14 Apr 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  05:10 – 06:45 // 07:50 – 09:25
The Flash:  06:50 – 07:40

0.0°C > 6.0°C:  Another clear and frosty start. Clouds building after 09:00 again. Almost calm at first light: a keen E wind developing once more. Very good visibility

Sunrise: 06:14 BST

Priorslee Lake:  05:10 – 06:45 // 07:50 – 09:25

(99th visit of the year)

Bird notes from today
- the Lesser Black-backed Gull dropped in at 05:50 but did not stay long
- hirundines seemed to come and go as per usual: numbers quoted are highest single count of the species
- high number of Willow Warblers for here
- Linnet fly-over was another strangely late date here (vide yesterday’s Lesser Redpoll)

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- 3 Greylag Geese (single outbound; pair inbound)
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 7 Wood Pigeons
- 2 Collared Doves
- 1 Jackdaw
- 1 Linnet

Hirundines noted
- >20 Sand Martins again
- >1 Barn Swallow
- >3 House Martins

Warblers noted (singing birds)
- 7 (6) Chiffchaffs
- 6 (5) Willow Warblers
- 15 (10) Blackcaps

The counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 1 Greylag Goose (arrived)
- 2 Canada Geese (throughout)
- 9 (8♂) Mallard
- 2 (1♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron
- 2 Little Grebes
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 5 Moorhens
- 18 Coots
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull

Nothing noted on the lamp poles or seen later

Was again an almost calm start – it did not stay that way long.

A Great Crested Grebe has breakfast – a Perch again, identified by the red tinge to the fins.

And here ‘down the hatch’. It was an early breakfast and the light not great for photos.

Understated but attractive in its own way is the Dunnock or Hedge Sparrow. Not a ‘sparrow’ but properly an ‘accentor’, though the only species of that family likely to be seen in the UK.

It has a sweet warbling song and I always think if you are going to miscall the family name then you should call it a Hedge Warbler (I see Wikipedia acknowledges Hedge Warbler as a valid name for it. But then the web suggests this is a shy bird – not today it wasn’t). Dunnock will do – meaning ‘dun-coloured’.

Lurking in the vegetation was this female Song Thrush. How do I know it is a female? Well it was about two feet from ....

This singing Song Thrush. Unusual to see this species singing from cover: it usually sings from an exposed perch even if you do have to hunt around a bit for where that perch is.

An unusually tame male Grey Wagtail allowed me to approach rather more closely than usual. Here is a set of photos to show the features from different angles. A male due to the extent of both the black on the throat and the yellow on the belly.

‘Grey’ Wagtail because the back is grey. Often wrongly called Yellow Wagtail – that species has a yellow or yellow-olive back.

The throat well-seen here as is the long tail – longer than other UK species of wagtail.

Typically at the water’s edge, more so than other species of wagtail.

I took a photo of the inside of this flower a week or so ago. In the absence of the leaves I was unable to ID it so .....

Here it is with leaves. I am fairly certain this is Wall Speedwell (Veronica arvensis). In this instance the ‘wall’ is the dam-top.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  06:50 – 07:40

(92nd visit of the year)

Notes from here:
- no Mallard ducklings located. Many ‘extra’ drakes this morning (still in bachelor parties after a Saturday night out?)
- one Great Crested Grebe re-appeared
- an abundance of warblers
- a Stock Dove flew out of trees near the Priorslee Academy – from near where I heard one calling a few days ago
- two Jackdaws seen on the roof of the dental surgery apparently starting to drop sticks down the chimney – as they do. These may be the first ‘non fly-overs’ I have recorded here
also
- 1 Grey Squirrel again

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 3 Feral Pigeons
- 2 Wood Pigeons
- 2 Jackdaws

Hirundines noted
None

Warblers noted (singing birds)
- 5 (4) Chiffchaffs
- 6 (6) Willow Warbler
- 7 (7) Blackcaps

The counts from the water:
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 5 Greylag Geese
- 14 Canada Geese only
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall
- 22 (18♂) Mallard
- 21 (14♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 4 Moorhens
- 26 Coots

Another reasonably cooperative Long-tailed Tit.

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash

Rather quiet especially after all the warblers heard at The Flash
- single Moorhens seen on both pools
- 2 (1) Chiffchaffs at the lower pool
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler at the lower pool
plus
- 1 party of Long-tailed Tits again
- 1 Grey Squirrel again

(Ed Wilson)

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

2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Local Area
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
3 Great Crested Grebes
12 Cormorants over
3 Grey Herons
2 Tufted Duck
4 Common Sandpipers
c.6 Sand Martins
1 Swallow
Green Woodpecker
9 Blackcaps
7 Chiffchaffs
2 Willow Warbler
193 Jackdaws
(Ed Wilson)

The Wrekin
Tree Pipit
Pied Wagtail
Willow Tit
Marsh Tit
5 Pied Flycatchers
2 Common Redstarts
Willow Warblers
Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

2013
Priorslee Lake
2 Little Ringed Plover
6 Willow Warbler
5 Chiffchaff 
1 House Martin
4 Sand Martin
(Martin Grant)

2012
Priorslee Lake
Willow Warbler
Chiffchaff
Blackcap
Willow Tits
2 Jays
(Martin Grant)

Nedge Hill
4 Common Redstart
31 Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

The Wrekin
5 Pied Flycatcher
1 Common Redstart
2 Tree Pipit
6 Willow Warbler
Marsh Tit
Goldcrest
Green Woodpecker
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Siskin
Lesser Redpoll
Crossbill
(Glenn Bishton)

2011
Priorslee Lake
4 Common Sandpiper
1 Reed Warbler
(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill
4 Wheatear
(Ed Wilson)

2008
Priorslee Lake
1 Osprey
4 Gadwall
12 Sand Martin
2 Swallows
6 Willow Warblers
4 Chiffchaffs
1 Blackcap
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
1 Common Sandpiper
6 Willow Warbler
4 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock
5 Sand Martin
Swallows
4 Willow Warbler
2 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill
2 Swallows
1 Willow Warbler
2 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
1 Pintail x Mallard
17 Tufted Duck
1 Grey Heron
2 Willow Warblers
8 Chiffchaffs
5 Blackcaps
20 Wrens
2 Linnet
6 Reed Bunting
(Martin Adlam)

Nedge Hill
2 Willow Warblers
1 Blackcap
2 Chiffchaff
1 Fieldfare
1 Great Spotted Woodpecker
1 Swallow
1 Buzzard
4 Skylark
2 Meadow Pipit
4 Yellowhammer
3 Greenfinch 3 
4 Linnet
(Martin Adlam)

2006
Priorslee Lake
5 Great Crested Grebes
1 Heron
7 Tufted Ducks
2 Ruddy Duck
1 Water Rail
3 Common Sandpiper
8 Chiffchaff
5 Willow Warbler
5 Blackcaps
1 Garden Warbler
3 Swallows
1 Kestrel
2 Great Spotted Woodpecker
1 Sky Lark
1 Willow Tit
2 Siskin
5 Reed Bunting
(Martin Adlam)