22 Apr 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  05:10 – 06:35 // 07:20 – 09:05
The Flash:  06:40 – 07:15

7.0°C > 13.0°C:  Fine and sunny. Almost calm. Good visibility, still with haze

Sunrise: 05:57 BST

A very unexciting day. Lots of bird song but nothing much moving and / or new

Priorslee Lake:  05:10 – 06:35 // 07:20 – 09:05

(107th visit of the year)

Always the same: boys with toys. Give a man a mower and he mows everything in sight. Much of the vegetation along the N-side footpath is now devoid of nettles and other plants that are home to whole communities of insects. Never mind: people can now walk two abreast all the way along: so that must be a ‘good thing’. Not

Best sighting today was the large bat sp., presumed Noctule, seen flying around the dam area at 05:25. I used to see up to five of these flying around to the N and E of the lake area on fine summer mornings. Recently they have been very intermittent and I saw none last year

Other bird notes from today
- every time I looked there seemed to be one or two Greylag Geese and they were not always in the same part of the water. Singles seen flying in and out, but were they the same birds? No idea. Two at least
- the Willow Warbler had abandoned its tree-top singing and was now lower down in bushier vegetation. Does this mean he has found a mate or is fed up with all the people walking underneath him?

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- 2 Greylag Geese (singles inbound)
- 4 Canada Geese (single inbound; trio outbound)
- 1 Herring Gull
- 3 Feral Pigeons
- 2 Stock Doves
- 7 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Jackdaw

Hirundines noted
None

Warblers noted (singing birds)
- 10 (8) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 18 (13) Blackcaps
- 1 (1) Garden Warbler again
- 2 (2) (Common) Whitethroats
- 4 (4) Reed Warblers

The counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 2+ Greylag Geese (coming and going)
- 2 Canada Geese (departed)
- 4 (4♂) Mallard
- 4 (3♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron
- Little Grebe(s) heard only
- 5 Great Crested Grebes
- 7 Moorhens
- 18 Coots again

On the lamp poles pre-dawn
Nothing

Later 
- 1 Speckled Wood butterfly
- the current Eristalis, Syrphus and Melanostoma hoverflies in good numbers
- 1 stretch spider, probably the Common stretch-spider (Tetragnatha extensa), on a lamp pole later
- a green fly that might, or might not, be Gymnocheta viridis
- the presumed Noctule bat as noted above
- 1 Grey Squirrel

Little change from yesterday. Saharan dust blown in on the SE winds tinged the sky orange and a wisp of mist over the lake.

Trying to play ‘hide-and-seek’. This is a Garden Warbler and it was taking cover from the fighting Blackcaps that were a few feet away from it, both sides.

Nevertheless that was not going to stop it adding to the cacophony – difficult to extract its song from everything going on about it. As for recognition features it is notable in having none. A rather plain and nondescript warbler, chunkier than most but essentially brown-toned.

Had the light been better we might have been able to see the greyer tones around the back of the neck – not easy to see at the best of times. In case you are wondering about a ‘furry’ back these are willow catkins behind it.

I think we can safely say this is an Eristalis pertinax (Tapered Drone-fly). Not only does it look ‘tapered’ but the hind tibia are yellow.

Less sure about this fly. I do not think it is ‘metallic-enough’ to be a Greenbottle. At this date it is probably the Diptera fly Gymnocheta viridis (no vernacular name}. Separation from other species requires counting the ‘rows of dorso-central bristles’. I am not sure I know where to look for these much less whether the camera had adequately resolved the bristles.

This tree absolutely laden with blossom.

Just part of the blossom in more detail. I assume a flowering cherry (Prunus sp.). Likely a planted cultivar.

One of the stretch spiders, probably the Common stretch-spider (Tetragnatha extensa). Not seen here since the start of the year when it was unusually regular on the lamp poles – as here.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  06:40 – 07:15

(100th visit of the year)

Notes from here:
- just one broods of Mallard ducklings located
- only 1 Great Crested Grebe for certain

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash
- 4 Feral Pigeons
- 1 Jackdaw

Hirundines noted
None

Warblers noted (singing birds)
- 1 (1) Chiffchaffs only
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 6 (3) Blackcaps

The counts from the water:
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 20 Canada Geese
- 19 (15♂) + 8 (1 brood) Mallard
- 6 (3♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 5 Moorhens again
- 25 Coots

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash

At or around the lower pool (singing birds)
- 1 (0) Chiffchaff
- 1 (0) Blackcap

At or around the upper pool (singing birds)
- 1 Moorhen
- 1 (1) Blackcap

(Ed Wilson)

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On this day..........
2018
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

 2016
Local Area
Today's Sightings Here

 2013
Nedge Hill
1 Whinchat
20 Wheatear
1 Blackcap
Willow Warbler
(Ian Grant)

 2012
Priorslee Lake
6 Great Crested Grebes
1 Heron
5 Tufted Duck
12 Blackcaps
4 Willow Warblers
12 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

 Priorslee Flash
6 Great Crested Grebes 
5 Greylag Geese
31 Tufted Duck 
1 Heron
1 Buzzard
6 Blackcaps
4 Willow Warblers
4 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

 Nedge Hill
5 Lapwings
1 Green Woodpecker
3 Skylarks
1 Blackcap
1 Willow Warbler
3 Chiffchaffs
6 Linnets
(Ed Wilson)

 2011
Priorslee Lake
1 Yellow Wagtail
5 Common Sandpiper
1 Lesser Whitethroat
1 Sedge Warbler
(John Isherwood)

 Nedge Hill
1 Yellow Wagtail
10 Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

 2008
Priorslee Lake
3 Great Crested Grebes
2 Gadwall
1 Common Sandpiper
Swallows
Sand Martins
Common Whitethroat
(Ed Wilson, Martin Adlam)

 The Nedge
Blackcap
Willow Warbler
Chiffchaff
(Martin Adlam)

 2007
Priorslee Lake
2 Sedge Warblers 
Reed Warbler
Common Sandpipers
(Ed Wilson)

 Nedge Hill 
1 Wheatear
1 Cuckoo
(Ed Wilson)

 2006
Priorslee Lake
6 Great Crested Grebes
5 Greylag Geese
12 Tufted Ducks
2 Ruddy Duck
27 Sand Martins
11 Swallows
5 House Martins
1 Sedge Warbler
8 Blackcaps
7 Chiffchaffs
4 Willow Warblers
25 Wrens
23 Blackbirds
5 Greenfinches
1 Siskin
1 Redpoll
3 Reed Buntings.

 Lanes to the east of Priorslee Lake
6 Pheasants
8 Sky Larks
2 Whitethroats
4 Blackcaps
2 Chiffchaffs
1 Greenfinch
6 Yellowhammers
(Ed Wilson)