4 Jun 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  04:05 – 05:40 // 06:35 – 08:10
The Flash:  05:45 – 06:30

10.0°C > 11.0°C:  Patchy rain 04:30 – 05:00. Lowering cloud with more light rain 07:45. Light and variable wind, mainly E. Good visibility.

Sunrise: 04:49 BST

Priorslee Lake:  04:05 – 05:40 // 06:35 – 08:10

(146th visit of the year)

Bird notes from today
- A pair of Tufted Ducks flew E at 05:05. By 06:55 there were two drakes on the water when a pair flew in from the S. They all flew around a while and settled on the water. By 07:35 a single drake remained and it too then left.
- A pair of ‘extra’ adult Great Crested Grebes by 07:00 (not noted previously). These noted displaying several times. Then at 07:10 another bird flew from the NW, circled several times, and then left to the SE.
- Two first-summer Herring Gulls came from the NE at 04:50 and circled low over the water – both just dipping wing-tips as they did so. They left without settling. Later another equally scruffy and moulting first summer bird flew over.
- At least 40 Swifts by 04:35. This number stayed around until c.07:25 when the cloud started lowering after which many, but not all, left.
- My impression is that both Blue and Great Tits have had a successful breeding season – there seem to be noisy family groups everywhere at the moment. Have no substantive counts to back up this view.

Bird totals:

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake:
- 2 (1♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 Cormorants yet again
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 1 Herring Gull
- 10 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Collared Dove
- 29 Jackdaws
- 11 Rooks

Hirundines etc. noted:
- >40 Swifts
- 2 Barn Swallows
- 4 House Martins again

Warblers noted (singing birds):
- 7 (5) Chiffchaffs
- 18 (16) Blackcaps
- 6 (5) Garden Warblers
- 1 (1) (Common) Whitethroat
- 1 (1) Sedge Warbler
- 5 (5) Reed Warblers again

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 7 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 11 (9♂) + 2 (1 brood) Mallard
- 4 (3♂) Tufted Duck (see notes)
- 1 Grey Heron (left 04:20)
- 5 + 2 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Moorhen
- 26 + 21 (7 broods) Coots
- 2 Herring Gulls

Nothing was on the lamp poles pre-dawn.

Seen later:
- 4 Silver-ground Carpet moths (Xanthorhoe montanata).
- A pairing of caddis flies, probably Tipula oleracea.
- Just two bat sps. logged – at least 8 of the pipistrelle-type; and three of large bat around the trees. For the first time I can remember for a many a year one of the pipistrelle-types was circling one of the street lights to feed on the insects attracted by the light.

There was a short ‘red sky in the morning, shepherds warning’ between the pulses of rain. This at 05:05.

Again between the rain was this attractive view – if hardly ‘sunrise’ at 07:00.

Look no cygnets! Amazingly they are all hiding from the rain on the back of the pen Mute Swan on the left.

Meanwhile the two surviving Mallard ducklings have no problem being out in the rain.

Rather distant and going rapidly away was this fly-over Great Crested Grebe. Strange these birds are still moving around, apparently looking for nest sites. Three birds at Trench Lock and one here yesterday. Two here today with this one overhead.

A pairing of caddis flies. I suspect that this is Tipula oleracea from the combination of wings without marks (other than the veins) and the length of the female’s wings. Whilst I don’t know for sure which is the female – I think it is the one on the left – on many crane flies the females’ wings are shorter than the body – some are so short the females are flightless.

Outside the gates of the Holy Trinity Academy (don’t worry – I had been and gone with the camera well before even the caretaker arrived) was this flowering Common Poppy (Papaver rhoeas). Seeds of this species are almost impossible to destroy and have a very long viability and flowers spring up whenever ground is disturbed.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Flash:  05:45 – 06:30

(139th visit of the year)

Notes from here:
- A new brood of five small Coots. One of the previous broods not located, though probably still extant.
- For the first time this year Swifts were seen in the distance around their usual St Georges breeding area.

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 1 Stock Dove
- 7 Wood Pigeons
- 2 Jackdaws

Hirundines etc. noted:
- >15 Swifts
- 1 House Martin

Warblers noted (singing birds):
- 2 (2) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (2) Blackcaps

Counts from the water:
- 3 + 4 Mute Swans
- 1 Greylag Goose
- 52 Canada Geese
- 22 (15♂) + 13 (2 broods) Mallard
- 13 (7♂) Tufted Ducks
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 5 + 1 (1 brood) Moorhens
- 19 + 11 (3 broods) Coots

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Between the lake and The Flash:

At or around the lower pool (singing birds):
- juvenile Moorhens heard only
- 1 (1) Blackcap
- 1 (1) Chiffchaff

At or around the upper pool no birds of note, but on nearby lamp poles:
- 1 Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata)
- 1 caddis fly, probably the very common species Tipula lunata

A better specimen of Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata) found on a lamp pole near the upper pool.

An adjacent lamp pole had this caddis fly resting. Looks like the very common Tipula lunata, though as usual there are several rather similar species.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

2018
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2017
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2012
Holmer Lake
Black Swan
(Marilyn Morton)