30 Apr 20

Priorslee Lake and Woodhouse Lane

My extended exercise walk encompassed Woodhouse Lane today

5.0°C > 9.0°C:  Variable amounts of cloud with only a few sunny intervals. Moderate S wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 05:38 BST

Priorslee Lake:  early

(68th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- The trio of Greylag Geese arrived and were chased on to the E end grass by the cob Mute Swan. Later they went to the W end where they were left alone.
- The same rather strange, presumed female, Pheasant on the school playing field.
- Another very low count of Coots.
- The Lesser Black-backed Gull was on the same buoy as used on Tuesday. Same bird? Or is the buoy in a favourable location?
- Still cannot decide how many singing Garden Warblers there are. At least four although song was heard from six different locations.
- A Lesser Whitethroat was very vocal throughout and also rather mobile. For all that I managed the briefest of glimpses as it dived in to a bush.
- The original Common Whitethroat is not singing at the moment. Another bird in a different location was singing. It was a rather strange song lacking the usual ‘scratchiness’, but was seen well-enough to eliminate any confusion species.
- Only one Sedge Warbler noted.
- This year the Mistle Thrush is using a much wider range of song posts than previously. If I had not noted two birds together last week I might have thought he was still seeking a mate and a nest site.
- One House Sparrow made it as far as the sailing club compound.

Birds noted flying over / near here:
- 2 Canada Geese (pair outbound)
- 1 Cormorant
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: adults
- 1 Feral Pigeon
- 16 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Jackdaw

Count of hirundines etc logged:
- >75 Sand Martins
- >10 Barn Swallows
- House Martin(s) heard only

Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):
- 16 (12) Chiffchaffs
- 23 (18) Blackcaps
- 6 (6)? Garden Warblers (see notes)
- 1 (1) Lesser Whitethroat
- 2 (1) Common Whitethroat
- 1 (1) Sedge Warbler only
- 5 (5) Reed Warblers

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 3 Greylag Geese: arrived
- 2 Canada Geese: arrived; later flew to playing field
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall still
- 12 (10♂) Mallard
- 2 (1♂) Tufted Ducks
- 1 Grey Heron
- Little Grebe heard only
- 6 Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Moorhens
- 14 Coots only
- 1 Common Sandpiper still
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adult, briefly

New flower species noted:
- Wayfaring-tree (Viburnum lantana)

On / around the street lights:
- 1 spider sp.
The Lunar Marbled Brown moth (Drymonia ruficornis) has gone: perhaps washed away by yesterday afternoon’s deluge.

‘Imperious’ is a good word for this Greylag Goose, none the worse for its brush with the cob Mute Swan.

“Quarts and pint pots” spring to mind. This Great Crested Grebe is determined to have a go.

Just the tail left ....

 ... nope – reposition for another go (while a Barn Swallow passes).

Down the hatch this time. Look at that extended neck. The stomach will be extended soon.

Two for the price of one and also compare and contrast. A resting Barn Swallow was going to be joined by the Sand Martin but he decided to fly on.

The Barn Swallow decided to leave too! Note the length of its tail – likely a male.

This Barn Swallow was bold and allowed gentle closer approach. It may be the angle foreshortening the tail. Or it may be a shorter-tailed female.

A picture you always hope to take and then sadly it is not as sharp and clear as you would like. A Sand Martin picking a morsel off the surface of the lake.

Starlings are harder to photograph than you might imagine. They are very wary and do not allow close approach. When they are, as here, busy collecting food to take back to the nest they are frantically shuffling around adding to mouthfuls of food. This male (the blue at the base of the bill means it is a male; females have pink-based bills in the breeding season) has quite a collection. How they manage to find these grubs I have no idea. It is clear I would not make a good Starling.

Well all this is indeed true. But it is a shame that in these “helf’n’safety” conscious days we cannot just put up notices saying “do not touch”. After all we do not root out all Laburnum trees just because the seeds are poisonous do we? And the flowers of Giant Hogweed are a great nectar source for many insects. We are killing and starving millions of insects every year through the application of weed killers. It would be nice for the survivors to have a food source.

On one of the lamp poles was this tiny spider – my portable 1p scale in use again. It bears some resemblance to crab spiders in the genus Xysticus but I cannot find an exact match.

Flowers just opening here on what I think I have previously misidentified as a Guelder Rose (Viburnum opulus). Upon cross-checking with the date of flowering and the leaf-shape I think this is a Wayfaring-tree (Viburnum lantana). There are many around the lake.

