28 Feb 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  05:50 – 08:55
The Flash:  09:00 – 09:40

6.0°C > 7.0°C:  Areas of high cloud at dawn; low cloud and rain for a while after 08:00. Calm start with light W wind ahead of rain before dying away again. Moderate visibility but poor in and after rain and very dull

Sunrise: 07:00 GMT

Priorslee Lake:  05:50 – 08:55

(55th visit of the year)

Bird notes from today
- the Tufted Duck were very much ‘as pairs’ with some display
- very strange behaviour by the Black-headed Gulls. c.30 came from the W after 06:50 but circled around and left to the W again without settling. Then >40 spiralled down from beyond visual range, circled and left to the E, again without settling. Next c.100 came high from the E with half of them flying through, the other half spiralling down to the water but settled only momentarily before they too left to the W. Later up to 32 were on the water – presumed some of these birds?
- an unknown number of additional Jackdaws passed below my sight-line this morning
- Chiffchaff heard in sporadic song at two locations: could well have been the same mobile bird
- after several weeks with as many as 13 singing Song Thrushes numbers have reduced in the last few day to five or six birds. Have some migrants moved away?
- had as good a scout around as the rain would allow for yesterday’s Stonechat without success

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- 16 Canada Geese (all outbound)
- >100 Black-headed Gulls (see notes)
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 47 Wood Pigeons
- c.300 Jackdaws
- 35 Rooks
- 1 Pied Wagtail again
- 5 Siskins

Birds recorded leaving roosts around the lake
None

The counts from the lake area:
- 2 Canada Geese
- 6 (4♂) Mallard again
- 4 (2♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Grey Heron again
- 3 Great Crested Grebes again
- 13 Moorhens
- 31 Coots
- >32 Black-headed Gulls (see notes)

Nothing on the lamp poles and nothing else of note

It was supposed to be cloudy so this waning moon was a surprise – a surprise that did not last too long. This is just about the ‘thinnest’ moon that I can persuade the camera to see.

Well pre-dawn the start of deterioration is evident.

From another angle.

And while swimming (not really!).

The sun just about made it before the rain. Two Wood Pigeons on the wires.

Sky looking angry here.

Not (quite) all sunrise photos: here are some willow buds opening as ‘pussy willow’.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  09:00 – 09:40

(50th visit of the year)

Notes from here:
- last year’s cygnet seen, keeping well away from the adults
- a pair of Gadwall back(?) again
- pair of Mallard on one of the roofs today
and
- 1 Dotted Border moth on a lamp pole where I have previously not recorded any moths

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash
- 1 Feral Pigeon

The counts from the water
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 18 Canada Geese
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall
- 21 (12♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Shoveler
- 35 (19♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Cormorant
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 4 Moorhens again
- 31 Coots

A couple of footnotes from earlier days
- I have had confirmation that the bumblebee I photographed on 22 February was indeed a Tree Bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum). This species was first recorded in the UK as recently as 2001. It has now spread as far as the southern part of Scotland. It frequently nests in bird-boxes and has been known to ‘evict’ Blue Tits
- the conifer in which I photographed the Goldcrest yesterday seems, on the basis of the cones, to have been a Norway Spruce (Picea abies). I was misled by the length of the needles on this huge tree – I am used to seeing it as the classic 6 foot Christmas tree and not the 50 foot monster here

(Ed Wilson)

Note:
1. A few photos from Venus Pool - 24 Feb - Click Here
2. A few photos from Belvide - 23 Feb. Click Here

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

2017
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
2 Iceland Gulls
(Observer Unknown)

2013
Priorslee Lake
31 Wigeon 
7 Gadwall 
5 Pochard 
18 Tufted Ducks 
1 Greater Scaup
2 Lapwings
c.1600 Black-headed Gulls
c.800 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.100 Herring Gulls
1 Iceland
1 Glaucous Gull
1 Caspian Gull
1 Yellow-legged Gull
38 Redwings
2 Fieldfare
15 Siskins
(Ed Wilson, Martin Grant, Tom Lowe)

The Flash
1 Little Grebe
10 Pochard 
123 Tufted Duck 
(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock Pool
21 Tufted Duck 
1 Goosander 
(Ed Wilson)

Horsehay Pool
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Tom Lowe)

Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
2 Yellow-legged Gulls.
(Tom Lowe)

2012
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebes
3 Pochard
32 Tufted Duck
4 Curlew
2 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock
26 Tufted Duck 
9 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
13 Herring Gulls
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Ed Wilson)

2010
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe as noted 
6 Great Crested Grebes
4 Gadwall
39 Pochard
57 Tufted Ducks
99 Coots 
29 Blackbirds
4 Redwing
8 Song Thrushes
22 Siskins
3 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Common Gull
6 Ravens
(Ed Wilson)

Woodhouse Lane
Stonechat
(John Isherwood)

2007
Priorslee Lake
4 Cormorant
2 Pochard
15 Tufted Duck
1 Ruddy Duck
1 Peregrine Falcon
26 Robin
11 Redwing
63 Magpie
196 Jackdaw
12 Greenfinch
10 Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Little Grebes
6 Great Crested Grebes
2 Cormorants
7 Pochard
35 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
800 Wood Pigeon
142 Starlings
14 Pied Wagtails
18 Robins
20 Blackbirds
11 Fieldfare
10 Song Thrushes
2 Willow Tits
15 Greenfinches
11 Siskins
7 Reed Buntings 
(Ed Wilson)