17 Feb 20

Priorslee Lake, The Flash, Trench Lock Pool and Trench Middle Pool (not in that order)

Priorslee Lake:  12:35 – 13:10
The Flash:  10:15 – 10:55
Trench Lock Pool:  11:05 – 11:15 // 11:55 – 12:20
Trench Middle Pool:  11:20 – 11:50

5.0°C > 8.0°C:  Broken cloud with a few showers. Moderate W wind, fresh in showers. Very good visibility.

[Sunrise: 07:23 GMT]

Priorslee Lake:  12:35 – 13:10

(34th visit of the year)

Short visit to check out any wind-blown or drowned waifs. Nothing much on the very muddy water.

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- [no Mallard]
- 8 (5♂) Tufted Duck
- 3 Cormorants
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Moorhens
- 48 Coots
- 33 Black-headed Gulls
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: all adults
- 2 Herring Gulls: both adults

Nothing else of note.

All the rain has left the water very muddy and murky.

Quite startling against the black cloud of the next incoming shower is this sunlit Common Buzzard.

The primary feathers are well-spread as ‘fingers’ while it tries to cope with the gusty wind.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:  10:15 – 10:55

(33rd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- The adult Mute Swans well-separated from the 2018 cygnet.
- One Canada Goose sitting on the island. On eggs or just resting?

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

Counts from the water:
- 3 Mute Swans
- 8 Canada Geese
- 37 (22♂) Mallard
- 5 (5♂) Pochard
- 47 (22♂) Tufted Duck
- 6 (3?♂) Goosander
- 2 Cormorants
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 4 Moorhen
- 11 Coots
- 26 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Kingfisher again

As a reminder: here is what typical drake and duck Goosanders look like.

So what is this then? Much whiter on the neck and along the flanks than the previous duck.

Here it is in the middle between two pairs. Head shape and lack of plumes suggests to me it is first-year drake. Willing to be persuaded otherwise.

(Ed Wilson)

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Trench Lock Pool:  11:05 – 11:15 // 11:55 – 12:20

(13th visit of the year)

Bird notes from here:
- Just two drake Pochard, apparently. These suddenly ‘appeared’ and just as suddenly ‘disappeared’. I am certain they did not fly in or out but just paddled out of and back in to hiding. Others there?
- Great Spotted Woodpecker heard calling from the S end trees. I seem to hear this bird here every February but rarely thereafter.

Birds noted flying over / near here [other than local Wood Pigeons and Jackdaws]:
- 1 Sparrowhawk
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 1 Herring Gull: second-winter
- 2 Starlings

Counts from the water:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 1 (1♂) Mallard]
- 2 (2♂) Pochard
- 17 (11♂) Tufted Ducks
- 3 (3♂) Goosander
- 4 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Moorhen
- 6 Coots
- 8 Black-headed Gulls
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: adults
- 2 Herring Gulls: adults

Additional bird species for my 2020 bird list at this site:
#43     Sparrowhawk
#44     Great Spotted Woodpecker

A bird that is not too often seen in flight is Moorhen, nicely showing its rounded wings. Note the legs still seem to be pedalling.

I was not sure about the age of this immature Herring Gull as it flew over. “Take a photo and examine at leisure”. The complete grey mantle just spreading on to the wings indicates a second-winter bird beginning to moult to second summer plumage. Large gulls are always a challenge with (at least) three years of ‘immature’ plumages that differ summer and winter and are often in transition anyway.

(Ed Wilson)

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Trench Middle Pool:  11:20 – 11:50

(13th visit of the year)

Notes from here:
- Geese and ducks taken to the island to mark out breeding territory making accurate counts difficult.
- Both Grey and Pied Wagtails heard around the water.

Birds noted flying over / near here:
- 2 Common Buzzards

Counts from the water:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 4 Greylag Geese
- 41 Canada Geese
- 1 all-white feral duck?-type
- 16 (11♂) Mallard only
- 3 (1♂) Tufted Duck
- [no Goosanders]
- 2 Great Crested Grebes again
- 8 Moorhens only
- 26 Coots
- 86 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

One of the resident Mute Swans exercises its wings. If you enlarge the shot it is possible to read ‘7JLE’ on the blue Darvic ring on its left leg. There is a metal BTO-type ring close-fitted on the right leg.

Catching a rare glimpse of the sun is this Common Buzzard.

These two adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls dropped in. Note the left-hand bird has no black on the bill at all. No trace of winter head-streaking on either of these birds.

Here is that left-hand bird in close-up (after it has rearranged its feathers).

This seems to be it arriving back after a flight. It has ‘mirrors’ on the outer two primaries. According to my reference books it shouldn’t have – it should only have the single ‘mirror’. The problem with many birds is that they don’t read the books and look and behave like they are supposed to.

And here is the other bird with some black on upper mandible especially. The tip of the bill is also slightly pale. A third-summer bird? Possibly just late completing transition to adult summer?

From the bill-pattern this is that same bird showing well in flight. Note the broad white trailing edge to the wing. Note it has just one white ‘mirror’ on the outer primary only – as it is supposed to. The shafts to the outer few primaries show clearly.

(Ed Wilson)

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

2019
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
3 Scaup 
1 Grey Wagtail
8 Pochard
23 Tufted Duck
3 Great Crested Grebe
(Gary Crowder)

Telford Crematorium
2 Caspian Gull
c.500 Lesser Black-backed Gull
c.40 Herring Gull
(Gary Crowder)

2012
Priorslee Lake
Iceland Gull
(Jim Almond)

2006
Priorslee Lake
6 Great Crested Grebes
1 Heron
5 Cormorants
2 Gadwall
9 Pochard
18 Tufted Ducks
121 Coots
741 Wood Pigeon
289 Jackdaws
108 Rooks
290 Starlings
1 Sky Lark
18 Robins
19 Blackbirds again
11 Greenfinches
6 Siskins
23 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)