15 Aug 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

16.0°C > 17.0°C: Mostly medium-level cloud. A few sunny intervals. Some light drizzly rain also. Moderate WSW wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 05:51 BST

* = a photo today

** I am still working on the photos for Saturday 14th

Priorslee Lake: 04:30 – 06:15 // 07:10 – 09:45

(176th visit of the year)

Some signs of Autumn today:
- Seven Barn Swallows were heading determinedly S at 08:30 and looked to be on their way to Africa.
- A group of nine Pied Wagtails flew S over the Ricoh area at 09:35. Once Spring migration was completed I have only seen family groups of four or less and more recently just singles.

Other bird notes:
- Another large feeding movement of Canada Geese, not all from The Flash: some from Trench as well?
- The Mute Swans surprised me (and a few others) by producing a fourth cygnet! One of the regular dog-walkers admitted to doing a double- / treble-take yesterday afternoon. So where has it been for the last week? In fact all the cygnets are getting rather wayward. At one moment one of the cygnets was gripping the neck of another and apparently trying to drown it until the cob appeared and it desisted. Earlier the parents were asleep on the slipway and three of the cygnets had wandered off.
- I did not note the 'spare' adult Great Crested Grebe. However everything was being moved about by six fishing Cormorants and it was hard to keep track of things.

Overhead:
- c.392 Canada Geese: 262 outbound in 22 groups; c.130 inbound in one large group
- 42 Greylag Geese: all outbound in eight groups
- 1 Feral Pigeon again
- 91 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Black-headed Gull
- 14 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Jackdaw
- 3 Rooks again
- 9 Pied Wagtails

Hirundines etc., noted:
- 8 Barn Swallows: one over 06:00; seven S 08:30
- 10 House Martins: including juveniles

Warblers noted:
- 2 Willow Warblers: one sang once; the other a very bright yellow juvenile
- 9 Chiffchaffs
- 2 Reed Warblers
- 1 Blackcap
- 2 Lesser Whitethroats
- 1 Common Whitethroat

Count from the lake area:
- 2 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans: see notes
- 13 (9♂) Mallard
- 4 Moorhens
- 51 Coots: adults and immatures
- 6 + 5 (3 broods) Great Crested Grebes again
- 34 Black-headed Gulls only: one juvenile
- 6 Cormorants: all arrived; some departed
- 1 Grey Heron again

On / around the street lamps pre-dawn:

Moths:
- 1 Common Grass-veneer (Agriphila tristella)
- 1 White Plume (Pterophorus pentadactyla)
- *1 Flame Carpet (Xanthorhoe designata)
- *1 Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata)
- *1 Flame Shoulder (Ochropleura plecta)
- *1 Square-spot Rustic (Xestia xanthographa)
- *1 Red Underwing (Catocala nupta): presumed the same on the same lamp in a different place later.

and
- 1 Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)
- 1 Caddis fly sp.
- 1 Cucumber Green Orb Spider (Araniella sp.)
- 3 Bridge Orb-web Spiders (Larinioides sclopetarius)
- 3 Leiobunum rotundum harvestmen

In the sailing club shelter pre-dawn:
Just the usual array of spiders

Things seen later:

Butterflies:
- Small White (Pieris rapae)

Moths:
- Horse-chestnut Leaf-miner (Cameraria ohridella)
- *Straw Grass-veneer (Agriphila straminella)
- Common Grass-veneer (Agriphila tristella)
- Cinnabar (Tyria jacobaeae) caterpillar
- *Dun-bar (Cosmia trapezina): worn
- *Straw Dot (Rivula sericealis)

Bees / Wasps etc.:
- Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum)
- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)

Hoverflies:
- Plain-faced Dronefly (Eristalis arbustorum)
- Tapered Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax)
- Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
- Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare)
- Lesser Hornet Hoverfly (Volucella inanis) [Wasp Plumehorn]

Damselflies:
- Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)

Other flies:
- Scorpion Fly (Panorpa sp.)

Bugs:
- *Heterotoma planicornis
- At least two other species of plant bug

Spiders:
- Stretch spiders (Tetragnatha sp.)

