6 Dec 20

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

2.0°C > 3.0°C: Cloudy with some mainly light rain at times. Higher cloud for a while. Light and variable, mainly W wind. Moderate visibility.

Sunrise: 08:06 GMT

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 06:34 – 09:32

(271st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- The cob Mute Swan must be getting benign in its old age, allowing the three Canada Geese to stay in to their third day.
- All gulls were late arriving - after 07:30. Black-headed Gulls in unusually low number with no more than c.100 noted.
- Of the 15 Wood Pigeons noted overhead 14 of them were in a single group going W
- I do not habitually count the Blackbirds I see. However they seemed to be everywhere today as if there had been some bad weather movement in to the area.

Birds noted flying over / near here:
- 2 Greylag Geese: duo inbound
- ?? Canada Geese: heard only outbound
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 3 Black-headed Gulls
- 51 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 5 Herring Gulls
- 15 Wood Pigeons
- 184 Jackdaws
- 144 Rooks
- 39 Redwings: two groups
- 1 Pied Wagtail

Birds seen leaving roosts around the lake:
- 6 Starlings: together from W end
- 4 Redwings
- 5 Reed Buntings

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans
- 3 Canada Geese again: third day
- 13 (8♂) Gadwall
- 9 (6♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Pochard
- 56 (30♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Cormorant: arrived
- 1 Grey Heron again
- Little Grebe heard only
- 5 Great Crested Grebes only
- 8 Moorhens
- 192 Coots again
- c.100 Black-headed Gulls
- 87 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: 82 pre-dawn; five later
- 8 Herring Gull-types: 7 pre-dawn not specifically ID'd; one adult later

On the playing fields c.08:15
- 7 Black-headed Gulls on the football field
- 1 Black-headed Gull on the academy fields

On / around the street lights etc. pre-sunrise: a surprising number in cold and damp conditions.
- 2 Winter Moths (Operophtera brumata): one of these 'presumed' as seen in flight only.
- *1 Feathered Thorn moth (Colotois pennaria)
- *1 Scarce Umber moth (Agriopis aurantiaria)
- *1 unidentified spider sp.

Noted later:
- 2 Grey Squirrel

This dew / drizzle spattered moth gives little away in markings. Resting with its forewings spread is one clue and the 'blurred' head another, ruling out either of the 'Umber' moths. So it is another specimen of Feathered Thorn moth (Colotois pennaria) not showing its feathered antennae clearly.

So far this flight period I have seen almost more Scarce Umber moths (Agriopis aurantiaria), as here, than Mottled Umber moths (Erranis defoliaria). Most odd. On the Norfolk Moths 'Flying tonight' tab the ratio is 1:3. This is computed from records +/- four days from today over many years (they have 2.3 million records).

A rather smart-looking small spider. As usual I cannot match it on any of the photo-galleries I use, so spider sp. it remains. Then it started to rain and I put the camera away.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:36 – 10:20

(253rd visit of the year)

Bird Notes
- I had not quite finished counting all the Tufted Ducks when a large party flew in. As near as I could judge at least 75 Tufted Ducks and the five Gadwall with them. If these had been flushed off the lake by, say, the sailing club's rescue boat then there were more Tufted Duck arrivals here than I had seen there. So ....?
- Gadwall have been scarce here this year with only three previous records: a pair on 3rd February; a drake on 12th May and a pair on 28th May.
- Two Grey Herons were on the island when another flew in from the top end. Perhaps they started fighting as I saw none after that. Mind it started to rain heavily and I was none too interested.
- A Stock Dove was heard calling. An infrequent species here.

Birds noted flying over / near The Flash:
- 1 Jackdaw

Counts from the water:
- 3 + 7 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 15 Canada Geese
- 5 (4♂) Gadwall
- 35 (21♂) Mallard
- 4 (4♂) Pochard
- 138 (67♂) Tufted Duck
- 7 (0♂) Goosanders remain
- 3 Grey Herons
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 8 Moorhens
- 32 Coots
- 31 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: the dead body is still staying afloat

On the lamp pole and the Ivy:
Nothing

Of note elsewhere:
- 1 Grey Squirrel

(Ed Wilson)

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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
Local Area
Today's Sightings Here

2015
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here

2014
Priorslee Lake
Today's sightings Here

2013
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
2 adult Caspian Gulls (one with a green ring suggesting a German/Polish border origin).
8 Yellow-legged Gulls
80+ Great Black-backed Gulls
c.1000 Herring Gulls
2000+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls.
1st w Viking Gull (hybrid Glaucous x Herring Gull)
2 ad hybrid Herring x Lesser Black-backed Gulls
(Tom Lowe)

2012
Priorslee Lake
3 Gadwall
9 Pochard
44 Tufted Ducks
176 Coots
c.200 Black-headed Gulls
c.650 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.20 Herring Gulls
2 Great Black-backed Gulls.
5 Redwings
2 Fieldfares
234 Jackdaws
(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock Pool
1 Little Grebe
1 Cormorant
35 Mute Swans
2 Shoveler
48 Tufted Duck
3 Goosander 
162 Coots
228 Black-headed Gulls
(Ed Wilson)

Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill
Caspian Gull
7 Yellow-legged Gulls
3500 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
500 Herring Gulls
Common Gull. 
(Tom Lowe)

Buildwas
3 Yellow-legged Gulls
500 Lapwings
(Tom Lowe)

2006
Priorslee Lake
5 Pochard
52 Tufted Ducks
1 eclipse drake Ruddy Ducks
9 Golden Plover
>2000 Black-headed Gulls
>2526 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
3 Herring Gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
22 Robins
24 Blackbirds
c.45 Fieldfares
4 Song Thrushes
10 Redwings
348 Jackdaws
132 Rooks
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
2 Ravens
1 Cormorant
c.400 Black-headed Gulls
4 Pochard
39 Tufted Duck
1 Little Grebes
233 Coot
14 Redpolls
17 Siskins
24 Pied Wagtails
9 Redwings
12 Fieldfares
7 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)