11 Aug 20

Priorslee Lake and The Flash: 

17.0°C > 19.0°C: Scattered mostly light rain showers from broken hazy medium-level cloud. Low cloud after 08:00. Humid. Light and variable breeze, if any. Good visibility, moderate later.

Sunrise: 05:46 BST

* = a photo today.

Priorslee Lake: 04:24 – 06:30 // 07:30 – 09:42

(162nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:

- I cannot explain why more Greylag Geese fly inbound than earlier flew outbound – every day. Is someone making geese in the fields to the E?
- An extra adult and immature Great Crested Grebe. The immature is a bird that has fledged elsewhere (the one missing from The Flash perhaps?).
- For the last three days I have heard Little Grebes calling from two separate areas. It is quite possible that they are moving unseen though I as the two locations are the same on all occasions I am tempted to think there are two birds (at least) involved.
- The long-sitting Great Crested Grebe in the SE area was visited by its presumed partner several times. The sitting bird seemed more alert. Eggs hatching?

Birds noted flying over / near here:

- 233 Greylag Geese (91 in eight groups outbound; 142 in one large group inbound)
- Canada Geese heard only
- 2 Common Buzzards (non-local)
- 11 Black-headed Gulls
- 21 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Feral Pigeons: together
- 36 Wood Pigeons only
- no Jackdaws or Rooks
- 2 Pied Wagtails

Hirundines etc. logged:

- 2 Barn Swallows again
- >12 House Martins

Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):

- 12 (0) Chiffchaffs
- 5 (0) Blackcaps again
- 1 (0) Reed Warbler

Counts from the lake area:

- 2 + 5 Mute Swans
- 15 (?♂) Mallard
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately
- 2 Grey Herons
- Little Grebe(s?) heard
- 15 + 5 (3 broods) Great Crested Grebes (see notes)
- 5 + 2 (2 broods) Moorhens
- 82 adult and immature Coots
- >53 Black-headed Gulls: at least four juveniles
- 5 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: all (near) adults

On / around the street lights etc. pre-sunrise:

Moths:

- 1 Willow Ermine (Yponomeuta rorrella): my moth species #86 here in 2020
- 2 Common Grass-veneers (Agriphila tristella)
- 1 Common Grey (Scoparia ambigualis)
- 1 Square-spot Rustic (Xestia xanthographa): my moth species #87 here in 2020

Catching up a bit:

The three unidentified micro moths on 08th August were:

- 1 Brown House Moth (Hofmannophila pseudospretella)
- 1 very probably Poplar Sober (Anacampsis populella). There is a very similar and less common species that feeds on beech trees which are uncommon here/
- 1 Dingy Dowd (Blastobasis adustella)

The Poplar Sober becomes my moth species #82 here in 2020 and I have updated the numbers above to reflect that. (#84 and #85 were yesterday)

Other things on the lamp poles:

- 1 Chironomus plumosus (plumed midge)
- 1 Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperia carnea)
- 1 Orb-web spider, presumed Larinioides sclopetarius
- 2 Stretch-spiders (Tetragnatha sp.)
- 1 other spider, perhaps Clubiona terrestris

And around the roof edges of the sailing club hut

- 5 orb-web spiders, presumed Larinioides sclopetarius

Insects / other things etc. noted later:

A few things braved the low cloud.

The full list of things noted:

Butterflies:

- Green-veined White (Pieris napi)
- Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)

Moths:

- Common Grass-veneers (Agriphila tristella)
- Shaded Broad-bar (Scotopteryx chenopodiata)
- Common Carpet (Epirrhoe alternata)

Bees / wasps:

- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)
- A sawfly, perhaps Tenthredo arcuata

Damsel-/Dragon-flies:

- Brown Hawker (Aeshna grandis)
- Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)

Hoverflies:

- Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- possible Melanostoma mellinum
- Long Hoverfly (Sphaerophoria scripta)

Mammals

- 2 Pipistrelle-type bats
- 1 other unidentified bat sp.
- 4 Grey Squirrels

Other things:

- Tipula lateralis (Cranefly)

Additional flowering plant species recorded for the year at this site:

None

The cloud cleared just enough for a glimpse of the half-moon.

 "It was a dark and stormy night"!

 Another one for cloud enthusiasts.

On the left the new arrival of a recently fledged Great Crested Grebe still with head stripes.

