near here
None

the counts from the water
- 2 Greylag Geese again
- 13 Canada Geese
- 31 (23♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Pochard still
- 6 (2♂) Tufted Ducks
- 2 (0♂) Goosanders
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 12 Moorhens
- 35 Coots
- 62 Black-headed Gulls

(Ed Wilson)

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

2017
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here

2013
Priorslee Lake
5 Gadwall 
3 Pochard 
49 Tufted Ducks
238 Coots
6 Fieldfare
>256 Redwings
3 Siskins
1 Redpoll
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
2 Teal
2 Pochard 
167 Tufted Ducks 
1 Greater Scaup 
2 Goosanders 
1 Redpoll
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Priorslee Lake
2 Little Grebe
35 Tufted Ducks
4 Gadwall
7 Pochard
149 Coot
1 Water Rail
25 Redwings
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake
6 Great Black-backed Gulls
(John Isherwood)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Black-necked Grebe
5 Great Crested Grebes
23 Swans
34 Pochard
84 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
Snipe
273 Coots
25 Goldfinches
7 Linnets
50 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
3 Great Crested Grebes
4 Cormorants
9 Pochard
46 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
Woodcock
70 Coots
c.220 Black-headed Gulls
104 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
2 Herring Gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
5 Buzzards
20 Pied Wagtails
1 Willow Tits
561 Jackdaws
149 Rooks
c.190 Fieldfare
c.120 Redwings
5 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson / Martin Adlam)