9.0°C > 12.0°C: Initially scattered cloud below a thin medium/high overcast. The typical 'Telford hat' of low cloud soon developed even giving occasional (not forecast) light rain. Clearer at Trench. Moderate SE wind. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 07:26 GMT
* = a photo today.
Priorslee Lake: 06:04 – 09:14
(247th visit of the year)
I was told this morning that the council are talking to Severn Trent about using some of the land in the SW part of the area to make new allotments. I can find no information on the council web site about this. If I have understood the possible location correctly it would be on the unkempt grassy area which is favoured by several species of moth and butterfly and their associated food-plants. Until 10(?) years ago much of it was mown at least annually, though at my request the contractors avoided the flowering areas. It is possibly true that something needs to be done to avoid the whole area 'scrubbing over'. Its wholesale conversion to allotments would be detrimental to the plant and insect diversity.
Bird notes:
- Apart from a high number of passing Jackdaws it was a very quiet morning. Noteworthy were three drake and three duck Pochard together: drakes normally significantly outnumber ducks and a group like this is unusual (there was another drake elsewhere).
Birds noted flying over / near here:
- 6 Cormorants: two singles and one group
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 31 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 25 Wood Pigeons
- >600 Jackdaws
- 29 Rook
- 2 Fieldfare: one group
- 59 Redwings: four groups
- 2 Pied Wagtails only
- 1 Siskin
Birds seen leaving roosts around the lake:
- >80 Starlings: two groups
- 9 Redwings
- 8 Reed Buntings
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans
- 7 (4♂) Gadwall
- 15 (9♂) Mallard
- 7 (4♂) Pochard
- 26 (19♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately
- 1 Grey Heron
- no Little Grebe
- 12 Great Crested Grebes still
- 2 Moorhens only: why?
- 162 Coots: same as yesterday!
- c.250 Black-headed Gulls
- 63 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: 57 from the Hortonwood roost direction: six more later.
- 3 Herring Gulls: all first-winter birds
Playing fields:
Not visited
- 7 (4♂) Gadwall
- 15 (9♂) Mallard
- 7 (4♂) Pochard
- 26 (19♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately
- 1 Grey Heron
- no Little Grebe
- 12 Great Crested Grebes still
- 2 Moorhens only: why?
- 162 Coots: same as yesterday!
- c.250 Black-headed Gulls
- 63 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: 57 from the Hortonwood roost direction: six more later.
- 3 Herring Gulls: all first-winter birds
Playing fields:
Not visited
On / around the street lights etc. pre-sunrise:
- *1 mayfly sp.!
- *1 froghopper-type.
- 1 Tetragnatha stretch spider sp.
Noted later:
- 1 Common Wasp in flight (Vespula vulgaris)
- *an even larger specimen of the fungus, perhaps The Miller, also called Miller Fungus (Clitopilus prunulus). First noted yesterday.
- 1 Grey Squirrel
- *1 mayfly sp.!
- *1 froghopper-type.
- 1 Tetragnatha stretch spider sp.
Noted later:
- 1 Common Wasp in flight (Vespula vulgaris)
- *an even larger specimen of the fungus, perhaps The Miller, also called Miller Fungus (Clitopilus prunulus). First noted yesterday.
- 1 Grey Squirrel
(Ed Wilson)
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(231st visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- The three 'white' Mute Swans spent most of the time well-apart. Two of the cygnets are now often well away from the others or their parents. I do not know whether it is always the same two.
- Tufted Duck numbers building back.
- I have logged the five Fieldfare as fly-overs. In practice they stopped for all of c.15 seconds in trees around The Priorslee pub.
Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 1 Sparrowhawk
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: adults
- 5 Feral Pigeons: one group
- 1 Wood Pigeon
- 19 Jackdaw
- 5 Fieldfare: one group
- 8 Redwings: one group
- 1 Siskin
Counts from the water:
- 3 + 7 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 21 Canada Geese
- 38 (22♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Pochard
- 63 (?♂) Tufted Duck
- 20 (>5♂) Goosanders
- 1 Grey Heron
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 5 Moorhens
- 43 Coots
- *47 Black-headed Gulls
- *3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: two adults and a second-winter
- *1 Herring Gull: adult
On one of the lamp poles
- *1 Mottled Umber moth (Erranis defoliaria)
Around the Ivy
- >1 Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris)
Of interest elsewhere:
- apparently real *Sulphur Tuft fungus (Hypholoma fasciculare) as well as the previously misidentified fungus which could be *Brick Tuft (Hypholoma lateritium).
Compare with a first-winter Black-headed Gull.
Always complaining!
(Ed Wilson)
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(34th visit of the year)
The fishermen showed me photos of a tame Black Swan that was present for several days recently. It has been recaptured and returned to the collection from which it had escaped. This species surprises most people as all the flight feathers are white - a feature normally hidden when the bird is on the water.
Bird notes:
- The adult Mute swan was blue 7JTZ again - the cob. The fishermen reported that "the other adult and cygnets" (unspecified number) "left together three days ago".
- Now I know where all the Canada Geese are.
- Grey Wagtail again.
Birds noted flying over / near here:
[The local Wood Pigeons and Jackdaws not included]
- 22 Starlings: one group
Counts from the water:
- 1 Mute Swan
- 141 Canada Geese
- 3 (1♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Great Crested Grebe still
- 2 Moorhens again
- 14 Coots
- 17 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
Around the Ivy patch:
- 1 Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris)
Of interest elsewhere:
- 1 Grey Squirrel
(Ed Wilson)
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(34th visit of the year)
Another unexceptional visit
Bird notes:
- I don't go hunting them but no Robins seen or heard during my walk around was most unusual.
- Grey Wagtail about the most exciting.
Birds noted flying over / near here:
Another unexceptional visit
Bird notes:
- I don't go hunting them but no Robins seen or heard during my walk around was most unusual.
- Grey Wagtail about the most exciting.
Birds noted flying over / near here:
None
Counts from the water:
- 2 Mute Swans as ever
- 3 Greylag Geese
- 53 Canada Geese
- 1 all-white feral goose
- 24 (16♂) Mallard
- 19 (12♂) Tufted Duck
- no Goosander again
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 + 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 10 Moorhen
- 47 Coots
- 78 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 2 Mute Swans as ever
- 3 Greylag Geese
- 53 Canada Geese
- 1 all-white feral goose
- 24 (16♂) Mallard
- 19 (12♂) Tufted Duck
- no Goosander again
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 + 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 10 Moorhen
- 47 Coots
- 78 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
(Ed Wilson)
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On this day
2018Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here
2016
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here
2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here
2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's Sightings Here
2009
The Wrekin
Firecrest
(Andy Latham)
2008
Priorslee Lake
10 Great Crested Grebes
10 Cormorants
8 Pochard
107 Tufted Ducks
c.1600 Wood Pigeons
c.1700 Fieldfare
c.460 Redwings
359 Jackdaws
124 Rooks
105 Starlings
c.12 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)
2007
Priorslee Lake
140 Lapwings
150+ Golden Plover
1 Snipe
1 Gadwall
1 Shoveler
15 Pochard
60 Tufted Ducks
2 Water Rails
6 Meadow Pipits
21 Redwings
20 Fieldfare over
3 Goldcrests
c.400 Starlings
1 Siskin
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
28 Pochard
58 Tufted Ducks
15 Lapwings
670+ Black-headed Gulls
2008+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls
1207 Wood Pigeons
88 Fieldfare
24 Redwings
254 Jackdaws
229 Rooks
795 Starlings
10 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)