13.0°C > 12.0°C: Broken medium level cloud overhead and low cloud to the E to start. The low cloud spread across with light rain after 06:00. Light NE breeze. Good visibility.
Sunrise: 04:48 BST
* = a photo today
Priorslee Lake: 04:15 – 05:25 // 06:15 – 07:55
(132nd visit of the year)
With nothing much moving in light rain and with heavy rain forecast I baled out early. (The rain did not materialise of course.)
Bird notes:
- Now two duck Mallard with ducklings: the group of three first seen yesterday and a group of five noticeably smaller ducklings.
- Two adult Black-headed Gulls were leaving the lake at 04:25. Whether they had roosted here were an early 'gas and go' I could not say. One adult was on the football field at 05:10 and may or may not have been one of these.
- 11 Lesser Black-backed Gulls flew N at 05:10 with three peeling off to land on the football field. These three were showing very worn wings. The ages were not determined.
- Six Swifts arrived at 04:45 but were not seen afterwards.
- Over the last month I have become familiar with all the warbler territories. This morning several Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps and one Garden Warbler were singing from unexpected locations. Do birds use a different nest site for any second broods? From the web I can only find some comments from the US where it says that the nests of many small birds are not durable enough and a new nest has to be built, sometimes with a different partner. I did not know that.
Overhead:
- 9 Wood Pigeons
- 8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: ages not determined
- no Jackdaws or Rooks
- 1 Starling!
Hirundines etc., noted:
- c.6 Swifts again
- 1 Barn Swallow
- 2 House Martins
Warblers noted (the number in brackets is singing birds):
- 10 (10) Chiffchaffs
- 5 (4) Reed Warblers
- 10 (10) Blackcaps
- 2 (2) Garden Warblers
- 2 (2) Common Whitethroats
Count from the lake area
- 2 + 5 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 11 (9♂) + 8 (2 broods) Mallard
- 2 Moorhens
- 33 + 18 (8 broods) Coots: including single from new brood
- 2 Black-headed Gulls: adults, departed: see also notes
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: on the football field briefly
- 8 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Grey Heron: departed again
On / around the street lamps pre-dawn:
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spider (Larinioides cornutus) again
- 1 Caddis fly sp.
Noted later: not much again in the dull and often wet weather.
Moths:
- Timothy Tortrix (Zelotherses paleana)
- Common Marble (Celypha lacunana)
Flies:
- Black Snipefly (Chrysopilus cristatus)
- Black Snipefly (Chrysopilus cristatus)
Beetles:
- 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata): larva only
- 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata): larva only
Mammal:
- Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus): this was in the middle of the path down to the tunnel when I came back from The Flash. It had not been there when I walked the other way.
- Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus): this was in the middle of the path down to the tunnel when I came back from The Flash. It had not been there when I walked the other way.
This dead Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus) was in the middle of the path as I returned from The Flash. It had not been there some 50 minutes earlier when I walked the other way. Typically rats are killed by cats and then left. Cats find them inedible. I could see not obvious injury to the rat but was not about to investigate too closely.
(Ed Wilson)
Between the lake and The Flash:
- The Chiffchaff was singing more persistently alongside the lower pool.
- A Blackcap was singing above the upper pool
Nothing noted on the roof of the Priorslee Avenue tunnel again.
(Ed Wilson)
The Flash: 05:30 – 06:10
(Ed Wilson)
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Between the lake and The Flash:
- The Chiffchaff was singing more persistently alongside the lower pool.
- A Blackcap was singing above the upper pool
Nothing noted on the roof of the Priorslee Avenue tunnel again.
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 05:30 – 06:10
(117th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- I could not locate the juvenile Canada Goose but there are rather a lot to search through and today a whole bunch of them were marauding around the gardens in Derwent Drive and Wordsworth Way.
- Moorhens rather scarce today.
- I only noted the same well-grown juvenile Coot as yesterday.
- Apart from a fly-over on 20th May this was my first Grey Heron here since 15th March.
- As at the lake several of the warblers were singing from unexpected places.
Birds noted flying over here:
None
- I could not locate the juvenile Canada Goose but there are rather a lot to search through and today a whole bunch of them were marauding around the gardens in Derwent Drive and Wordsworth Way.
- Moorhens rather scarce today.
- I only noted the same well-grown juvenile Coot as yesterday.
- Apart from a fly-over on 20th May this was my first Grey Heron here since 15th March.
- As at the lake several of the warblers were singing from unexpected places.
Birds noted flying over here:
None
Hirundines etc., noted:
None
Warblers noted (the number in brackets is singing birds):
- 6 (5) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (2) Blackcaps
On /around the water:
- 133 Canada Geese
- 27 Greylag Geese
- 1 Greylag x Canada Goose
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swan
- 32 (20♂) Mallard
- 15 (12♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 + 1 (1 brood) Moorhens
- 1 juvenile Coot again: see notes
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Grey Heron: arrived
Also noted:
- 1 male Buff Ermine moth (Spilosoma lutea) on a street lamp pole.
- 6 (5) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (2) Blackcaps
On /around the water:
- 133 Canada Geese
- 27 Greylag Geese
- 1 Greylag x Canada Goose
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swan
- 32 (20♂) Mallard
- 15 (12♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 + 1 (1 brood) Moorhens
- 1 juvenile Coot again: see notes
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Grey Heron: arrived
Also noted:
- 1 male Buff Ermine moth (Spilosoma lutea) on a street lamp pole.
The male Buff Ermine moth (Spilosoma lutea) on a street lamp pole. Females of this species are white.
Note:
On 17 Jun 21 I visited Anglesey. There are a few of my images Here including this Chough below:
(Ed Wilson)
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On this day