17 Sep 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

10.0°C > 13.0°C: A starry night when I arrived; by 05:45 low cloud and mist over the tops; threatened to clear after 08:00 but didn't, though cloud lifted somewhat. Calm start with light SE wind later. Moderate visibility at best.

Sunrise: 06:46 BST

* = a photo today

I am removing the table entry for hirundines for the rest of this year. Most of the House Martins left the Newport area on Wednesday and the rest departed yesterday. We may get a few Barn Swallows passing through and if so I will record them as separate entry.

Priorslee Lake: 05:15 – 09:10

(206th visit of the year)

The council have posted a planning application to erect a three metre high wire fence around most of what I call the football field. I have included a photo of the application and a map below. The rumour is that the council want to rent the field to the academy who are worried about the occasional dog-mess left behind by the very few unscrupulous dog-walkers.

Bird notes:
- With very low cloud and mist the large gulls 'dropped out of the sky' as far as I could see. I noted 73 arriving. The visibility was too poor to decide how many stopped for a wash and brush-up and how many carried on.
- Two Grey Herons were seen in flight low over the water, one apparently chasing the other away. Neither was seen before or after this.
- The only birds of real interest were two single Meadow Pipits flying S – my first of Autumn passage.

Overhead:
- 6 Stock Doves: two singles; two duos
- 221 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Herring Gull: immature
- 8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- ? large gulls: see notes
- 6 Jackdaws
- 1 Pied Wagtail
- 2 Meadow Pipits

Warblers noted:
- 10 Chiffchaffs: three in song
- 3 Blackcaps

Count from the lake area:
- 2 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 17 (13♂) Mallard
- 10 Moorhens
- 59 Coots
- 8 + 5 (3 broods) Great Crested Grebes again
- c.140 Black-headed Gulls
- 5 Herring Gulls: two (near) adults
- 51 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: various ages
- up to 73 'large gulls' only: see notes
- 2 Grey Herons: briefly

Moths at the lamps pre-dawn:

A bumper haul on what had been a clear and chilly night:

- *1 Garden Rose Tortrix (Acleris variegana f. argentana)
- *1 Notch-wing Button (Acleris emargana)
- *1 Red-green Carpet (Chloroclysta siterata)
- 1 Common Marbled Carpet (Dysstroma truncata)
- *1 Green Carpet (Colostygia pectinataria)
- *1 Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata)
- *1 Snout (Hypena proboscidalis)

Other things:
- 2 Common Wasps (Paravespula vulgaris) again
- *1 ichneumon sp.
- *1 Plumed midge (Chironomus plumosus)
- *1 Owl Midge (also known as Drain Fly, Moth Fly or Owl Fly) Psychodidae sp
- *1 Hawthorn Shieldbug (Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale)
- *1 Common Froghopper (Philaenus spumarius)
- 1 springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis
- *many White-lipped Snails (Cepaea hortensis)
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spiders (Larinioides sclopetarius)
- 1 Clubiona sp., spider
- 3 Dicranopalpus sp. harvestmen again
- 1 Leiobunum rotundum/blackwalli harvestman again
- 1 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestman again

Very little noted later in dull conditions:
- *cranefly Limonia nubeculosa
- Alder Leaf Beetles (Agelastica alni)
- Stretch spider (Tetragnatha sp.)
- many more White-lipped Snails (Cepaea hortensis)
- 2 Grey Squirrels

I was amazed at the number and diversity of the insects on and around the lamps after a rather chilly and clear night. Here are a few of them. This is one of the many forms of Garden Rose Tortrix moth (Acleris variegana), closest to f. argentana.

On the right another Notch-wing Button moth (Acleris emargana). On the left is an Owl Midge (also known as Drain Fly, Moth Fly or Owl Fly) Psychodidae sp. There are 99 known species in the UK and they all look much the same! I can't do anything about the strange feathery-looking marking on the lamp pole.

