Priorslee Lake and The Flash
10.0°C > 15.0°C: Fine and clear. Light 'N' wind. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 06:13 BST
* = a photo today
Priorslee Lake: 04:45 – 06:20 // 07:25 – 09:30
(188th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- The adult and three cygnet Mute Swans only noted.
- Most of the large number of Wood Pigeons were passing W almost continually after 07:45. There were no significant groups as if they had been flushed from feeding locations. They all seemed to be on local movements as none was much above a hundred feet
Overhead:
- 84 Canada Geese: all outbound in seven groups: many others heard taking a line below tree-level for me
- 8 Greylag Geese: all outbound as two singles and one group
- 1 Feral Pigeon
- 2 Stock Doves: together again
- 139 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Sparrowhawk
- 25 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Jackdaws
Hirundines etc., noted:
- 2 House Martins at least heard high over at 06:00
Warblers noted:
- 9 Chiffchaffs: one noted in song
- 2 Reed Warblers
- 5 Blackcaps
- 1 Lesser Whitethroat
Count from the lake area:
- 2 + 3 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 10 (7♂) Mallard
- 8 Moorhens: adults and immatures
- 73 Coots: adults and immatures
- 8 + 5 (3 broods) Great Crested Grebes still
- 207 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull: adult, briefly
- 17 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: all stopped only briefly
- 1 Cormorant: arrived
- 1 Grey Heron
On / around the street lamps pre-dawn:
Moths
- *1 Pale-streak Grass-veneer (Agriphila selasella)
- *1 Blood-vein (Timandra comae)
- 1 Flame Carpet (Xanthorhoe designata)
- 1 Dun-bar (Cosmia trapezina)
And
- *1 cranefly Tipula lateralis
- 1 Plumed midge (Chironomus plumosus)
- 1 Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperia carnea)
- 2 Bridge Orb-web Spider (Larinioides sclopetarius)
- 1 Dicranopalpus sp. harvestman
- 1 Leiobunum rotundum harvestman
In the sailing club shelter pre-dawn:
Spiders etc.:
- Large House Spider-type: Eritigena group either E. duellica, E. atrica or E. saeva
- Bridge Orb-web Spiders (Larinioides sclopetarius)
- *another to be identified
Things seen later:
Butterflies:
- Small White (Pieris rapae)
- Green-veined White (Pieris napi)
- Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)
Bees / Wasps etc.:
- Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)
- Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum)
- Tree Bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum)
- *Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)
- *Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)
Hoverflies:
- Stripe-faced Dronefly (Eristalis nemorum)
- Tapered Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax): many 100s of these Tapered / Common Droneflies
- Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
- Marsh Tiger (Helophilus hybridus)
- Dead-head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea) [Batman Hoverfly]
Damsel-/Dragon-flies:
- *Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
Bugs:
- *Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus): nymph
Beetles:
- 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata)
Spiders:
- *Misumena vatia (all-white crab spider)
Molluscs:
- White-lipped Snails (Cepaea hortensis) as ever
Mammals:
- 2 Grey Squirrels
- [Pipistrelle-type bats not looked for]
'Flowers' noted for the first time this year
- *Lords & Ladies / Cuckoo Pint (Arum maculatum): fruits only
Some while since I have seen this – yep! The Moon.
You wait for ages and then they come along in droves. Another Blood-vein (Timandra comae) out in the open.
Share and share alike. In front a Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum) sharing the Knapweed flower with a Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)
I was not expecting to see one of these at this date. It is a recently-emerged male Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum).
This is nymph of a Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus).
A spider to be identified.
The fruiting spike of Lords & Ladies or Cuckoo Pint (Arum maculatum). All parts of this plant are poisonous.
(Ed Wilson)
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Between the lake and The Flash:
Noted on a lamp pole:
- *1 Double-striped Pug (Gymnoscelis rufifasciata)
- 2 Dicranopalpus sp. harvestman
A pug moth that is not too hard to identify. It is a Double-striped Pug (Gymnoscelis rufifasciata).
(Ed Wilson)
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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:
- 1 presumed Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperia carnea)
- 2 Leiobunum rotundum harvestmen
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 06:25 – 07:20
(172nd visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- No idea why the Greylag Geese were still happily on the water rather than out in the fields.
- Low Mallard count: many were tucked up under overhanging vegetation and there were probably even more hiding.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 5 Feral Pigeons: together
- 4 Wood Pigeons
Hirundines etc., noted:
- House Martins heard only again
Warblers noted:
- 10 Chiffchaffs: one heard in song
- 3 Blackcaps
On /around the water:
- 4 Canada Geese
- 82 Greylag Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swan
- 40 (?♂) Mallard
- 45 Tufted Duck
- 4 adult and juvenile Moorhens
- 40 adult and juvenile Coots
- 2 + 3 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 22 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron
On various lamp poles:
- 1 Elbow-stripe Grass-veneer moth (Agriphila geniculea)
- 1 Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)
(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
2 Teal
(Ed Wilson)
2010
Priorslee Lake
Turtle Dove
(Ed Wilson)
2007
Priorslee Lake
Pair Ruddy Duck
(Malcolm Thompson)