8 Dec 19

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Priorslee Lake:  07:20 – 09:05
The Flash:  09:10 – 10:00

7.0°C:  Passing light showers on fresh WSW wind. Mostly very good visibility except in showers.

Sunrise: 08:08 GMT

Priorslee Lake:  07:20 – 09:05

(280th visit of the year)

Because of the strength of the wind and the passing showers I stayed in the shelter of my car in the E end lay-by for some of the time. There did not seem to be many passerines venturing out of cover.

Other bird notes:
- The cob Mute Swan attacked what was presumably the fifth, non-flying, cygnet. All the family had seemed happily together earlier. Whether this was to try and encourage it to fly or simply aggression was impossible to discern. After the cygnet had escaped and paddled away the pen joined the cob and they went in to their ‘aren’t we clever’ pose from which I assume she approved of his action.
- See notes under The Flash below – likely many of the Tufted Duck flew off later.
- No idea whether the c.350 Black-headed Gulls present at 07:20 had roosted or were early arrivals
- There were no large gulls on the water at 07:20 and I assume none had roosted. Whether this was because of the strong wind, increased disturbance over weekends or some other cause I know not.
- Just a scatter of large gulls dropped in before 09:00 (when the yacht club started to arrive and I left). These included the now regular first-winter Caspian Gull; a different possible first-winter Caspian Gull; also an adult gull that was either a Yellow-legged or Caspian Gull – it was present for less than two minutes and I was unable to get a close-enough view of it.

Bird totals:

Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake:
- 1 Common Buzzard again
- 10 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 14 Wood Pigeons
- 147 Jackdaws
- 8 Rooks
- 3 Redwings again

Birds logged leaving roosts around the lake:
None

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans (see notes)
- 6 (3♂) Gadwall
- 5 (3♂) Mallard
- 4 (4♂) Pochard again
- 79 (41♂) Tufted Duck
- 3 Cormorants: arrived and departed
- 1 Grey Heron
- 3 Little Grebes
- 4 Great Crested Grebes again
- 11 Moorhens
- 136 Coots again
- c.350 Black-headed Gulls
- 10 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: 9 adults; 1 first-winter (all arrivals)
- 3 Herring Gulls: 1 second winter; 2 first-winters (all arrivals)
- 1 Caspian Gull: the regular first-winter (arrival)
- 1 possible Caspian Gull: different first-winter (arrival)
- 1 Caspian or Yellow-legged Gull: adult (briefly)

Cannot go a day without a gull puzzle at the moment. This first-winter bird shows just three pale inner primaries, dark secondaries with paler secondary coverts and a pale head. Sadly I do not have a photo showing the tail band. That might have helped with the ID.

It is the left hand bird here with a adult winter Black-headed Gull and a first-winter Lesser Black-backed Gull. Note it is significantly larger than the Lesser Black-back.

The size difference is obvious here too. Note the size of the black bill on our mystery bird. Apart from the bill it looks somewhat like a first-winter Caspian Gull – the mantle looks too pale for Yellow-legged Gull. It does not look like the bird that has been regular here for some weeks. That bill almost looks as if it ought to be on a Great Black-backed Gull, though this bird is obviously not that species as it would be even larger and much darker and more coarsely marked. Will have to ‘pend’ it

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  09:10 – 10:00

(265th visit of the year)

Bird notes from here:
- All three Mute Swans seen in flight across the water. The first time I have seen any of them fly for months and perhaps even the first time I have seen the 2018 cygnet fly this year.
- After my previous comments about the excess of drake Goosanders this season there were of course only brownheads today. Murphy at work (I hope that’s not considered racist in these PC times)
- A pair of Great Crested Grebes, apparent first-winter birds, were new since yesterday. There have been rather variable numbers recently, though a lone bird on the S / SW area around the island has usually been present.
- Most of the Tufted Duck flew in. I assumed birds disturbed from the lake by the arrival of the yachts. Exact number not known as I had not completed a count of the birds already present before they all got mixed up.

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Counts from the water:
- 3 Mute Swans
- 3 Canada Geese
- 30 (17♂) Mallard
- 8 (7♂) Pochard
- 96 (51♂) Tufted Duck (see notes)
- 5 (0♂) Goosanders
- 1 Grey Heron: departed
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Moorhen
- 12 Coots
- 156 Black-headed Gulls
- 6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: 5 adults; 1 first-winter
- 1 Herring Gull, briefly: first-winter

Nothing seen elsewhere

Photos of Goosanders are gradually getting better .... This brownhead shows some remnant white between the bill and the eye suggesting this is a first-winter bird. The white feather in the folded wing hints that this may be beginning to moult in to drake plumage.

Not a particularly flattering view of this Nuthatch!

Neither is this but at least it is in the sun and a better colour.

Not in the sun was this only Long-tailed Tit in the roving party that stayed still long-enough to avoid the ‘empty branch syndrome’. Glad it wasn't film.

(Ed Wilson)

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

2018
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2017
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

2012
Priorslee Lake
2 Wigeon
3 Gadwall
9 Pochard
41 Tufted Ducks
3 Goosanders
166 Coots
Peregrine Falcon
118 Black-headed Gulls
>500 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.40 Herring Gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
43 Redwings
2 Fieldfares
c.469 Jackdaws
53 Rooks
(Ed Wilson)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Black-necked Grebe
4 Great Crested Grebes
33 Swans
31 Pochard
70 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
308 Coots
c.1300 Black-headed Gulls
1 Common Gull
c.300 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
102 Herring Gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
225 Jackdaws
3 Siskins
2 Redpolls
(Ed Wilson)

Trench
2 Great Crested Grebes
3 Cormorants
8 Pochard
60 Tufted Ducks
drake Mallard x Pintail
1 adult Yellow-legged Gull 
6 Herring Gulls
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe
12 Pochard
56 Tufted Ducks
1 drake Ruddy Duck
2 Goosanders
3 Lapwings
1 Snipe
>1700 Black-headed Gulls
865 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
22 Robins
22 Blackbirds
6 Redwings
243 Jackdaws
133 Rooks
22 Chaffinches
1 Brambling
12 Greenfinches
4 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
Water Rail
6 Pochard
27 Tufted Duck
247 Coot
402 Jackdaws
483 Rooks
37 Siskins
1 Redpoll
21 Fieldfares.
2 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)