2 May 19

Priorslee Lake [with Woodhouse Lane] and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  04:50 – 06:00 // 06:50 – 09:20
[Woodhouse Lane:  07:50 – 08:30]
The Flash:  06:05 – 06:45

6.0°C > 12.0°C:  Clear start; then cloudy for a while before sunny again. Light W wind. Very good visibility

Sunrise: 05:36 BST

Another Sedge Warbler at the lake – my highest total here. More Reed Warblers there too

Priorslee Lake:  04:50 – 06:00 // 06:50 – 09:20

(117th visit of the year)

Bird notes from today
- a pair of Tufted Ducks circled low over the water several times before heading off W. Not sure whether they ever landed
- 10 Black-headed Gulls (nine adults) came over high from the E and looked like they would pass straight over. Once past they circled back and then headed off SE, still very high but no longer in a group. Later a first-year bird landed on the water briefly
- first screaming party of Swifts over
- two Sand Martins flew through at 05:30. A small group of at least 10 over the water after 08:30
- one singing Chiffchaff in a new location for this species this year
- three Sedge Warblers singing this morning: one by the concrete ramp; one along the N side; and one along the S side
- two extra Reed Warblers today: one along the N side; the other, strangely, from deep in the Ricoh hedge – I guess a passage bird
- dearth of Dunnocks: one singing and another seen. Only last week I was logging 12 singing birds most days. All too busy nesting to sing?

Bird totals

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake
- 5 Greylag Geese (2 pairs and single outbound)
- 4 Canada Geese (2 pairs outbound)
- 10 Black-headed Gulls
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls again
- 1 Stock Dove again
- 10 Wood Pigeons
- 10 Jackdaws
- 3 Rooks

Hirundines etc. noted
- 12 Swifts
- >12 Sand Martins
- 4 Barn Swallows
- 1 House Martin

Warblers noted (singing birds)
- 10 (8) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (2) Willow Warblers
- 25 (22) Blackcaps
- 2 (2) Garden Warblers again
- 2 (2) (Common) Whitethroats again
- 3 (3) Sedge Warblers
- 6 (6) Reed Warblers

The counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 3 Canada Geese (departed)
- 10 (10♂) Mallard
- 2 (1♂) Tufted Ducks (see notes)
- 1 Grey Heron still
- [Little Grebes not seen or heard]
- 3 Great Crested Grebes again
- 2 Moorhens again
- 17 Coots again
- 1 Black-headed Gull briefly

On the lamp poles pre-dawn
- 1 Chocolate-tip (Clostera cutala) moth
- 1 White-legged Snake Millipede (Tachypodoiulus niger)
- 1 spider sp.

Later records
- 3 Orange-tip butterflies
- many Eristalis and Syrphus hoverflies
- my first Episyrphus balteatus (Marmalade hoverfly) of the year
- what seemed likely to be many Pollenia rudis: ‘cluster flies’
- several rather spectacular-looking flies

An interesting shot of a passing Swift. They do not too often open their tail as shown here.

Not a very promising start for a sunrise.

Coloured up well later.

Even looking good towards the NNW.

Garden Warbler is a bird I often struggle to see as it sings from deep in cover. As for obtaining decent photos.... This will do nicely.

This will do even better.

As will this. There is just a hint of a pale eye-stripe.

This Sedge Warbler was nowhere nearly so cooperative staying well away from me. We can see the broad creamy eye-stripe ....

... and as it turns its head we see the streaking on the crown.

A male Orange-tip butterfly.

This is a female Orange-tip. The underwing pattern is the same on the male.

Here again the underwing pattern. Note the pattern on the upperwing, very similar to several species of ‘white’ though they lack the checkered effect along the edge.

A rear-on view of a Chocolate-tip (Clostera cutala) moth 15 feet up a lamp pole. My first since 8th August 2015. This specimen is from the first brood, flying in April and May and is my only first brood record.

These flies are probably Pollenia rudis, so-called ‘cluster flies’. If not they ought to be! 

Another cluster of .... 

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"

Another fly sp. that is quite attractive in its own way. Now where is my I-Spy flies book? 

Just a great view of Red Campion (Silene dioica or Melandrium rubrum). I suspect small spiders have been at work leaving thin webs over the flowers and the fluff from poplar seeds is what we see attached. Poplar fluff is abundant at the moment.

Today’s unidentified spider. The shape of the body suggests an orb-web ... 

(Ed Wilson)

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Notes from Woodhouse Lane (07:50 – 08:30)

(13th visit of the year)

Notes from here
- Common Whitethroat singing from inside rape crop – seems an unwise place to nest
- at least four Linnets. None of those I managed to see in the binoculars were males
- a Reed Bunting singing from the crop: not unusual for them to (try and) nest here

Totals of ‘interesting’ species (singing birds)
- 2 (2) Pheasants
- 3 (3) Skylarks
- 3 (3) Chiffchaffs
- 5 (5) Blackcaps
- 4 (3) (Common) Whitethroats
- 1 (1) Song Thrush
- 5 (3) Chaffinches
- 5 Goldfinches
- 4+ Linnets
- 6 (2) Yellowhammers
- 1 (1) Reed Bunting

I am having trouble getting anywhere near Common Whitethroats this year. At least we can see why it is called a white throat. The rape flowers provide an excellent back-drop.

By contrast a species normally very hard to approach: this is a Linnet – and very smart they are in breeding plumage. Would have been even smarter had it been a male – they acquire red sides to the breast and a red crown on a paler grey head. This is most acceptable.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  06:05 – 06:45

(110th visit of the year)

I have been told that the 24-hour fishing competition was not a success. No-one caught anything

Notes from here:
- only one brood of Mallard ducklings noted and that not seen very well
- first juvenile Coots this year, though they looked several days old. Perhaps usually being brooded during my early-morning visits? Also I would expect a clutch size larger than the two I saw, even though a high proportion are usually  lost
also
- an Alder Fly (Sialis lutaria) on one of the lamp poles. New for me at The Flash
- a Common Wasp (Vespula (Paravespula) vulgaris) on a lamp pole in squirrel alley

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

Hirundines noted
None

Warblers noted (singing birds)
- 2 (2) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 7 (4) Blackcaps

The counts from the water:
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 2 Greylag Geese (arrived)
- 20 Canada Geese only
- 31 (20♂) + 5? (1 brood) Mallard
- 3 (2♂) Tufted Ducks
- 3 Moorhens again
- 23 + 2 (1 brood) Coots

Looks like a caddis fly but is one of the closely-related Alder Flies – this one is Sialis lutaria. Seen it at the lake but not previously at The Flash.

This wasp sp. seemed to be attempting to climb inside this lamp pole.

Viewed from above the ‘anchor’ shaped marking on the face identifies it as a Common Wasp (Vespula (Paravespula) vulgaris).

Remember this from 28th April? I think I have now identified it as the caddis fly Mystacides azurea (no vernacular name). A new insect for me.

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash

At or around the lower pool (singing birds)
- very quiet and nothing noted

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

(Ed Wilson)

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

2018
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2016
Local Area
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Local Area
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Local Area
Today's Sightings Here

2013
Wrekin
6 Tree Pipits 
1 Wheatear 
5 Pied Flycatchers 
2 Common Redstarts 
3 Wood Warblers 
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Priorslee Lake
Whimbrel
Grasshopper
5 Common Sandpiper
Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

Wrekin
1 Wood Warbler
1 Common Redstart
3 Tree Pipit
2 Pied Flycatcher
(J Reeves)

2006
Priorslee Lake
3 Common Sandpipers 
2 Ruddy Ducks
(Ed Wilson)