21 Feb 19

Priorslee Lake (with Woodhouse Lane) and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  06:05 – 09:40
[Woodhouse Lane:  08:00 – 08:40]
The Flash:  09:45 – 10:30

9.0°C > 11.0°C:  Exceptionally mild. A few early breaks; mostly cloudy until after 10:00 when more breaks developed. Light SSW wind increasing somewhat. Very good visibility

Sunrise: 07:15 GMT

Priorslee Lake:  06:05 – 09:40

(49th visit of the year)

Thanks to Martin Grant I can update the Mute Swan saga. The ring I read yesterday identified it as the pen that nested here last but who lost her brood after her mate suffered a broken wing and had to be taken in to care (where he died). The culprit was likely the cob of the other nesting pair who eventually raised three cygnets all of whom left in October. This pen was then driven off and picked up by the RSPCA on the M54 some days later. She was taken it to care at Cuan Wildlife Centre and then released on Chasewater – thought to be far enough away to prevent her returning and getting attacked again. Well she has returned and at the moment there is no-one to attack her: but no mate either. Perhaps she needs to go to Trench Lock where there is a cob without a mate

Bird notes from today
- the drake Pochard was present throughout
- the drake Tufted Duck apparently arrived while I was in Woodhouse Lane
- after six Great Crested Grebes yesterday I struggled to find two today
- the Black-headed Gulls behaved very differently today. Two arrived at 06:40 and then after 06:45 big groups arrived all from the W until there were >400 on the water. Many of these then moved to the SW grass while others flew back W before returning again. Eventually only six birds were left until c.100 returned(?) from the W after 08:00. Almost none flew off E / SE and any that did started from the water rather than flying directly over
- fewer Jackdaws today probably in part because there were very dark clouds to the E and it was hard to see anything in that direction at 06:35 when they went out

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- 7 Canada Geese (others heard only: all outbound)
- pair of Mallard
- 1 Cormorant yet again
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Stock Dove again – flying the other way!
- 101 Wood Pigeons
- >650 Jackdaws!!
- >50 Rooks
- 2 Siskins

Birds recorded leaving roosts around the lake
- [Magpies not counted]
- 4 Reed Buntings

The counts from the lake area:
- 1 Mute Swan still
- 10 (7♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Pochard
- 1 (1♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Grey Heron again
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Water Rail
- 10 Moorhens again
- 26 Coots
- >400 Black-headed Gulls
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Other things
- three of the lamp poles harboured orb-web spiders, possibly Zygiella x-notata
- a Dotted Border moth was on the pole of a Belisha beacon in Teece Drive – the limit of my recording area
- first Red Dead-nettle (Lamium purpureum) flowers of 2019
- first Common Chickweed (Stellaria media) flowers I have ever recorded here

Just as I arrived there was a gap in the cloud and here is the erstwhile ‘snow super moon’. 32 hours after being full we already see the craters on the right side starting to show the cross-lighting.

One of the (near?) adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls. Still shows some head-streaking and a lot of black on the bill.

A paler mantle on this different (near?) adult Lesser Black-backed Gull. Also shows some head-streaking and a lot of black on the bill.

The Dotted Border moth on pole of a Belisha beacon in Teece Drive. [Let’s hear it for the almost forgotten Minister of Transport Leslie Hore-Belisha whose idea they were – as was the Highway Code].

My first Red Dead-nettle (Lamium purpureum) flower of 2019.

This is Common Chickweed (Stellaria media). I must have overlooked this in the past as it is new for my site list!

Spider #1 (and #2 as well though I did not see that until I looked at the photos). Looks quite like Zygiella x-notata.

So this becomes spider #3 (and #4 lurking with what looks like a dead moth).

So this becomes spider #5. All similar shaped orb-web spiders, though with different markings.

(Ed Wilson)

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Notes from Woodhouse Lane (08:00 – 08:40)

(2nd visit of the year)

Generally quieter than on my previous visit

Some numbers
- pair of Mallard in the Wesley Brook below the sluice exit
- 1 male Pheasant
- c.120 Wood Pigeons in tree-tops to E
- c.170 Wood Pigeons in tree-tops to NE (Ward’s Rough)
- 2 Skylarks in song
- 1 Song Thrush only in song
- 3 Chaffinches only in song
- 6 Yellowhammers, two in song

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  09:45 – 10:30

(44th visit of the year)

Notes from here:
- a second duck Gadwall with the pair
- Pochard back to 4 and Tufted Duck numbers increased
- where were the Black-headed Gulls? Most of the time just a singleton, joined by two more just as I was leaving
- many of the Jackdaws overhead were trying to dissuade the Sparrowhawks from displaying, largely without success
and
- now 2 Dotted Border moths, both different specimens on different lamps

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash
- 1 Cormorant
- 2 Sparrowhawks (display)
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 18 Jackdaws

The counts from the water
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans as ever
- 6 Canada Geese
- 3 (1♂) Gadwall now
- 32 (15♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Shoveler remains
- 4 (4♂) Pochard
- 71 (38♂) Tufted Ducks
- 2 Cormorants
- 2 Great Crested Grebes again
- 2 Moorhens only
- 30 Coots
- 3 Black-headed Gulls only

The trio of Gadwall with the drake in the middle.

Well it was very high up and a long way away. Here is the male Sparrowhawk (the rufous tones tell us that) displaying with the feathers in its undertail coverts all puffed out.

Even more dramatic from the side. You can see why when I saw this dashing through the trees I thought I was looking at the white rump of a Jay.

This gnarled and broken stump was being used as an echo chamber for this drumming Great Spotted Woodpecker.

A splendid male Greenfinch. The name Yellowfinch had already been bagged by a South American bird as had Greenish-Yellowfinch so they had to call it ‘Greenfinch’.

Dotted Border moth #1.

Dotted Border moth #2 – a very different-looking specimen.

(Ed Wilson)

Note

1. A few photos from Belvide - 20 Feb Here

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

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
5 Cormorants
1 Grey Heron
7 Pochard
2 Tufted Duck
14 Redwing
c.600 Jackdaws
268 Rooks
17 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
1 Greylag x Canada x ? Goose
180 Tufted Ducks
2 Goosanders
(Ed Wilson)

The Wrekin
1 Raven
2 groups of Fallow Deer.
(Ed Wilson)

2013
Priorslee Lake
 1 Iceland Gull 
1 Yellow-legged gull
(JW Reeves)

Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site / Buildwas
2 Caspian Gull
Herring x Lesser Black-backed Gull hybrid
A leucistic Herring Gull
8 Yellow-legged Gulls
1 Common Gull
(Tom Lowe)

2012
Priorslee Lake
33 Tufted Duck
8 Pochard
175 Black-headed Gulls
160 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
11 Herring Gulls
5 Great Black-backed Gull
1 Iceland Gull
35+ Redwing
(Martin Grant, John Isherwood)

Holmer Lake
7 Goosander
1 Sparrowhawk
(John Isherwood)

2007
Priorslee Lake
12 Tufted Ducks
2 Buzzards
2 Kestrels
1 Water Rail
269 Wood Pigeons
25 Blackbirds
11 Song Thrushes
4 Redwings
58 Magpies
140 Jackdaws
4 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Gadwall
5 Pochard
19 Tufted Ducks
116 Coots
1 Water Rail
1 Great Black-backed Gull
403 Wood Pigeons
Barn Owl
228 Jackdaws
88 Rooks
1 Sky Lark
35 Pied Wagtails
31 Blackbirds
1 Fieldfare
10 Song Thrushes
1 Redwing
2 Willow Tits
16 Greenfinches
49 Siskins
2 Redpolls
13 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)