19 Dec 18

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  06:25 – 09:25
The Flash:  09:30 – 10:20

5°C:  Clearing after rain. Very light S wind. Very good visibility with a few mist patches over the tops

Sunrise: 08:18 GMT

Priorslee Lake:  06:25 – 09:25

(184th visit of the year)

Other bird notes:
- from the outbound group of 10 geese I only heard Canada Geese calls today. What are these? Grrr!
- most Mallard perhaps gone to The Flash (q.v.)
- Pochard gone again
- Woodcock seen in the NE area. At the later time of 07:40 this morning
- first c.30 Black-headed Gulls swooped in very low from the N. Not seen them do this before, though sometimes birds just ‘appear’ on the water and I have not seen how they arrived. The rest apparently all came from the W as usual
- most of the fly-over Wood Pigeons were in just two loose groups of 106 and then 72 flying W to the N apparently flushed out of fields or trees to the NE

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- 10 Canada Geese? [1 group outbound]
- 2 (?♂) Goosanders
- 191 Wood Pigeons
- 147 Jackdaws
- 1 Rook
- 3 Redwings

Birds recorded leaving roosts around the lake
- 6 Redwings
other roost areas not visited at appropriate time

The counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 10 (5♂) Gadwall remain
- 2 (1♂) Mallard
- 96 (51♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Little Grebe again
- 3 Great Crested Grebes again
- 7 Moorhens
- 75 Coots
- >700 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 1 Herring Gull

My log of other things, on lamp poles
- 1 Winter Moth
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider
- 2 Paroligolophus agrestis? (Harvestman sp.)
- >10 ‘winter midges’ [Trichocera relegationis?]
and
- 1 presumed Winter Moth seen in flight

A rather fuzzy-looking shot of a winter midge, perhaps Trichocera relegationis. Made to look even more fuzzy as the flash has cast shadows of the legs very close to the real legs.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  09:30 – 10:20

(143rd visit of the year)

Bird notes from here
- increased number of Mallard. Perhaps the missing birds from the lake?
- many fewer Goosanders: a few still flying in and a few over as well
- 2 Coal Tits singing away today. A Great Tit as well – must be Spring
- 2 Song Thrushes seen: been scarce recently
and
- 1 presumed Winter Moth on a lamp pole

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash
- 3 (0♂) Goosanders
- 1 Sparrowhawk
- 7 Feral Pigeons

The counts from the water
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans: the usual
- 2 Canada Geese: the usual?
- 48 (27♂) Mallard
- 18 (8♂) Tufted Ducks
- 27 (4♂) Goosanders
- 1 Moorhen again
- 14 Coots
- 28 Black-headed Gulls

A long-distance shot of another Goosander emptying the water of fish. No wonder they spend so much time just loafing – after all that breakfast must be a struggle to fly off.

There isn’t much new to photograph at this time of year so another of my favourites – a Dunnock.

This is I assume a Winter Moth. This species is never illustrated resting with its wings shut – indeed very few moths do so.

(Ed Wilson)

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

2017
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here

2013
Priorslee Lake
3 Gadwall 
7 Pochard
80 Tufted Ducks
231 Coots
268 Black-headed Gulls
8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
11 Herring Gulls
27 Fieldfare
103 Redwings
356 Jackdaws
251 Rooks
2 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Priorslee Lake
3 Gadwall
11 Pochard
44 Tufted Ducks
180 Coots
1 Great Black-backed Gull
2 Redwings
17 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake
1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
5 Great Black-backed Gull
10 Goosander
(John Isherwood)

Holmer Lake
14 Goosander
(John Isherwood)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Black necked Grebe
7 Great Crested Grebes 
45 Pochard
130 Tufted Duck
302 Coot
>3500 gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
20 Swans
1 Water Rail
15 Lapwing
15 Herring Gulls
5 Redwings
c.20 Goldfinches
7 Siskins
(Ed Wilson/ John Isherwood)

2006
Priorslee Lake
31 Pochard
33 Tufted Ducks
c.400 Black-headed Gulls
c.2800 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
31 Herring Gulls
1 Yellow-legged Gull
18 Pied Wagtails
2 Redpoll
7 Reed Buntings
(Martin Adlam)

2005
Priorslee Lake
c.400 Black-headed Gulls
150 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
9 Pochard
16 Tufted Duck
200 Coot
1 Water Rail
15 Pied Wagtails
243 Rooks
532 Jackdaw 532
Redwing with a full-blown song
31 Siskins
2 Redpoll
16 Reed Bunting
(Martin Adlam)