Priorslee Lake: 05:00 – 06:45 // 07:35 – 09:35
The Flash: 06:50 – 07:30
9.0°C > 15.0°C: A few patches of high cloud early. Mist over the water. Later more cloud, only some of it low from the lifted mist. Calm start with light SE wind later. Very good visibility away from mist patches.
Sunrise: 06:14 BST
Priorslee Lake: 05:00 – 06:45 // 07:35 – 09:35
(210th visit of the year)
Bird notes from today:
- More geese every day. Presumably the same birds are being seen inbound as logged outbound earlier. Strange that so far this Autumn Greylag Geese have far outnumbered the normally abundant Canada Geese. And where are they roosting anyway?
- Two duck Tufted Duck seen 07:50 but not noted earlier or later.
- I was mistaken yesterday: neither pair of Great Crested Grebes had lost any of their three juveniles. There was yet another pair of adults present today.
- The Common Kestrel was again hovering over the fields to the E. At 06:05.
- The small red-headed juvenile Coot seen again.
- What was presumably the same pigeon as seen on Tuesday was again on the roof of the academy at 09:20. It has rings on both legs so I assume it is a lost Racing Pigeon.
- At least 130 Wood Pigeons put up from fields to the E. All circled back to the same general area with none appearing over the lake at that time.
- A single late Swift seen overhead with House Martins at 08:55. One a few minutes later was presumably the same bird staying in the same general area.
- The first House Martins were six over at 06:20: these seemed to move away S and no more noted until c.08:15 when, eventually, c.30 were over trees mainly along the N side.
- Exactly 40 Pied Wagtails on the ‘football’ field at 06:35. These part of an unusually busy field with 49 Black-headed Gulls and 22 Starlings, though there were only five Wood Pigeons and just three Magpies at that time. Pied Wagtails in some number whenever I looked with 21 present at 09:15. Always some of the same birds?
- A Lesser Redpoll over at 06:30 was on an early date for this species here.
Bird totals:
Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake:
- 298 Greylag Geese (148 outbound in 9 groups; 150 inbound in 11 groups)
- 16 Canada Geese (16 outbound in two groups; pair inbound)
- 2 Sparrowhawks again
- 1 Common Buzzard again
- 1 Common Kestrel again
- 18 Black-headed Gulls
- 46 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Stock Doves again
- 72 Wood Pigeons
- 5 Jackdaws
- 2 Rooks
- 1 Lesser Redpoll
Hirundines etc. noted:
- 1 Swift
- 3 Barn Swallows
- >30 House Martins
Warblers noted (singing birds):
- 13 (3) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (0) Blackcaps
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 6 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 15 (8♂) Mallard
- 2 (0♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron
- no Little Grebes
- 9 + 12 (>2 broods) Great Crested Grebes
- 4 + 4 (3 broods) Moorhens
- 81 + 2 (2 recent broods) Coots again
- 49 Black-headed Gulls: just 1 of these a juvenile / first-winters
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 1 Kingfisher yet again
On the lamp poles pre-dawn:
a chilly night with a very heavy dew
- 1 unidentifiable small micro-moth (covered in dew)
- 1 unidentifiable spider (also covered in dew)
- 3 Dicranopalpus ramosus harvestmen
The following logged later:
Clouded before many insects appeared:
- Butterflies:
- Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)
- Hoverflies:
- Drone-fly (Eristalis sp.)
- possible Leucozona lucorum
And other things:
- very many Mystacides longicornis (caddis flies)
The long-view at about the same time with mist over the lake.
Later the sunrise coloured up, still with mist.
The intensity of the colour fading as light spreads across the sky.
One of the many flights of Greylag Geese outbound.
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 06:50 – 07:30
(201st visit of the year)
Notes from here:
- One of the Great Crested Grebe juveniles not located.
- The seven House Martins seemed to fly straight through W as if perhaps migrating.
Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 1 Feral Pigeon
- 11 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Jackdaw
- 2 Starlings
Hirundines etc. noted:
- 7 House Martins
Warblers noted (singing birds):
- 4 (1) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (0) Blackcap
Counts from the water:
- 3 Mute Swans as usual
- 3 Canada Geese again
- 29 (17♂) + 1 (1 brood) Mallard
- 22 (5♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron still
- 2 + 1 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Moorhens
- 20 Coots
- 3 Black-headed Gulls: 1 of these a juvenile / 1st winter
The only surviving Mallard duckling from the very late brood, here with Mum.
(Ed Wilson)
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Between the lake and The Flash:
- Moorhen(s) heard at the lower pool.
- single Blackcaps heard calling beside both upper and lower pools.
and
- 1 Common Grass-veneer moth (Agriphila tristella) on one of the lamp poles.
(Ed Wilson)
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