Priorslee and The Flash
9.0°C > 16.0°C: Clear start. Some patchy medium-high cloud at times later. Light and variable wind. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 05:13 BST
NB: * means there is a photo today.
Priorslee Lake: 04:11 – 06:00 // 07:10 – 09:40
(143rd visit of the year)
A note about my recent rather unseasonal records of a Crossbill and several parties of Siskins here. I read in the July edition of the Dee Estuary Birding Newsletter that "There was a major irruption of both Common Crossbills and Siskins into England between June 23rd and 27th". Their origin is thought to be Scandinavia as no other European country has reported higher than usual numbers. The suggestion is that good weather in the breeding season has led to a high number of juveniles and a shortage of food, forcing birds to move. Read more Here
Bird notes:
- Again two duck Tufted Ducks early only. Then c.07:30 another (?) duck Tufted Duck arrived from the E and stayed on the water for c.10 before leaving to the E again.
- The Great Crested Grebe with young was not seen again.
- Three Lesser Black-backed Gulls arrived and left before any of the Black-headed Gulls arrived.
- Significant movement of Wood Pigeon, presumably to feed in the fields to the E. I counted 153 outbound before 06:00. After 07:15 I counted a further 210, most of these flying back.
- Swift(s) heard screaming overhead at 05:20 but nothing seen. Later just two singles.
- No roost-dispersal corvids noted. Two Rooks early were on a very different flight-path from normal. Just two Jackdaws after 08:00.
Birds noted flying over / near here:
- 5 Greylag Geese (quintet outbound)
- 3 (?♂) Mallard
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 9 Feral Pigeons (two groups)
- 363 Wood Pigeons (see notes)
- 2 Jackdaws only
- 2 Rooks only
Hirundines etc. logged:
- >2 Swifts (see notes)
- 1 Barn Swallow
- 5 House Martins
Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):
- 13 (2) Chiffchaffs
- *7 (0) Blackcaps
- 7 (0) Common Whitethroats
- 9 (1) Reed Warblers
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans
- 23 (?♂) Mallard
- 3 (0♂) Tufted Ducks (see notes)
- 2 Cormorants: arrived
- 2 Grey Herons throughout
- Little Grebe(s) heard only
- 10 Great Crested Grebes
- 4 + 1 (1 brood) Moorhens
- 38 adult and juvenile Coots only
- 16 Black-headed Gulls: no juveniles again
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: all (near) adults, together, briefly
On / around the street lights etc. pre-sunrise:
A clear chilly night again
- *1 Riband Wave moth (Idaea aversata)
- 1 orb-web spider
Insects / other things etc. noted later:
New species for the year:
- *Common Blue butterfly (Polyommatus icarus)
- Brown Hawker dragonfly (Aeshna grandis)
- unidentified Emperor-type dragonfly
Dragonflies usually see me before I see them and fly off. Brown Hawker is the only one that is easy to ID in flight.
The full list of things noted:
Butterflies:
- Small Skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris)
- Large White (Pieris brassicae)
- Small White (Pieris rapae)
- Green-veined White (Pieris napi)f
- Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)
- Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus)
- Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus)
Moths:
- many unidentified grass moths
- *Shaded Broad-bar (Scotopteryx chenopodiata)
Bees / wasps:
- *Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)
- Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)
- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- *Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)
Damsel-/Dragon-flies:
- Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
- Brown Hawker dragonfly (Aeshna grandis)
- unidentified Emperor-type dragonfly
Hoverflies:
amazingly NO Marmalade Hoverflies!
- Cheilosia illustrata
- Tapered Drone-fly (Eristalis pertinax)
- Common Drone-fly (Eristalis tenax)
- *Migrant Hoverfly (Eupeodes corollae)
- Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare)
- *Dead-head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)
Mammals:
- 3 Pipistrelle-type bats
Other things:
- Empis livida (dagger fly)
- *7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata)
- Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis): succinea adults
Additional flowering plant species recorded for the year at this site:
None, However the plant with the white berries I was puzzled about a week or so ago was, I now realise, Red Stem Dogwood (Cornus stolonifera) or similar.
