1 Jan 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  06:45 – 09:50
The Flash:  09:55 – 10:50

7°C > 8°C:  Mainly cloudy. Despite a few breaks more or less continuous slight drizzle. Light NW wind. Moderate / good visibility

Sunrise: 08:22 GMT

Firstly a Happy New Year to one and all

Priorslee Lake:  06:45 – 09:50

(1st visit of the year)

39 species to start my 2019 log from here: in recorded order
Song Thrush, Robin, Blackbird, Wren, Wood Pigeon, Coot, Crow, Mallard, Little Grebe, Tufted Duck, Great Crested Grebe, Magpie, Redwing, Black-headed Gull, Pochard, Jackdaw, Dunnock, Canada Goose, Long-tailed Tit, Great Tit, Mute Swan, Moorhen, Pheasant, Blue Tit, Reed Bunting, Water Rail, Goosander, Stock Dove, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Pied Wagtail, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Wigeon, Goldfinch, Starling, Herring Gull, Gadwall, Mistle Thrush, Chaffinch, Grey Wagtail

Two highlights today
- I am used to the clatter of Wood Pigeons flushing out of trees in the dark. This morning one bird making even more crashing noises than usual turned out to be a female Pheasant. A simultaneous crashing a few feet away may have been another Pheasant but it had gone before I could see it
- a pair of Wigeon dropped in at 08:25

Other bird notes
- at least three Canada Geese parties outbound: one of them partially behind trees and another heard only. None on the water
- 4 Goosanders W at 08:05; 3 more at 08:15. All brownheads
- not sure why there should be so many more Wood Pigeons flying about today. There were also many more in the trees around the lake. Perhaps they have seen the weather forecast about colder weather on the way or have moved here from colder places already?
- when the three Reed Buntings departed the roost area they did so individually and in very different directions

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- >14 Canada Geese (3 parties, 1 only partly seen, another unseen, all outbound)
- 7 (0♂) Goosanders (2 parties)
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull
- 1 Stock Dove
- 96 Wood Pigeons
- c.80 Jackdaws
- 2 Starlings
- 1 Pied Wagtail

Birds recorded leaving roosts around the lake
- [Magpies not counted]
- 2 Redwings
- 3 Reed Buntings

The counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 2 (1♂) Wigeon
- 8 (4♂) Gadwall still
- 13 (9♂) Mallard
- 7 (5♂) Pochard
- 27 (16♂) Tufted Ducks
- 2 Little Grebes
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Water Rail heard
- 10 Moorhens
- 71 Coots
- c.200 Black-headed Gulls

My log of other things, on lamp poles
- 1 Scarce Umber moth
- 2 Mottled Umber moths (1 a spider victim)
- 2 stretch spiders, Tetragnatha sp.
- 1 Nursery Web spider (Pisaura mirabilis)

A disappointing number of moths. After recent bumper totals was hoping to get the new year’s log off to a flying start. With a drop in temperature and clear skies forecast I do not expect good numbers in future.

Come in #W41365. This Mute Swan is one of the pair that raised 3 cygnets here last year. At that time she also had an orange Darvic ring coded 65S. These do tend to break off. Its mate is now wearing a blue Darvic ring 7JNU. This is a very recently applied ring and I am awaiting details of when and where it was ringed. Our bird’s mate last year was unringed at the time.

In drizzle and at long range so a record shot of the drake Wigeon. With it are Coot and duck Tufted Duck.

Not much better is the duck Wigeon. The orangey flanks are distinctive here. With this bird is another Coot and a Little Grebe.

All trussed up and I am not sure whether the legs we can see are those of the moth or a spider having breakfast. The pattern is sufficiently distinctive to recognise the moth as an erstwhile Mottled Umber.

Easy to see why these are called stretch spiders (Tetragnatha sp.).

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  09:55 – 10:50

(1st visit of the year)

30 species to start my 2019 log from here: in recorded order
Black-headed Gull, Goosander, Wood Pigeon, Robin, Canada Goose, Blue Tit, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Great Crested Grebe, Moorhen, Coot, Ring-necked Parakeet, Magpie, Crow, Mute Swan, House Sparrow, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Goldfinch, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Wren, Chaffinch, Dunnock, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Goldcrest, Feral Pigeon

Bird notes from here
- only 1 Great Crested Grebe found
- two Song Thrush singing again
and
- 1 Mottled Umber moth on a lamp post
- late / early flowering White Dead-Nettle (Lamium album)

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

The counts from the water
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans again
- 12 Canada Geese
- 30 (17♂) Mallard
- 27 (12♂) Tufted Ducks
- 41 (9♂) Goosanders
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 5 Moorhens
- 20 Coots
- 64 Black-headed Gulls

A few Black-headed Gulls with the wings of one 1st winter spread in front of the camera. I had not realised that the outer tail feathers, also nicely spread, do not have the solid black tip of all the others. I wonder if this is true of all 1st winter birds?

The leading bird here certainly has white(ish) outer tail tips: it could be the same bird. The middle bird is holding its tail up and we cannot really see. The closest bird has its tail closed so we cannot be sure.

This adult winter Black-headed Gull shows clearly it is beginning to moult to show the ‘black head’. As I have previously remarked it is more of a ‘hood’ than a ‘head’ and it is not really black either, more dark chocolate.

Through a narrow gap in the tree-trunks we see a male Great Spotted Woodpecker – it is the red on the nape that tells us it is a male. Looks as if the tree has taken a bit of a hammering with some areas where the bark has been chipped off.

I wonder how long this White Dead-Nettle (Lamium album) will stay in flower if we get the promised dip in temperature.

(Ed Wilson)

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

2017
Local area
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Local Area
Today's Sightings Here

2013
Priorslee Lake
Drake Scaup still showing well off dam
1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
21 Great Black-backed Gulls
(John Isherwood and Rob Stokes)

2011
Priorslee Lake
Tawny Owl heard - 2nd ever record 
(Ed Wilson)

2010
Priorslee Lake
About 30% ice.
Best bird remains the Black-necked Grebe.
Big gull roost:
c.3000 Black-headed Gulls
c.1000 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
1 3rd winter Great Black-backed Gull
(Ed Wilson and John Isherwood)