(Ed Wilson)

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Woodhouse Lane:

(2nd visit of the year)

Notes from here
- Strange that no Pheasants were heard calling. Usually plentiful around the fields.
- A snatch of what seemed to be Willow Warbler song. A Song Thrush, a Chiffchaff and a Blackcap were in full cry close-by and I was not 100% certain. Nothing more heard.
- Good number of Common Whitethroats: my highest count for several years

Notable species counts (singing birds in brackets):
- [no Pheasants]
- 4 (3) Skylarks
- [no Long-tailed Tit parties]
- 4 (2) Chiffchaffs
- 5 (5) Blackcaps
- 7 (5) Common Whitethroats
- 2 (2) Song Thrush
- 4 (3) Chaffinches again
- 2 Goldfinches
- 3 Linnets
- 6 (1) Yellowhammers

Additional flower species noted:
- Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta)
- Lucerne (or Alfalfa) (Medicago sativa)

Early summer in Woodhouse Lane is a very relaxing and peaceful place to be. Very little traffic, a few walkers and great wildlife. The verges of the ‘three-ply’ lane are packed with wildflowers – mostly Cow Parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris) in this view. Fields of rape beyond. The verges will be trimmed soon but it seems not to affect the abundant flowers too much.

Looking back up the lane.

All just a stone’s throw from the M54 – you can just see a vehicle between the trees.

More Common Whitethroats this year than I can recall for some years. A male in song.

Another male in the hedge. They use hedges as look-out posts. They are nesting in the rape.

And another in silhouette.

And yet another in song. In ten days or so when nesting gets underway they will be less obvious and song will diminish.

Not a very sharp photo but one I was pleased with anyway. Common Whitethroats have an erratic ‘dancing’ display flight and here is a male doing just that.

With a stick in the way: never mind. A perky singing Dunnock. This one shows obvious white tips to its primary coverts.

Definitely not willing to pose today were any of the Yellowhammers. A male here.

Do I need to say what these are? Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta). The small white flowers just to the left are Dog's Mercury (Mercurialis perennis).

More Bluebells.

This Yellow Archangel plant (Lamium galeobdolon) was in better light and more advanced than any I photographed last week.

This is clearly one of the pea family. Which? My vote is for Lucerne (or Alfalfa) (Medicago sativa). Originally a crop plant for cattle but now widely naturalised.

The density of some wild flowers beside the lane is wonderful. These are Ramsons (Allium ursinum).

A big patch of Common or Field Forget-me-not (Myosotis arvensis).

A closer look at part of the patch.

(Ed Wilson)

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If you are on your daily exercise and keeping a safe distance from others, we would love to see any photos or sightings from Priorslee Lake and The Flash, by contacting us at priorsleelake@hotmail.com

We look forward to hearing from you.😊

(Martin Adlam and Ed Wilson)

Note:
Here are a few Garden Sightings from Ed Wilson Here on our Readers Corner from the past few days

And

A few of Martin Adlam's Sightings from the Isle of Portland Here.

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

2019
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

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

2013
Priorslee Lake
1 Common Sandpiper
2 Raven
2 Reed Warbler
(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill
1 Whinchat
1 Yellow Wagtail
1 White Wagtail
2 Common Redstart
40 Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

Long Lane, Wellington
3 Whimbrel
(JW Reeves)

2012
Priorslee Lake
1 Lesser Whitethroat
1 Reed Warbler
(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill
1 Common Redstart
15 Wheatear
1 Lesser Whitethroat
2 Raven
(John Isherwood)

The Wrekin
2 Pied Flycatchers
Common Redstart
(Observer Unknown)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Hobby
2 Red-legged Partridge
Lesser Whitethroat
Cormorant
5 Lapwings
6 Reed Warblers
3 Whitethroats
8 Blackcaps
5 Chiffchaffs
4 Linnet
(Ed Wilson)

2008
Priorslee Lake
17 Mute Swans
(Martin Adlam)

2007
Priorslee Lake
1 Swift
c.20 Sand Martins
1 Swallow
6 House Sparrows
2 Sparrowhawk
Buzzard
Kestrel
2 Stock Dove
2 Grey Wagtails
1 Sedge Warbler
4 Reed Warblers
Chiffchaff
126 Jackdaw
(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill
2 Buzzards
Swallow
Ring Ouzel
2 Common Whitethroat
1 Chiffchaff
2 Linnets
(Ed Wilson)

Priorslee Flash
3 Great Crested Grebes
Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
5 Great Crested Grebes
2 Greylag Geese
6 Tufted Ducks
2 Common Sandpiper
1 Cuckoo
1 Sky Lark
c.10 Sand Martins
c.8 Swallows
c.20 House Martins
1 Meadow Pipit
2 Grey Wagtails
32 Wren
26 Blackbirds
2 Sedge Warblers
3 Reed Warblers
2 Lesser Whitethroats
2 Garden Warbler
10 Blackcaps
6 Chiffchaffs
1 Willow Warbler
1 Jay
11 Chaffinches
8 Greenfinches
3 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

29 Apr 20

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

Another extended exercise walk to also encompass one lap of The Flash

6.0°C > 7.0°C:  Very low cloud with spells of light drizzle. Light ESE wind. Often poor visibility, at best moderate.