Molluscs:
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)

Mammals:
- 11 Pipistrelle-type bats again
- 1 Grey Squirrel

This Dunnock seems to have a crippled left foot. It was hopping about well-enough. The pale tips on some of the feathers suggest these are new: I suspect a juvenile now with its first adult plumage. I doubt an adult would have moulted as yet.

With no dark border to the spreading pale streak along the wing and the pale overall appearance this must be a Straw Grass-veneer moth (Agriphila straminella).

The necessary flash has caused the red in the middle of the crossbar of this moth to appear rather faded. In real life the epithet Flame Carpet (Xanthorhoe designata) is very appropriate. A common moth though this is my first in Priorslee

The flash has also rather faded the yellow of this Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata) that was lurking in the grass pre-dawn.

A rubbish photo but I wasn't taking this moths photo and I only noticed it when reviewing the shot. It is my first-ever Flame Shoulder moth (Ochropleura plecta) at the lake. A common and widespread species I suspect the usual flight time is early in the night and they are usually hidden away by 04:30.

This moth is a Square-spot Rustic (Xestia xanthographa). The 'square spot' is the area between the two pale marks (these are called the kidney mark and the oval). Not all specimens of this moth are especially 'rustic' in tone, the epithet being applied to a group of moths to which this species belongs.

This is what moths look like after a few days when they are very worn. Just enough faint markings on the wings to identify this as a Dun-bar (Cosmia trapezina) - on the right-hand wing the converging cross-lines are more readily apparent.

This splendid Red Underwing moth (Catocala nupta) was at the top of this lamp-pole pre-dawn but had repositioned just above head-height later and had the decency to have its wings slightly open. It has been a bumper year for this species: there is one in the Priorslee Avenue tunnel for its third day and I have seen at least three at The Flash.

A Straw Dot moth (Rivula sericealis). A not very 'straw' specimen and an unusually well-marked example. Normally I would expect to see only the dark mark in the wing with its two small darker blotches and the white dots near the wing edge. The two wavy cross-lines are unusual to see – it must be a very fresh specimen. It is from a second brood – I saw several here in mid-June though never managed a decent photo.

This specimen is more 'straw' coloured. The cross-lines are barely discernible.

A dinky little plant bug with very thick bases to the antennae though careful examination shows longer and thinner ends. It is Heterotoma planicornis – a common and predatory bug.

And again

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash:

- 1 Chiffchaff calling by the upper pool
- 1 Blackcap calling by the lower pool.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

- 1 Red Underwing moth (Catocala nupta) for its third day

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:20 – 07:05

(161st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- There were many fishermen this morning and the Mallard were constantly moving about. The number is likely to be an under-recording

Birds noted flying over here:
- 6 Feral Pigeons; together
- 6 Wood Pigeons
- 2 Collared Doves
- 4 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Jackdaw again
- 1 Starling

Hirundines etc., noted:
- 2 House Martins

Warblers noted:
- 9 Chiffchaffs: two in partial and quiet song.

On /around the water:
- 12 Canada Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swan
- 46 (?♂) Mallard
- 41 (?♂) + 4 (1 brood) Tufted Duck
- 4 + 1 (1 broods) Moorhens
- 5 juvenile Coots (2 broods)
- 2 + 2 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 3 Black-headed Gulls only: no juveniles

On various lamp poles:

No moths

- *2 Red-legged Shieldbugs (Pentatoma rufipes)
- 3 Dicranopalpus sp. harvestmen.
- 1 Leiobunum rotundum harvestman again

Close-up and personal with a Red-legged Shieldbug (Pentatoma rufipes). It is sporting droplets of water from a recent shower.

Handily placed for an unusual side-view.

(Ed Wilson)

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On this day can be found via the yearly links in the right-hand column.

Sightings from previous years without links are below

2013

Priorslee Lake

1 Common Sandpiper

(Ed Wilson)

2012

Priorslee Lake

Location

1 Common Sandpiper

(Ed Wilson)

2007

Priorslee Lake

Little Egret

Common Sandpiper

Common Gull

Hobby

Wheatear

(Ed Wilson)

2005

Priorslee Lake

Yellow Wagtail

Kingfisher

(Ed Wilson)