27 Oct 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

13.0°C > 15.0°C: Early drizzle with breaks developing later. Fresh SSW wind. Very mild for the date. Excellent visibility.

Sunrise: 07:57 BST

*= a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 06:20 – 09:30

(242nd visit of the year)

Still quiet. Best was a high-flying Great White Egret going W at 08:30. By the time I had put the appropriate settings on the camera for what would have been, at best, a record shot I could relocate it.

Other bird notes:
- Two adult Mute Swans. I was not able to read any rings and I have mixed views as to whether they are 'our' pair. Once they awoke they positioned on the slipway suggesting they were 'ours'. However the bill colour of both of them looked rather paler than I recall. Time may tell.
- A second pair of Gadwall new in. Still an extra drake.
- First returning Pochard of the Winter – a duck.
- Tufted Duck especially tricky to count as many were being harassed by Black-headed Gulls and continually diving right at the edge of the water in the vegetation. Probably under recorded.
- After several days with rather few Black-headed Gulls a group of at least 250 arrived well before dawn at 07:15 and flew around and around for at least 20 minutes. They must have better eye-sight and quicker reactions than me to avoid crashing in to each other, though perhaps from inside the group it looks more organised than it does looking across at birds going in all directions.
- Rather more 'large gulls' with 26 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and eight Herring Gulls stopping off; and 21 unidentified gulls flying over.
- c.20 Starlings glimpsed probably leaving a roost in the W end reeds.

Overhead:
- 16 Wood Pigeons only: no migrant groups
- 45 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 21 unidentified large gulls only
- 1 Great White Egret (as highlighted)
- 1 female Sparrowhawk
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 219 Jackdaws
- no Rooks
- 5 Redwings: four of these heard overhead pre-dawn
- 10 Pied Wagtails

Warblers noted:
- 1 Cetti's Warbler: sang once from near the Wesley Brook bridge

Count from the lake area:
- 3 Mute Swans
- 6 (>2♂) Mallard: all but one pair flew off pre-dawn
- 5 (2♂) Gadwall
- 1 (0♂) Pochard
- 38 (>21♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 Moorhens
- 61 Coots
- no Great Crested Grebe
- >250 Black-headed Gulls
- 11 Herring Gulls
- 48 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron: departed

At / around the street lamps pre-dawn:
Rather draughty around the lamp poles!

Moths:
- 1 November Moth agg. (Epirrita sp.)
with:
- *many small flies
- *2 craneflies: different species
- 1 male Plumed midge (Chironomus plumosus)
- 1 froghopper sp.
- 4 Common European Earwig (Forficula dentata)
- 1 Common Rough Woodlouse (Porcellio scaber)
- 1 Pogonognathellus longicornis-type springtail
- *1 Neriene montana spider
- 1 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestman

In the sailing club shelter pre-dawn
- *1 (Common) Striped Woodlouse (Philoscia muscorum)
- many Bridge Orb-web Spiders (Larinioides sclopetarius) as usual

Nothing of note later:

'Tis the Fall. With a fresh wind to blow the leaves down and the academy on half-term (and no teachers or workmen today) there was no traffic to blow the leaves off Teece Drive (and block the drains).

I am afraid it is all 'creepies' this morning. A small fly with startlingly red eyes and short body (or long wings if you prefer). Despite (because of?) the wind there were more flies than usual and less of everything else.

A slightly larger fly with a red head and thorax as well as red eyes. Anyone know a dipterist in Shropshire to help?

A large plain-looking cranefly with one of its long legs missing. Possibly Tipula luteipennis but I am far from certain.

I found this rather different-looking woodlouse in the sailing club shelter. It is unsurprisingly called a (Common) Striped Woodlouse (Philoscia muscorum). There is another species of woodlouse that also has a black stripe along the back but that has prominent yellow blotches at the edge of the stripe. As far as I can tell a new species for me. How exciting!?

The daily spider. I thought the dark band across the carapace and the head meant it was a Neriene peltata. I read that species has unmarked legs which this hasn't. Over to Nigel – I was close: it is N. montana.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:35 – 10:15

(219th visit of the year)

Council contractor were out massacring some of the hedges today cutting off the berry crop that the winter thrushes might like. Perhaps the contractors will do some of the bushes that overhang the paths later. Perhaps.

Bird notes:
- Just the drake Teal found.
- Why so few Tufted Duck? Usually there are >50 at this time of year.
- Only three Great Crested Grebes seen. One adult; one a juvenile; others too far away.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 4 Jackdaws

On /around the water:
- 35 Canada Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swan
- 36 (23♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Teal
- 10 (3♂) Tufted Duck only
- 5 Moorhens only
- 21 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 46 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Grey Herons

On a lamp pole:
- 1 Dicranopalpus ramosus-type harvestman

Noted elsewhere:
- *Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) briefly on the Ivy.
- rather fewer Common Wasps (Paravespula vulgaris) on the Ivy flowers despite the mild (but dull and breezy) conditions.
- 1 Grey Squirrel

A passable photo of an Ivy flower and a poor photo of a Red Admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta), all blowing about in the wind. When I next looked the butterfly had gone, I know not where. So long as the weather stays mild and the Ivy continue to flower it is possible that several species of butterfly will be visiting.

(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

2011
Priorslee Lake
1 Adult Great Black-backed Gull
1000+ large gulls
(John Isherwood)

2010
Priorslee Lake
Great Black-backed Gull
11 Golden Plover
2 Kingfishers
16 Reed Buntings
5 Sky Larks
8 Meadow Pipits
71 Redwings
457 Fieldfare
31 Siskins
1 Linnet
4 Redpolls
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
40 Tufted Duck
16 Pochard
2 Ruddy Duck
Common Buzzard
Sparrowhawk
c.2500 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
1 Kingfisher
2 Goldcrest
42 Fieldfare
Willow Tit
14 Long-tailed Tits
(Martin Adlam)
5 Goldcrests
(Martin Adlam)