Sunrise: 05:40 BST

Priorslee Lake:  early

(67th visit of the year)

New species for my 2020 lake list:
#85     Wheatear
A female on the dam throughout. Rather a late date for migrant Wheatears, but as with most species the females arrive after the males. My first Wheatear here since 5 April 2016

Bird notes:
- The two Canada Geese on the school playing field throughout,
- Just one of the rather strange, presumed female, Pheasants on the school playing field.
- Some of the Barn Swallows were noted resting on the buoys.
- The Feral Pigeon was on the roof of the academy again. It flew down to the ground, revealing a lot of white in the wing. Not sure I ever saw the bird present here last year flying. I certainly do not recall white in the wing.
- Two House Sparrows were in hedges in the school grounds.
- I originally had a Linnet as (the only) fly-over. Much later two Linnets were on a small tree alongside Teece Drive and likely included the bird seen overhead.

Birds noted flying over / near here:
None

Count of hirundines etc logged:
- 1 Swift
- >200 Sand Martins
- >20 Barn Swallows
- >2 House Martins

Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):
- 13 (11) Chiffchaffs
- 22 (19) Blackcaps
- 4 (4) Garden Warblers again
- 1 (1) Common Whitethroat
- 1 (1) Lesser Whitethroat again
- 3 (3) Sedge Warblers again
- 6 (6) Reed Warblers again

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- [2 Canada Geese on playing field]
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall again
- 10 (9♂) Mallard
- 4 (3♂) Tufted Ducks
- 3 Grey Herons
- [no Little Grebe]
- 4 Great Crested Grebes only
- 3 Moorhens
- [Coots not counted due to poor visibility]
- 1 Common Sandpiper again

New flower species recorded for the year:
- Prickly Sow-thistle (Sonchus asper)
- new generation Common Hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium)

On / around the street lights:
- 1 Lunar Marbled Brown moth (Drymonia ruficornis): third day in same place.
- 1 midge sp
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider

It was a very dull morning and it hampered my attempts to photography. The hirundines feeding low over the water were a particular challenge in the low light. The problem is they only feed low over the water when the weather is dull (or very windy) so I have to try ....The smallest and brownest of the hirundines is this Sand Martin. Note the white collar and the dark breast band.

And from above. The small amount of white in the collar is the only relief to the grey-brown tones.

Apart from again illustrating the white collar and the breast band this just about shows the black underwing coverts (‘arm-pits’).

A Barn Swallow with its tail spread showing the row of white dots at the base of the tail. Note too half-way along the forewing the small alula feather is extended to aid manoeuvring.

In normal flight the white spots are not apparent. The tail is longer in males than females.

Little dots on the buoys. Barn Swallows having a rest.

Much tubbier and with a very obvious white rump is the House Martin. Also much darker on the back than Sand Martin but lacking the blue-tone of Barn Swallows.

Another view of a Garden Warbler singing away. The leaves will soon do a much better job than just a few twigs in hiding these birds. I am rather mystified by the apparent pinkish bill. My books say it should be pale grey!

Peering over rocks on the dam is this rather flighty female Wheatear.

Wheatears often raise and lower their tails. Raised here....

 ....lowered here.

From behind part of the white rump can be seen – the rest is hidden by the folded wings. The white rump is a very obvious feature of Wheatears. Indeed the name wheatear is thought to be a corruption of the original country name “white arse”.

With a rather ragged-looking tail is a female Linnet – a male would show red on the breast. This alongside Teece Drive.

As she turns to fly away we see the pale edges to the flight feathers and, less clearly due to the angle, the pale tail-edges.

This spider was on one of the lamp poles. It is one of the ‘stretch spiders’ in the Genus Tetragnatha. Specific identification requires an expert. Probably either T. extensa or T. montana.

Although this was actually on a lamp pole between the lake and The Flash it seems best to show it here. Another stretch spider, probably the same species.

Compare and contrast time: two umbellifers. Top left the straggly open appearance of Cow Parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris). Bottom right is the denser-looking Common Hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium) notable for the outer petals on each umbel being noticeably larger.

This is one of the tricky to identify sow-thistles. I think Prickly Sow-thistle (Sonchus asper).

