5 Dec 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  06:30 – 09:15 // 10:00 – 10:25
The Flash:  09:20 – 09:55

2.0°C > 1.0°C > 4.0°C:  Clear start; then foggy; then clearer; then foggy again; cleared c.09:15. Light SSW wind, increasing. Poor, sometimes very poor visibility; latterly very good.

Sunrise: 08:04 GMT

Priorslee Lake:  06:30 – 09:15 // 10:00 – 10:25

(277th visit of the year)

All totals affected by the fog and mist as visibility came and went. It needed a return visit to get a more accurate count of the Tufted Ducks.

Bird notes:
- c.35 large gulls on the water at 06:45 seemed to have roosted. These were soon joined by >500 Black-headed Gulls. Almost all gulls left by 09:00 after which a flew new large gulls started arriving.
- Gulls re-counted c.10:15 as shown below. Two Yellow-legged Gulls found. Otherwise nothing of note.
- No Magpie roost count – not visible in the mist.
- c.50 Jackdaws glimpsed through the mist at 07:28. A scatter later. It also sounded as if some had ‘got lost’ in the mist and were in the N side trees for a while: nothing seen.
- No Starlings seen leaving the roost area.
- Just three Reed Buntings seen to leave the roost area by 08:00. At least two more still calling.

Bird totals:

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake:
- 1 Stock Dove
- 4 Wood Pigeons only
- >56 Jackdaws
- 1 Mistle Thrush

Birds logged leaving roosts around the lake:
- 2 Redwing
- 3 Reed Buntings

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans
- 6 Canada Geese: throughout
- 8 (4♂) Gadwall
- 14 (10♂) Mallard
- 4 (4♂) Pochard
- 61 (30♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (0♂) Goosander
- 1 Grey Heron
- 2 Cormorants
- [no Little Grebes]
- 5 Great Crested Grebes
- 8 Moorhens
- [Coots not counted]
first number = early count // second number = count c.10:15
- >500 // c.170 Black-headed Gulls
- c.30 // 48 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- c.5 // 26 Herring Gulls
- 0 // 2 Yellow-legged Gull: 2nd winter and adult

Lamp poles pre-dawn revealed:
- 2 Winter Moths (Operophtera brumata)
- 1 Common Stretch-spider (Tetragnatha extensa)

An adult winter Black-headed Gull looks on as a Great Crested Grebe gets its sizeable breakfast lined up to swallow.

This (distant) adult Black-headed Gull has a full black head (hood). Now is this the 2019 feathers yet to moult out? Or is it an early-starter for the 2020 breeding season? No idea.

Gull lesson for today. Ignore the two adult winter Black-headed Gulls at the back and in the foreground we have, from left to right: an adult winter Lesser Black-backed Gull bathing with its head in the water; a third winter Herring Gull pecking at the red buoy (as they often do); another adult winter Lesser Black-backed Gull also bathing and fluffing its wings; and a Yellow-legged Gull with its head in the water. Note the mantle tone of this last bird is intermediate between the paler Herring Gull and the darker Lesser Black-backed Gull.

Here they are again. The third-winter Herring Gull is more clearly seen with the black band across the bill with the pale tip; and a small amount of brown showing in the folded wings. The gull behind it is the Yellow-legged Gull. The angle of the light makes it look rather darker and closer in tone to the Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  09:20 – 09:55

(262nd visit of the year)

Surprisingly there was a small amount of ice here and, unusually, it was at the top end. Some first-winter Black-headed Gulls were not coping too well with, probably, their first encounter with ice.

Bird notes from here:
- Strange group of 33 Wood Pigeons flying high E. “Warmer weather is the other way guys”.

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 33 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Fieldfare
- 2 Starlings

Counts from the water:
- 3 Mute Swans
- 2 Canada Geese
- 48 (28♂) Mallard
- 5 (4♂) Pochard again
- 37 (20♂) Tufted Duck
- 3 (1♂) Goosanders
- 2 Great Crested Grebes only
- 9 Moorhen
- 15 Coots
- 61 Black-headed Gulls

Other sightings:
        - 1 Mottled Umber moth (Erranis defoliaria) on a lamp pole

This morning’s Mottled Umber moth (Erranis defoliaria). Not a ‘standard’ specimen by any means as this individual lacks the black spot on each forewing. It is also rather bright to be called an ‘umber’. A very variable species though.

(Ed Wilson)

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

2018
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2017
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2016
Local Area
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here

2012
Priorslee Lake
3 Gadwall.
9 Pochard
44 Tufted Ducks
1 Goldeneye
158 Coots
9 Herring Gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
27 Redwings
4 Fieldfares
(Ed Wilson)

Priorslee Flash
7 Pochard
71 Tufted Duck
5 Goosander
(Ed Wilson / John Isherwood)

2011
Priorslee Lake
5 Adult Great Black-backed Gulls
(John Isherwood)

2009
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebes
36 Swans
15 Pochard
48 Tufted Ducks
1 Woodcock
300 Coots
c.1500 Black-headed Gulls
5 Stock Doves
5 Redwings
c.35 Goldfinches
c.10 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
1 Wigeon
7 Pochard
58 Tufted Ducks
>1000 Black-headed Gulls
>2350 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
5 Herring Gulls
1 Yellow-legged Gull
20 Robins
20 Blackbirds
c.40 Fieldfares
4 Song Thrushes
6 Redwings
2 Willow Tits
190 Jackdaws
278 Rooks
7 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
2 Wigeon
12 Pochard
47 Tufted Duck
239 Coot
Golden Plover
c.1600 Black-headed Gulls
397 Jackdaws
261 Rooks
2 Meadow Pipits
3 Redwings
16 Robins
24 Blackbirds
62 Fieldfares
15 Wrens
2 Willow Tits
Redpolls
Siskins
(Ed Wilson)