31 Aug 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

12.0°C > 13.0°C: Often low cloud and mainly light drizzle. Occasional bright, even sunny, moments. Light N wind. Very good visibility but moderate in drizzle.

Sunrise: 06:18 BST

* = a photo today

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

(191st visit of the year)

Bird notes:

- All four Mute Swan cygnets seen again.

- There now seem to be two pairs of Great Crested Grebes without young as well as the three pairs with a total of five juveniles. No longer as easy as it was as the juveniles are being taken all around the water and the families are getting somewhat mixed up at times.

- Where have all he Reed Buntings gone? There were five (perhaps six) breeding pairs and they all seemed to have had two broods. Since the last male stopped singing about two weeks ago I have not seen any.

Overhead:

- 24 Canada Geese: 10 outbound in four groups; 14 inbound n two groups

- c.50 Greylag Geese: outbound together far to N

- 4 Stock Doves: single and trio

- 207 Wood Pigeons

- 2 Collared Doves: singles

- 1 Black-headed Gull again

- 1 Herring Gull

- 22 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

- no Jackdaws or Rooks

Hirundines etc., noted:

- 11 House Martins high over 08:50 only

Warblers noted:

- 9 Chiffchaffs: none in song

- 2 Blackcaps again

- 1 Reed Warbler: in occasional hesitant song

Count from the lake area:

- 2 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans again

- 16 (12♂) Mallard

- 1 (1♂) Tufted Duck [also yesterday – omission!]

- 5 Moorhens

- 66 Coots

- *10 + 5 (3 broods) Great Crested Grebes

- 80 Black-headed Gulls

- 4 Herring Gull: two adults, two juveniles, all briefly

- 15 Lesser Black-backed Gulls; all briefly

- 1 Grey Heron: departed

On / around the street lamps pre-dawn:

With the wing blowing on to the lamps there was very little about

Moths:

- *1 Dingy Dowd (Blastobasis adustella)

- *1 macro moth still to be identified

- *1 Red Underwing (Catocala nupta)

and

- 1 Common or European Earwig (Forficula dentata)

- 1 Cucumber Green Orb Spider (possibly Araniella cucurbitina)

- 1 Dicranopalpus sp. harvestman

In the sailing club shelter pre-dawn:

Spiders etc.:

- Bridge Orb-web Spiders (Larinioides sclopetarius)

Other things:

- Grouse Wing caddis fly (Mystacides longicornis)

Very little seen later:

Bees / Wasps etc.:

- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)

Hoverflies:

- *Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare) again

Molluscs:

- White-lipped Snails (Cepaea hortensis) as ever

Mammals:

- 1 Grey Squirrel again

Feeding time for the juvenile Great Crested Grebe.

Most uncharacteristically it seemed disinterested. A Black-headed Gull keeps careful watch to try and snatch the fish. The adult ate it when the gull pounced.

I think this small moth is a Dingy Dowd (Blastobasis adustella).

I'll have to take advice on this moth. It let me pick it up from the under the vegetation but I then had a problem. I had the moth in one hand, the camera in the other and where did I hold the torch? I dared not try and put the moth on vegetation in case it flew off. As a result the moth is not well lit. When homo sapiens evolved how come we discarded the prehensile tail of our ancestors. It would be so useful!

It has been a bumper year for this moth species both here, at The Flash and, where I usually find one per year, in the Priorslee Avenue tunnel. This is a Red Underwing (Catocala nupta).

Just about the only insect vaguely active this morning was this Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare). Here it is sitting on the edge of a petal of Larger Bindweed [or Bellvine] (Calystegia Sepium) which has water droplets from the morning's drizzle. The triangular shape to the yellow marks indicate this is a female as does the fact that her eyes do not meet.

This seems to me to be a typical Grouse Wing caddis fly (Mystacides longicornis). There is a form without any markings on the wings, but yesterday I saw...

.. which looks to be very similar but different. I cannot track anything else down on the web. However most of the 200 species known from the UK are not illustrated.

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash:

- 1 Chiffchaff calling at the lower pool

Noted on lamp poles:

- *1 probable Small Dusty Wave (Idaea seriata)

A challenge to spot this moth against the moss growing on the lamp pole. At the time I assumed it was a pug moth sp. but looking at the photo I am inclined to the view that it is a Small Dusty Wave (Idaea seriata).

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

- 1 pug moth sp.: flew off before I could ID it

- 1 presumed Common Marbled Carpet (Dysstroma truncata): as yesterday

- 1 Common Rough Woodlouse (Porcellio scaber)

- 1 Garden Spider (Arameus diadematus) at least

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:35 – 07:25

(174th visit of the year)

Bird notes:

- Now four Shoveler: two drakes and two ducks in only loose company

- It is always hard to be certain as they always move around quickly and often underwater but there did seem to be two extra adult Great Crested Grebes.

- Grey Wagtail present again

Birds noted flying over here:

- 5 Feral Pigeons: together

- 7 Wood Pigeons

- 5 Jackdaws

Hirundines etc., noted:

None

Warblers noted:

- 2 Willow Warblers

- 9 Chiffchaffs: five in song! Excited at the thought of going to a sunnier clime?

On /around the water:

- 7 Canada Geese

- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swan

- *4 (2♂) Shoveler

- 47 (?♂) Mallard

- 33 Tufted Duck

- 8 Moorhens

- 38 Coots

- 4 + 3 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes

- 18 Black-headed Gulls

- 2 Grey Herons again

On various lamp poles:

Moths:

- 1 Common Rustic agg. (Mesapamea secalis agg.): same lamp as yesterday, but shuffled slightly

Other things:

- 1 Dicranopalpus sp. harvestman

Also

- 1 Grey Squirrel

Four Shovelers today, all some way away in the drizzle and all well apart. Here is #1: a duck

#2: a drake.

 #3: another duck.

#4: another drake

(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
Possible Little Ringed Plover
Raven
(John Isherwood)

2012
Priorslee Lake
Hobby
Common Tern
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Nedge Hill
Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

2010
Priorslee Lake
Yellow Wagtail
Little Grebe
Shoveler
(Ed Wilson)
The Flash
58 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)