Slight puzzle here. I took this Black-headed Gull because the I noted the head looked to have acquired full winter plumage. Only when I looked at the photo did I realise that it wasn't an adult. I think it must be a juvenile well-ahead on its moult to first-winter plumage and as a result has lost much of the brown tones – the nape just shows a hint. Had it been a first-summer bird then the moult to normal winter plumage would mean that some of the primaries would be being replaced. These are all neatly arranged.

There are several species of 'Ermine' micro moths, not related to macro moths with this name. The arrangement of the black dots on the basically white wings defines the species. This seems to be a Willow Ermine (Yponomeuta rorrella). A new moth for me.

If I have this right a Square-spot Rustic moth (Xestia xanthographa). My first in 2020.

This is a strange one. It is at an unhelpful angle and seemed very different from the frequently seen Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare). My expert (thanks Leon) confirms my thought that this is M. mellinum. Not very helpfully known as Intermediate Melanostoma! A new species for me.

Another hoverfly I needed help with. Superficially like a Long Hoverfly (Sphaerophoria scripta) - and I saw several of these as well. Note the first yellow band is divided and the next two yellow bands look rather narrower than usual. Leon tells me this means it is a female of one of the five species in the genus. Apparently these cannot be specifically identified even with genitalia dissection. Hope the males know better.

This cranefly is Tipula lateralis. It is the only species in this group with a pale line down the abdomen - in all other species there is a dark line down the greyish abdomen.

Stretch-spiders (Tetragnatha sp.) were common in late Winter / early Spring. This is the first I have seen recently and there were two today.

A very different-looking spider. It closely matches photos of Clubiona terrestris on the eakringbirds.com web site, though a lamp pole is not very 'terrestris'!

One of the presumed Larinioides sclopetarius orb-web spiders enjoys a meal on one of the lamp poles.

Same species. This one photographed at the sailing club hut.

A catch-up photo from 08th August. At the time I was non-plussed by this. I tried looking at picture-winged flies as well as various sawflies and ichneumons, all without success. Thanks to Martin Adlam for finding out what it was, for what is my first ever phantom cranefly with the catchy name of Ptychoptera contaminata. This specimen, with its swollen abdomen, is a female. There are just two species in this genus.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:35 – 07:25

(148th visit of the year)

Bird notes:

- The flat light gave me a better view of the Tufted Ducks and I feel that my total of drakes is correct. These would be adult drakes, any immatures would not be separable from ducks without more detailed scrutiny.
- Still no sign of the second juvenile Great Crested Grebe. A pair of adults displaying by the island; another adult at the top end of the water.
- From today I will not be separating adult and juvenile Moorhens.
- Yesterday's Racing Pigeon seems to like it here.

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:

- 7 Wood Pigeons

Hirundines etc. logged:

- House Martins heard only

Count of warblers logged (singing birds in brackets):

- 4 (0) Chiffchaff again
- 2 (0) Blackcaps

Counts from the water:

- 3 + 7 Mute Swans
- 1 Greylag Goose: departed
- 14 Canada Geese
- 20 (?♂) Mallard: hiding inside island
- 33 (12♂) Tufted Duck
- 3 + 1 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 6 adult and juvenile Moorhens
- 44 adult and juvenile Coots
- 9 Black-headed Gulls: three juvenile
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adult, departed (as yesterday)

On various lamp poles:

Moths:

None

And

- 1 Red-legged Shieldbug (Pentatoma rufipes)

- 6 Leiobunum rotundum-type (harvestmen) again

Otherwise

- Berry clusters of Lords and Ladies (Arum maculatum)
- 4 Grey Squirrels

Thanks to Martin Adlam for seeing what I couldn't with this insect jammed in a crack a lamp pole. I see now it is a Red-legged Shieldbug (Pentatoma rufipes).

The best I could manage with the Lords and Ladies (Arum maculatum). They were in the very darkest recess of squirrel alley. My flash photos did not do justice to the colours and I tried a hand-held shot with the ISO wound right up – still just one twentieth of a second. Less coffee might have stopped the shake a bit. DO NOT EAT THE BERRIES!

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash:

Of Note

- 1 Blackcap calling near the upper pool

Otherwise

- 2 Grey Squirrels

(Ed Wilson)

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

2019

Priorslee Lake

Today's Sightings Here

2018

Priorslee Lake

Today's Sightings Here

2015

Priorslee Lake

Today's Sightings Here

2011

Priorslee Lake

Green Sandpiper

Tree Pipit

(Ed Wilson)

2008

Priorslee Lake

Wheatear

(Ed Wilson)

2007

Priorslee Lake

Possible Wood Sandpiper

A female Peregrine

(Ed Wilson)