Priorslee Lake and The Flash:
14.0°C > 18.0°C: Fine and clear start. Areas of mainly benign cloud later. Initially calm: light SW breeze later. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 05:30 BST
* = a photo today.
Priorslee Lake: 04:13 – 06:10 // 07:10 – 09:34
(152nd visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- Unusual to see so many geese on the water here. 'Our' cob Mute Swan seems quite phlegmatic toward them at the moment.
- I only saw the second brood of Great Crested Grebes from afar and cannot confirm the number of juveniles. The bird in the SE was back on the nest.
- Another Common Sandpiper record.
- For reasons I have never fathomed there always seems to be fewer gulls at weekends.
- Just two Swifts.
- Some House Martins arrived overhead very early again. Not enough contrast in the sky at the time to check the number. Later I could only find six birds high overhead, though there sounded as if there should have been more.
Birds noted flying over / near here:
- 172 Greylag Geese (56 in four groups outbound; 109 in eight groups inbound)
- 92 Canada Geese (59 in 12 groups outbound; 27 in three groups inbound)
- 11 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Feral Pigeons (trio)
- 2 Stock Doves (duo)
- 147 Wood Pigeons again – amazing!
- 2 Jackdaws
- 6 Rooks
Hirundines etc. logged:
- 2 Swifts
- 3 Barn Swallows
- >6 House Martins
Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):
- 12 (0) Chiffchaffs
- 5 (0) Blackcaps
- 2 (0) Common Whitethroats
- 2 (0) Reed Warblers
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans
- 7 Greylag Geese: six together; one with Canadas: all departed
- 6 Canada Geese: together with one Greylag: all departed
- 21 (?♂) Mallard
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately yet again
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Little Grebe heard
- 13 + >2 (2? broods) Great Crested Grebes
- 4 + 2 (2 broods) Moorhens
- 55 adult and juvenile Coots
- 1 Common Sandpiper
- >23 Black-headed Gulls: no juveniles
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: two adults and one immature, all briefly
Gulls on the football and academy playing field c.05:50:
- 16 Black-headed Gulls (all on the academy field)
On / around the street lights etc. pre-sunrise:
Moth
- 1 Common Carpet (Epirrhoe alternata)
Other things:
- 1 Chironomus plumosus (plumed midge)
- 1 orb-web spider
- 1 harvestman to be identified
Insects / other things etc. noted later:
New species for the year:
None
The full list of things noted:
Butterflies:
- Green-veined White (Pieris napi)
- Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)
- Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina)
- Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus)
- Peacock (Aglais io)
Moths:
- Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella)
- Shaded Broad-bar (Scotopteryx chenopodiata)
Bees / wasps:
- Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)
- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)
Damsel-/Dragon-flies:
- Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
- Hawker sp. (not Brown Hawker)
Hoverflies:
- Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- Tapered Drone-fly (Eristalis pertinax)
- Common Drone-fly (Eristalis tenax)
- Pellucid Fly (Volucella pellucens)
Mammals
- 3 Pipistrelle-type bats
Other things:
- 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata)
- Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis): pupa case only
Additional flowering plant species recorded for the year at this site:
None
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 06:15 – 07:05
(138th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- Both adult Mute Swans were chasing the 2018 juvenile around and around the island until she(?) took refuge inside. The cygnets got on with the task of feeding themselves.
- Same problem as yesterday trying to see the Mallard inside the island.
- Today it was one of the juvenile Great Crested Grebe that was not noted.
- One of the juvenile Moorhens was from a brood not previously seen.
- Usually I see the Sparrowhawks overhead. Today one was dashing through the trees with two annoyed Magpies in hot pursuit.
Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 14 Wood Pigeons
Hirundines etc. logged:
- 4 Swifts
- 6 House Martins
Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):
- 5 (0) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (0) Blackcaps: neither near the recent songster
Counts from the water:
- 3 + 7 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- no Greylag Geese
- 16 Canada Geese
- 23 (?♂) Mallard (see notes)
- 22 (8?♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 + 1 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 7 + 5 (3 broods) Moorhens
- 34 adult and juvenile Coots
- 2 Black-headed Gulls: flew off
On different lamp poles:
Moths
- 1 Common Grey (Scoparia ambigualis)
- 2 Swallow Prominents (Pheosia tremula): the same lamps as previously, both in different positions.
and
- 1 Dicranopalpus ramosus (harvestman)
Otherwise
- 1 Large White butterfly (Pieris brassicae): I am usually too early for insects to be around.
- 1 Grey Squirrel.
(Ed Wilson)
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Between the lake and The Flash:
Of note
- 1 Common Grey (Scoparia ambigualis) on a lamp pole.
(Ed Wilson)
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On this day..........
2019