8 Nov 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  06:15 –09:20
The Flash:  09:25 – 10:20

5.0°C:  Clearing after overnight rain. Some sunny spells developing. Chilly moderate NW wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 07:19 GMT

Priorslee Lake:  06:15 –09:20

(266th visit of the year)

The paths around the lake are just about as wet as I have known them. The Wesley Brook is running clear from The Flash but mixing with very muddy water from the sluices at the E end of Teece Drive, discolouring most of the water in the lake.

One that got away today. A very loud harsh sound, like a strangulated Jay, from the NW area at 06:30 might just have been a Barn Owl. The Carrion Crows were certainly upset at the noise. I have seen this species just three times in the area. I am not completely familiar with Barn Owl’s call and will have to let it pass.

Otherwise best today was the group of five Goldeneye, including a splendid drake. I cannot recall a multiple sighting of this species here – certainly never as many as five.

Other bird notes:
- The four cygnets with their parents went for a long flight, leaving the confines of the lake and being lost to view for several minutes. The other cygnet was again tucked in to the N side reeds seemingly happy-enough. Strangely when the others returned they settled close-by but at that time it had disappeared (in to the reeds?).
- Eight adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls were on the water by 06:30. Whether these were early arrivals or had roosted is unclear.
- Still rather few migrants groups of Wood Pigeons. Most in a single group of 137 flying SW far to the W.
- More Fieldfare than are logged below: several (groups?) of birds heard passing before it was light-enough to see them.
- Again no large parties of Jackdaws.
- Reed Buntings were seen leaving the roost to the N, E and W today. At least two more still calling.

Bird totals:

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake:
- 2 Canada Geese: outbound
- 2 Greylag Geese: inbound
- 4 (2♂?) Goosander
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 36 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Stock Doves
- 228 Wood Pigeons: of these 215 in five migrant groups
- 97 Jackdaws
- 4 Rooks
- 9 Starlings: 1 group
- >49 Fieldfares: 5 groups (see notes)
- 2 Redwings: singles
- 4 Pied Wagtails
- 1 Greenfinch

Birds logged leaving roosts around the lake:
- >150 Starlings
- 8 Redwings
- 8 Reed Buntings

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 5 (1 brood) Mute Swans (see notes)
- 4 (2♂) Gadwall once more
- 5 (3♂) Mallard
- 4 (3♂) Pochard
- 39 (19?♂) Tufted Ducks
- 5 (1+♂) Goldeneye
- 3 Cormorants
- 2 Grey Herons
- 3 Little Grebes again
- 10 Great Crested Grebes
- 11 Moorhens
- 135 Coots
- c.120 Black-headed Gulls
- 17 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Herring Gulls: one first winter birds

Lamp poles pre-dawn revealed:
- 1 Red-green Carpet moth (Chloroclysta siterata): same place for fourth day
- 1 November Moth-type (Epirrita sp.)
- 1 Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata)
- 1 Mottled Umber moth (Erranis defoliaria)
- 1 Hawthorn Shieldbug (Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale)
- 1 Common European Earwig (Forficula auricularia)
- 2 Common Stretch-spiders (Tetragnatha extensa)
- 1 Nursery Web Spider (Pisaura mirabilis)
- 1 other small unidentified spider
- 1 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestmen

No later sightings.

They’re off. Today’s lengthy flying lesson begins for the cygnets.

Three of the cygnets clear of the trees and looking around the area.

Heading off?

Nope: all six back round for another lap.

Now heading off NE. They stayed away and were nowhere to be seen for several minutes.

One of the duck Goldeneye. A golden eye indeed.

All four birds that I have identified as duck Goldeneye. I am none too sure about the right-most bird – the neck looks too white and suggests it might be a first-winter drake. Indeed all of them show some white along the folded wing. Are they all first-winter drakes?

A very typical view of a Goldeneye.

The adult drake would not come close. Here he leads two of the others.

This is a Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata). Smaller than any November Moth-type and with a pale band across the wings. This varies in intensity and some specimens are almost unmarked.

I’ve noted before that there does not seem to be much Autumn colour about. With the early sun and the contrasting clouds here are some views ‘as good as it gets’ at the moment. The NW corner of the lake.

Here the W end.

