7 Sep 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  05:20 – 06:55 // 07:50 – 09:35
The Flash:  07:00 – 07:45 again

12.0°C > 14.0°C:  Light showers to start otherwise broken cloud with a few sunny intervals. Light / moderate W wind, veering NW. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 06:29 BST

Priorslee Lake:  05:20 – 06:55 // 07:50 – 09:35

(217th visit of the year)

Another quieter day, with many fewer gulls.

Bird notes from today:
- Canada Geese mainly heard out of my line of sight, though some at least still on The Flash when I got there – taking the weekend off?
- The usual slight change in the Great Crested Grebes. Now five full-grown and independent juveniles. One of the broods in the NW area had at least two juveniles sheltering on the parent’s back – could have been a third. It certainly seems that there are just three adults tending the two broods in this area. Would it be sexist to suggest that the male mated with two females? Meanwhile both adults from the long-term non-breeding pair together again.
- The Kestrel flew W over the lake this morning being ‘seen off’ by a noisy group of 19 Starlings.
- One Feral Pigeon seen on flying on to the roof of the Holy Trinity Academy was probably the same lost Racing Pigeon as seen about a week ago, though I did not check whether it was ringed.
- Two Tawny Owls, both giving wavering calls, close to the Teece Drive gate early.
- 34 House Martins over at 06:40 in the usual tight group. None later (but see notes from The Flash).
- This morning’s ‘football’ field count gave me just 61 Black-headed Gulls, 1 Stock Dove, 29 Wood Pigeons, 23(!) Magpies, the usual two Carrion Crows, one Grey Wagtail again and 41 Pied Wagtails.
- Yellow Wagtail overhead was unusual in Autumn – perhaps my first such log?
- My first Meadow Pipits of the Autumn overhead.

Bird totals:

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake:
- 169 Greylag Geese (83 outbound in 12 groups; 86 inbound in eight groups)
- 10 Canada Geese (6 outbound in one group; 4 inbound in one group): others heard
- 1 Common Kestrel again
- 8 Black-headed Gulls
- 12 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: 3 of these first- winter birds
- 1 Feral Pigeon
- 37 Wood Pigeons
- 6 Jackdaws
- 84 Rooks
- 19 Starlings
- 1 Yellow Wagtail
- 3 Meadow Pipits

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 34 House Martins

Warblers noted (singing birds):
- 10 (2) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (0) Blackcap again

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 6 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 11 (6♂) Mallard
- 6 (1♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Little Grebe (age?)
- 7 + 5 + 8? (3 broods) Great Crested Grebes (see notes)
- 3 + 3 (3 broods) Moorhens
- 83 Coots
- 68 Black-headed Gulls
- 14 Lesser Black-backed Gulls : all 14 of these first-winter birds
- 3 Herring Gulls: again all of these first-winter birds

On the lamp poles pre-dawn:
- 1 Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina)
- 1 Common Candy-striped Spider (Enoplognatha ovata)
- 1 Dicranopalpus ramosus harvestman
- 1 Leiobunum rotundum harvestman
- 1 White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)

The following logged later:
- 1 presumed Daubenton’s Bat
The insects on a mainly cloudy and breezy morning
- Butterflies
        - Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)
- Hoverflies
        - Common Drone-fly (Eristalis tenax)
and
- many Mystacides longicornis (caddis flies)
- many ‘greenbottle’ flies
- >10 wasps sp.
- 1 Garden Spider (Arameus diadematus)
- 1 Grey Squirrel

Two of the full-grown but still immature Great Crested Grebes. This morning they performed a quick head-shaking display. They clearly come from different broods as one has lost almost all trace of the juvenile head-stripes and has rather more of the adult head plumes starting to appear.

Rather a long way up its lamp pole and out of direct light meant the camera had trouble focussing on this rather splendid spider. It is a Common Candy-striped Spider (Enoplognatha ovata).

A real close-up of the underside of a spider in its web. The positioning of the web precluded my getting a ‘top shot’ of the back. I am fairly certain it is a typical Garden Spider (Arameus diadematus).

After several failed attempts at identifying snails here is a certain White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis).

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  07:00 – 07:45 again

(207th visit of the year)

Notes from here:
- Neither of the two juvenile Great Crested Grebes located.
- 22 House Martins were overhead the Priorslee Academy area as I arrived, no doubt some of the birds I had seen over the ‘football’ field some 15 minutes previously. Two seen later to the E of the area were likely different birds.
and, all on lamp poles
- 1 Elbow-stripe Grass-veneer moth (Agriphila geniculea)
- 2 wasps sp.
- 8 Dicranopalpus ramosus harvestmen
- 1 Leiobunum rotundum harvestman
with
- even more of yesterday’s fungus. I know think it is more likely Rufous Milkcap (Lactarius rufus)

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 1 Sparrowhawk
- 6 Black-headed Gulls
- 6 Feral Pigeons
- 6 Wood Pigeons
- 5 Jackdaws

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 24 House Martins

Warblers noted (singing birds):
- 4 (0) Chiffchaffs

Counts from the water:
- 3 Mute Swans as usual
- 13 Greylag Geese
- 56 Canada Geese: c.25 departed
- 27 (16♂) Mallard
- 21 (7♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron again
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Moorhens
- 18 Coots
- 23 Black-headed Gulls: at least five of these first-winter birds

I found this grass moth lurking in a fold in one of the lamp poles. One of the easier grass moths to identify with the marks that give its vernacular name Elbow-stripe Grass-veneer moth (Agriphila geniculea).

Another view of some of the fungus I found yesterday. They seem to have decayed very quickly – many species have short-lived fruiting bodies. The white leaching from them as they do suggests they might be Rufous Milkcaps (Lactarius rufus) and not as I provisionally identified yesterday.

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash:

- An adult and full-grown juvenile Moorhen on the grass by the lower pool.

(Ed Wilson)

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

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2013
Priorslee Lake
Little Grebe
3 Shoveler
Green Sandpiper
Tawny Owl
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Wrekin
Firecrest
(J Shutt)

2011
Priorslee Lake
Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
Snipe
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
Kingfisher
(Ed Wilson)