A clear and rather chilly start. Just 6°C en route from Newport though 9°C when I parked up at the lake.
Typical swimming posture from this immature Cormorant – almost submerged.
Meanwhile an adult makes my neck ache to look at it.
It is a good trick if you can do it. This Grey Heron managed to stand on this buoy. I would like to have seen it fly in.
Standing proud.
This one from the pair of Great Crested Grebes seen displaying yesterday. They were displaying again today and also building this floating nest in the middle of the water. That seems unwise when the water-skiers get active.
This Common Buzzard was lurking in the Ricoh copse. A rather dark individual. If the breast is barred then it is an adult, as here. Juvenile have streaked breasts.
One of the juvenile Blackcaps from a family party. It seems to me that the cap is rather paler than it would be on a female. Plumages of juveniles are the same for both sexes.
Here is another juvenile looking winsome. The yellow gape line is more clearly visible on this bird.
My first Common Blue butterfly (Polyommatus icarus) of the year. A splendid male. Males are much 'bluer' than the Holly Blue. Females have brown upper wings with brown dots.
The underside of the same male Common Blue.
This is what an 'ordinary' Riband Wave moth (Idaea aversata) looks like – one with the solid band between the cross-lines. I have seen this form less often this season.
A particularly well-marked specimen of Shaded Broad-bar moth (Scotopteryx chenopodiata). Some light leakage on to the left wing tip: the rest of it was in shade.
A Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) gets stuck in to the Common Knapweed (Centaurea nigra). This example with two orange segments (tergites).
A Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) showing how thin the buff area above the otherwise white tail often is. The true White-tailed Bumble Bee (Bombus lucorum) probably does not occur in our area.
This Migrant Hoverfly (Eupeodes corollae) was a very small specimen – I initially thought it was a 'missing' Marmalade Hoverfly. I drew a blank on the latter despite their abundance for the last ten days.
A close up and different angle on a Dead-head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea). Still trying to work out how the pattern on the thorax led to the vernacular name.
Two 7 Spot Ladybirds (Coccinella 7-punctata) in a rather pleasing composition. They are on the dead flower head of Common Knapweed.
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 06:05 – 07:05
(129th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- The 2018 juvenile Mute Swan not located
- One adult Great Crested Grebe not located again. One of the juveniles seen diving.
- The juvenile Moorhen seen was from a brood not noted previously.
- On presumed Blackcap troubled me. It was giving shorter bursts of song than usual and every now and again would start with the descending cadence of a Willow Warbler. I only ever saw the bird in flight which did not really settle the matter 100%. Logged as singing Blackcap.
Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 6 Feral Pigeons (1 group)
- 3 Stock Doves (duo and single)
- 2 Wood Pigeons
Hirundines etc. logged:
- 1 Swift again
- 10 House Martins
Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):
- 4 (0) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (1) Blackcaps
Counts from the water:
- 2 + 7 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 24 Greylag Geese
- 65 Canada Geese
- 15 (?♂) Mallard
- *16 (6?♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 + 2 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes again
- 5 + 1 (1 brood) Moorhens
- 31 adult and juvenile Coots
- 14 Black-headed Gulls: no juveniles
On various lamp poles:
- 1 Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris): on a different pole to yesterday
- 1 Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare): also on a different pole to yesterday
Two duck Tufted Duck prepare to splash-down.
One of them on finals
Could not resist this Collared Dove posing in the morning sun.
(Ed Wilson)
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Between The Lake and The Flash
Of note:
- 1 Riband Wave moth (Idaea aversata) on the roof of the Priorslee Avenue tunnel (presumed same as yesterday).
(Ed Wilson)
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On this day..........
2019
Priorslee Lake
Today's Report Here
2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Report Here
2015
Local Area
Today's Report Here
2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's Report Here
2013
Priorslee Lake
1 Common Tern
1 Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)
2010
Priorslee Lake
Best was at least 14 Common Sandpipers, perhaps a few more tucked up hidden by all the vegetation on the dam. This number is unprecedented on return passage and has been rarely exceeded on Spring passage. No doubt due to the thundery weather.
(Ed Wilson/Mike Cooper)
2006
Priorslee Lake
Common Tern