Here is a Red-green Carpet moth (Chloroclysta siterata). Seems an appropriate name. The strange backdrop is the workings on the underside at the very top of and beside the LEDs of the street light. This species of carpet moth tends to hold it wings rather closer to its body than many of its cousins. This species flies in the Autumn and over-winters as an adult, flying again in early-Spring after hiding away.

The marking are all in the right place it is just the colour that is missing on this Green Carpet (Colostygia pectinataria). The colour fades very quickly on this species.

I am still struggling to take a really crisp photo of a Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata). This is better than most. No idea who its companion is.

This rather faded and dew-spattered Snout moth (Hypena proboscidalis) looks as if it has run in to a brick wall. In fact they rest with their extended palps turned up but when seen from above this is not obvious and the long palps give it the name.

This looks like the ichneumon sp. that I see here relatively frequently. Specific identification requires more detail than shown here.

A male Plumed midge (Chironomus plumosus).

I found three of the craneflies Limonia nubeculosa resting on the fence alongside Teece Drive. This species, unlike many species of cranefly, rests with its wings folded over it backs. The wings are more patterned than those of most craneflies.

A Hawthorn Shieldbug (Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale). The second part of the scientific name seems appropriate.

Another dew-bespattered surprise in vegetation lit by the street lights was this Common Froghopper (Philaenus spumarius).

One of many jaunty-looking White-lipped Snails (Cepaea hortensis) munching away by the light of the street lamps.

For information here is the planning application.

And here is a not very helpful map. Firstly it was posted upside down (so I rotated it) and secondly it has no compass bearing! We seem to be looking N here with the path between the 'football field' and the academy grounds on the right and Teece Drive at the bottom. The arrow on the right points to the steps from the field to the path. It shows two football pitches though there is only one set of goalposts in reality.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel pre-dawn:

Moths:

None

With:
- 1 White-legged Snake Millipede (Tachypodoiulus niger)
- 1 Garden Spider (Arameus diadematus)
- 1 Large House Spider-type: Eritigena sp.
- 1 Leiobunum rotundum/blackwalli harvestman
- plus many other unidentified spiders as usual

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:15 – 10:10

(186th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- All three juvenile Great Crested Grebes seen, though one does tend to wander off.
- *A Grey Wagtail seen: it was the male that had was ringed as a juvenile at Heysham in Lancashire last year and spent most of Winter 2020/2021 in the area.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 4 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 1 Common Buzzard

Warblers noted:
- 5 Chiffchaffs: one in song
- 1 Blackcap

On /around the water:
- 77 Canada Geese
- 6 Greylag Geese: more inside island?
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swan
- 20 (14♂) Mallard only
- 34 (?♂) Tufted Duck
- 6Moorhens
- 22 Coots
- 2 + 3 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Black-headed Gull
- 1 Grey Heron

On various lamp poles:
- 1 Garden Spider (Arameus diadematus)
- 3 Dicranopalpus sp. harvestman

Elsewhere in dull conditions:
- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)
- Grey Squirrel again

Full of the joys of Autumn this Robin sings its winter song. Unusually both sexes sing in the winter to claim their feeding territory. Photoshop some snow in and Christmas Card sorted (other photo editors ....)

This Grey Wagtail hopped on the post for a few seconds, just long-enough for me to grab this shot to reveal that it is the male that had was ringed as a juvenile at Heysham in Lancashire last year and spent most of Winter 2020/2021 in the area. During the breeding season it was often on the dam at the balancing lake but I had not seen it since early June. The rings are looking distinctly faded now and I am not sure I would like specify which of the nine colours the ringers use this bird is carrying.

(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 Ravens
(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill
2 Wheatear
6 Raven
(John Isherwood)

2008
Priorslee Lake
1 Snipe
3 Common Sandpipers
149 Greenfinch roost
89 Pied Wagtails
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
Pintail
(Ed Wilson)