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash:

(58th visit of the year)

New species for my 2020 Flash list (in sighting order):
#59     Barn Swallow
#60     House Martin
#61     Garden Warbler
- Two Barn Swallows heard and then seen over Derwent Drive as I started my lap
- Soon after I heard and then noted c.30 House Martins in a tight group almost lost to sight in the very low cloud. With them I noted at least four, not two, Barn Swallows.
- A Garden Warbler singing at the top end in the same location as I suspected breeding (for the first time?) last year

Other bird notes:
- Only one Great Crested Grebes noted: visibility not good.
- More Tufted Duck and they seemed to be very restless. Unless they have good radar they are likely to be here for a while.
- So where were all the Coots?

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
None

Count of hirundines etc logged:
- 4 Barn Swallows
- c.30 House Martins

Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):
- 3 (3) Chiffchaffs
- 4 (4) Blackcaps
- 1 (1) Garden Warbler

Counts from the water:
- 3 Mute Swans
- 2 Greylag Geese
- 15 Canada Geese
- 21 (18♂) Mallard only
- 23 (15♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 4 Moorhen
- 9 Coots only

Also noted
- Many tadpoles found in one of the shallows
- Green Long-horn moth (Adela reaumurella) on one of the lamp-poles
- Unidentified spider sp. on a lamp-pole in squirrel alley.

Between the lake and The Flash:
- 3 (3♂) Mallard on lower pool briefly
- single Moorhens seen at both pools
- 1 (1) Blackcap near the upper pool
also
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider on one of the lamps

The big group of hirundines over included both Barn Swallows (on the right with the long forked tail) and the tubbier House Martin on the left. With tail spread the House Martin’s tail hardly looks ‘forked’ here.

This is a male of the Green Long-horn moth (Adela reaumurella) with the antennae three times its body-length. To the naked eye the wings of this moth seemed red. I had to use flash on this specimen lurking on a lamp pole shaded by trees. That resulted in this gold metallic reflection.

More ‘square-on’ the flash did not pick up the sheen and the name ‘Green ...’ seems more apposite. I recorded this moth here on 28 April last year. Consistent.

Many tadpoles for the fish to eat ..... Oddly I have never seen any frogs or frog-spawn here. Must look harder.

(Ed Wilson)

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If you are on your daily exercise and keeping a safe distance from others, we would love to see any photos or sightings from Priorslee Lake and The Flash, by contacting us at priorsleelake@hotmail.com

We look forward to hearing from you.😊

(Martin Adlam and Ed Wilson)

Note:
Here are a few Garden Sightings from Ed Wilson Here on our Readers Corner from the past few days

And

A few of Martin Adlam's Sightings from the Isle of Portland Here.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

2019
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here

2014
Nedge Hill
2 Lesser Whitethroat
10 Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

2013
Priorslee Lake
2 Great Crested Grebes 
1 Common Sandpiper 
4 Reed Warblers 
2 Common Whitethroat 
18 Blackcaps 
7 Chiffchaffs 
5 Willow Warblers 
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
3 Greylag Goose 
1 Richardson's / Cackling-type Canada Goose 
1 Pochard 
11 Tufted Duck 
4 Blackcaps 
3 Chiffchaffs 
5 Willow Warblers
(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill
2 Red-legged Partridges 
Swallows
7 Wheatear
2 Common Whitethroats 
3 Blackcaps 
1 Chiffchaffs 
4 Bullfinches 
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake 
3 Common Sandpipers
(Ed Wilson, John Isherwood) 

Nedge Hill
2 Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

2010
The Wrekin
1 Wood Warbler
4 Common Redstart
1 Pied Flycatcher
(Paul Rutter)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Common Sandpiper
1 Sand Martin
2 Swallows
6 Reed Warblers
Common Whitethroat
3 Blackcap
4 Chiffchaff
3 Reed Buntings
3 Linnets
1 Yellowhammer
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebe
6 Tufted Duck
2 Ruddy Duck
3 Swifts
2 Sand Martins
4 Swallows
4 Cormorants
1 Kestrel
1 Sparrowhawk
3 Common Sandpipers
2 Grey Wagtail
6 Blackcap
1 Garden Warbler
2 Sedge Warbler
2 Reed Warblers
5 Chiffchaff
3 Greenfinch
2 Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson, Martin Adlam)

Nedge Hill
1 Ring Ouzel
Common Whitethroat
2 Swallows
(Martin Adlam)

Priorslee Flash
2 Greylag Geese
1 Grey Wagtail here
2 Chiffchaffs
1 Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
3 Great Crested Grebes
2 Ruddy Ducks
1 Common Buzzard
1 Kestrel
1 Swallows
1 Grey Wagtail
4 Sedge Warbler
2 Reed Warblers
4 Blackcaps
2 Garden Warbler
5 Chiffchaffs
3 Willow Warblers
2 Lesser Whitethroat
4 Greenfinches
2 Reed Buntings
(Martin Adlam)