And here the NW corner of the football field.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  09:25 – 10:20

(252nd visit of the year)

Notes from here:
- All the geese were hiding inside the island. It was peaceful.
- Most of the drake Goosanders were still moulting in to adult plumage.
- Now four Great Crested Grebes.
- A Grey Wagtail flew off.

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 39 Jackdaws

Counts from the water:
- 3 Mute Swans
- 4 Greylag Geese
- 2 Canada Geese
- 45 (27♂) Mallard
- 21 (4♂) Tufted Duck
- 9 (8?♂) Goosander
- 1 Grey Heron: flew off
- 4 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Moorhen only
- 11 Coots
- 31 Black-headed Gulls

Other things:
- on the usual lamp pole
        - 1 Dicranopalpus ramosus harvestman
- on lamp poles in squirrel alley:
        - 1 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestman
- on the Ivy bank: despite the low temperature some good sightings for the date:
        - 1 Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum)
        - >30 wasps, at least one a Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris)
        - 1 Common Drone Fly (Eristalis tenax)
        - very many flies
- nothing elsewhere

How about this duck? A lot of white around the base of the bill. A rather rounded head with no hint of a ‘tuft’ and some grey flecks on the back. A duck Scaup?

Here it is with two companions. Bottom left is clearly a duck Tufted Duck – almost no white face and a slight tuft. It too has some grey flecks on its back. The bird at the rear shows no white on the face and no tuft. However a Scaup should be slightly, but noticeably, bigger than any Tufted Duck and brown rather than reddish-brown. So ...?

This view clinches the ID. While there might be a lot of white at the base of the bill then the bill pattern is very typical of duck Tufted Duck. A duck Scaup has a small black ‘nail’ on an otherwise unmarked bill. They also often show some pale on the face that this bird lacks.

More Goosander photos. I am puzzled that there are so few ’brownheads’ this year and even those that appear to be are already moulting in to drake plumage. So where are the ducks? On the left a drake that has mostly completed its moult. In the middle a good brown head complete with shaggy hair-do but too much white in the wing for a duck. The one on the right with the neat brown head also has too much white in the wing to be a duck.

A closer view of the bird with the shaggy hair-do confirms the amount of white in the wing is too great for a duck. The white stripe between the bill and the eye indicates a first-winter bird.

Two more moulting drakes.

Perhaps the clearest indication that they are mostly moulting drakes is this view. The bird on the right is closest to having the bottle-green head of an adult drake, the others all with variable amounts of brown still to be replaced.

Some Autumn colours from here.

These are also Oak leaves.

Always good to log hoverflies in the winter months. This is a Common Drone Fly (Eristalis tenax). This species hibernates as an adult and can be awake on any warm day throughout the winter looking for nectar.

One of the very many wasps. The face pattern on this matches Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris). Sadly the Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum) came and went very quickly and I was unable to capture the unusual November record of this species.

(Ed Wilson)

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On this day..........
2018
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

 2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

 2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

 2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

 2013
Priorslee Lake
10 Mute Swans 
4 Wigeon 
4 Gadwall 
3 Teal 
1 Pochard 
53 Tufted Duck 
1 Water Rail 
223 Coots 
c.3500 Wood Pigeons
78 Fieldfare
34 Redwings
433 Jackdaws
135 Rooks 
c.155 Starlings from roost
(Ed Wilson)

 The Flash
18 Tufted Ducks
(Ed Wilson)

 2012
Priorslee Lake
70 Greylag Geese
Pink-footed Goose 
2 Gadwall 
7 Pochard 
35 Tufted Ducks 
149 Coots 
c.500 Black-headed Gulls
Great Black-backed Gull
c.320 Wood Pigeons
166 Redwings
31 Fieldfares
889 Jackdaws
126 Rooks
200+ Starlings left roost
1 Siskin
(Ed Wilson)

 2009
Wrekin
Location
Firecrest
(Jim Almond)

 2006
Priorslee Lake
20 Pochard
108 Tufted Ducks
15 Lapwings
c.587 Black-headed Gulls
938 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
161 Wood Pigeons
36 Robins
25 Blackbirds
7 Song Thrushes
13 Redwings
4 Mistle Thrushes
202 Jackdaws
163 Rooks
29 Greenfinches
(Ed Wilson)