Priorslee Lake: 05:45 – 09:10
13.0°C: Very low cloud and mist with spells of drizzle. Calm / light N wind. Moderate / poor visibility.
Sunrise: 06:44 BST
I was wet-enough after visiting the lake and gave The Flash a miss.
Priorslee Lake: 05:45 – 09:10
(223rd visit of the year)
Bird notes from today:
- The 07:00 ‘football’ field count gave me 91 Black-headed Gulls, just nine Wood Pigeons, five Magpies, one Carrion Crow and 56 Pied Wagtails. 37 Black-headed Gulls on the academy playing field were almost certainly birds I had already counted that had flown off following the arrival of the first dogs. As sunrise gets later this is likely to be an increasing problem.
- Pre-dawn (what dawn?) there were eight Tufted Ducks in the middle of the lake. They often gather in a small raft here prior to flying off W, likely to spend the day at The Flash. I did not see these leave – if they did at this stage. There were seven birds flying around at low-level at 07:20 and these did seem to leave to the W. A few minutes later I noted three more(?) duck Tufties on the water. Then another(?) three circling low over before these too seemed to leave to the W at 07:25. The three on the water remained throughout. How many birds involved? At least eight: probably more.
- A Common Buzzard was flushed off the ground along the W-end footpath at 06:00. Seemed to be carrying a prey item. I had walked along that path just a few minutes previously and noted nothing suitable for a buzzard.
- In addition to the 58 Wood Pigeons noted flying over at least 120 more were put up from fields / trees to NE / N at 08:30. They seemed to settle back in the same area rather than flying off.
- The early morning post-roost flight of corvids was either along a different flight-line due to the low cloud or the birds were flying on instruments. I saw nothing at that time.
Bird totals:
Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake:
**poor visibility affected numbers
- 5 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls : both of these first-winters bird
- 4 Stock Doves
- 58 Wood Pigeons
- 4 Jackdaws
- 6 Rooks
Hirundines etc. noted.
None
Warblers noted (singing birds):
- 8 (4) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (0) Blackcap
Counts from the lake area:
**some counts affected by the poor visibility
- 2 + 6 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 13 (9♂) Mallard
- 8+ (?♂) Tufted Ducks (see notes)
- 3 Cormorants again
- 3 Grey Herons
- 1 Little Grebe: adult again
- 8 adult + 4 immature + 9 juvenile (3 broods) Great Crested Grebes
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Moorhens
- 83 + 1 (1 brood) Coots
- c.125 Black-headed Gulls
- 31 Lesser Black-backed Gulls : 23 of these first-winter birds
- 9 Herring Gulls: eight of these first-winter birds
On the lamp poles pre-dawn:
- 1 springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis
- 1 dead Common Crane-fly (Tipula oleracea) – a spider casualty
- 2 unidentified spider sps.
The following logged later:
Damp weather: no insects
- 1 Grey Squirrel
“Another chance to see” (as the BBC says) a springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis.
(Ed Wilson)
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