Priorslee Lake: 06:45 – 08:55
The Flash: 09:00 – 09:35
Trench Lock Pool: 09:45 – 09:50 // 10:20 – 10:55
Trench Middle Pool: 09:55 – 10:15
2.0°C > 1.0°C > 4.0°C: Early very low cloud and mist. Started to break c.08:30 but clouded again 09:00. Finally cleared c.10:15. Light SE wind, increasing somewhat. Poor visibility, becoming good.
Sunrise: 07:43 GMT
Highlight today was a duck Goldeneye on Trench Lock Pool
Priorslee Lake: 06:45 – 08:55
(26th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- The two Canada Geese present throughout, separate from and unmolested by the Mute Swans and their cygnets.
- The first outbound Canada Geese were ‘sounds in the mist’.
- Now a third drake Gadwall.
- I guess most of the Jackdaws were lost in the mist. Those I did see were passing to the W of the lake – a less-used flight path. I did not hear any others and groups are usually quite noisy.
- A walk around the whole lake pre-dawn found 14 singing Song Thrushes.
- A Goldfinch seen in display flight.
Bird totals:
Birds noted flying over or flying near the lake:
- 16 Greylag Geese (1 group outbound)
- >6 Canada Geese (3 pairs outbound with others heard)
- 233 Black-headed Gulls
- 17 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls
- 15 Wood Pigeons
- 43 Jackdaws only
Birds logged leaving roosts around the lake:
- 31 Magpies
- 3 Redwings
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 2 Canada Geese: throughout
- 5 (3♂) Gadwall
- 6 (4♂) Mallard
- 6 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- [no Cormorants]
- 1 Grey Heron
- 3 Great Crested Grebes again
- 11 Moorhens
- 47 Coots
Gulls:
Arrival:
- Five Black-headed Gulls arrived c.07:15. The next arrivals were 16 large gulls, most of which went unidentified. Just 46 more Black-headed Gulls arrived by 07:30. Thereafter all the Black-headed Gulls flew straight through to the SSE (see fly-overs above), taking those that had landed with them.
counts
- 36 Black-headed Gulls
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adults
- 1 Herring Gulls: immatures
- 12 unidentified large gulls
Thereafter new gull arrivals were:.
- 51 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adults
- 3 Herring Gulls: immatures
The Black-headed Gulls arrived from the SE and may have been birds present and/or over flying earlier.
Other things:
- a single early Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) flower.
Rather too dull to get a decent shot of such an active sprite as this Goldcrest. This will have to do.
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 09:00 – 09:35
(25th visit of the year)
Bird notes from here:
- fewer Tufted Duck today, but conditions not good. Not possible to see both ends of the water clearly at any one time.
Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
Counts from the water:
- 3 Mute Swans as ever
- 34 Canada Geese: 30 of these flew in
- 47 (28♂) Mallard
- 5 (5♂) Pochard
- 53 (26♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (0♂) Goosander
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Grey Heron
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 5 Moorhens
- 15 Coots
- 52 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adult
- 1 Kingfisher
No other sightings:
(Ed Wilson)
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Trench Lock Pool: 09:45 – 09:50 // 10:20 – 10:55
(10th visit of the year)
Bird notes from here:
- Five drake Pochard this visit
- The Goldeneye on an apparently typical date: my last record was on 5th February 2018 – though I recall the water was almost iced-over on that date. Logged on three of the previous six years.
- The Yellow-legged Gull remained on the water with wings folded so unable to confirm it was the ‘regular’ bird.
- First Greenfinch of the year here – in song.
Birds noted flying over / near here:
- 2 Canada Geese
Counts from the water:
- 2 Mute Swans again
- 13 Canada Geese
- 1 (1♂) Mallard only
- 5 (5♂) Pochard
- 11 (7♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 (0♂) Goldeneye
- 1 Grey Heron: flew in
- 2 Little Grebes
- 4 Great Crested Grebes again
- 3 Moorhens
- 7 Coots
- 7 Black-headed Gulls only
- 5 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: all adult
- 1 Yellow-legged Gull: near adult?
Additional bird species for my 2020 bird list at this site:
#41 Goldeneye
#42 Greenfinch
This Grey Heron flew in and perched briefly. Then it noticed me and flew off – as here.
And here with a first-winter Black-headed Gull allowing comparison of the mantle tones.
(Ed Wilson)
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Trench Middle Pool: 09:55 – 10:15
(10th visit of the year)
Lower numbers of just about every species.
Notes from here:
- Only one of the Great Crested Grebes found: could the other already be sitting on a nest?
Birds noted flying over / near here:
None
Counts from the water:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 38 Canada Geese
- 1 all-white feral duck?-type
- 16 (12♂) Mallard only
- 7 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (1♂) Goosander again
- 1 Great Crested Grebe only
- 9 Moorhens only
- 22 Coots only
- 45 Black-headed Gulls only
(Ed Wilson)
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On this day..........
2019Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here
2018
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here
2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here
2014
Priorslee Lake
1 Velvet Scoter
3 Scaup
9 Pochard
9 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c80 Black-headed Gulls
(Gary Crowder)
Telford Central Railway Station
35 Redwing
(Gary Crowder)
Horsehay Pool
1 Caspian Gull
(Tom Lowe)
2013
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site:
2 Glaucous Gulls
1 Caspian Gull
(Kris Webb)
2012
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebes
15 Pochard
54 Tufted Duck
c.1200 Black-headed Gulls
1 Common Gull
c.420 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.30 Herring Gulls
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
(Ed Wilson)
Priorslee Flash
10 Pochard
47 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)
Trench Lock
2 Little Grebes
30 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)
2011
Priorslee Lake
3 Pochard
6 Goosanders
4 Pale Brindled Beauty moths
(Ed Wilson)
2007
Priorslee Lake
34 Greylag Geese
9 Pochard
56 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
775 Black-headed Gulls
488 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
3 Herring Gull
1 Great Black-backed Gull
28 Robins
19 Blackbirds
8 Song Thrushes
1 Redwing
1 Willow Tit
41 Magpies
250 Jackdaws
100 Rooks
4 Greenfinches
2 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Gadwall
22 Pochard
63 Tufted Ducks
164 Coots
600 Wood Pigeons
c.1300 Black-headed Gulls
84 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
9 Herring Gulls
21 Robins
24 Blackbirds
9 Song Thrushes
3 Willow Tits
11 Greenfinches
15 Siskins
17 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)