10 Nov 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

9.0°C > 10.0°C: Medium-level overcast after overnight rain and early drizzle. Lower cloud with some light rain after 10:00. Mild again. Almost calm. Moderate visibility early; very good for a while; then moderate again at onset of rain.

Sunrise: 07:22 GMT

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 05:50 – 09:20

(256th visit of the year)

Mostly a very quiet morning with two highlights:
- two Woodcock flew past me together to drop in to cover for their day-roost at 06:45
- a Little Egret flew N at 07:35.

Other bird notes:
- Decline in number of Tufted Duck (also at The Flash later)
- No Wood Pigeons migration, just a low number of local movements.
- Very few early unidentified large gulls.
- Another very high-flying Jay (as well as two local birds).
- The Cetti's Warbler, Robins apart, was the first bird to sing at 06:40. It sang twice from the W end. I did not hear it either singing or calling thereafter.
- Six Reed Buntings seen leaving the W end roost. Shortly thereafter (c.07:30) there was still one bird calling at the E end and two calling along the S side. These latter birds were presumably the birds heard calling in the area at 08:45 after which three flew off E – hardly 'roost dispersal'.

Overhead:
- 2 Feral Pigeons: together
- 3 Stock Doves: together
- 47 Wood Pigeons only
- 6 Black-headed Gulls only
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 56 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 unidentified large gulls only
- 3 Cormorants: single S; duo N
- *1 Little Egret
- 1 Jay
- 90 Jackdaws
- 68 Redwing: seven groups
- c.20 Pied Wagtails
- 1 Chaffinch
- 1 Goldfinch: singles unusual
- 2 Siskins

Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:
- 58 Starlings
- *4 Redwing again
- 6 Reed Buntings: see notes

Warblers noted:
- 1 Cetti's Warbler still here

Count from the lake area:
- 2 Canada Geese: departed
- 5 (3♂) Gadwall still
- 8 (5♂) Mallard
- 14 (7♂) Tufted Duck
- 6 Moorhens
- 50 Coots
- c.250 Black-headed Gulls
- 11 Herring Gulls
- 1 Yellow-legged Gull: adult
- 60 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 8 unidentified large gulls

At / around the street lamps pre-dawn:

Moths:
- *1 Feathered Thorn (Colotois pennaria)
with:
- *1 'Wood Gnat', Sylvicola sp., perhaps S. cinctus.
- many small 'winter gnats'
- 1 Common European Earwig (Forficula dentata)
- 1 Staphylinidae Rove Beetle, just perhaps Tachinus laticollis
- *2 springtails: different species?

Spiders and Harvestman:
- 1 Larinioides cornutus (Orb-web spider)
- 1 Neriene montana spider
- *1 Tetragnatha sp. Stretch spider
- 1 Leiobunum rotundum/blackwalli harvestman
- 3 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestmen

Noted later:
- A few edible Blackberries – in November (and I am still alive)
- *new unidentified fungus sp.
- 1 Grey Squirrel yet again

Record shot only of the passing Little Egret – well it was 07:35 on a dull morning. Nevertheless the black bill and paler (in reality yellow) feet can be seen.

Dreadful light and the bird was atop a tall tree. Here is a Redwing. This species has a thinner and more-pointed bill than other thrushes.

A different Feathered Thorn moth (Colotois pennaria). I suspect a female unless it is a male cleverly managing to hide its feathered antennae. Prior to submitting my records to the Shropshire moth recorders I have been cross-checking all this year's logs. This is species #120 here this year albeit a few troublesome species are not fully identified. This is 15 more than last year's total. I expect to find at least one more species this year – Winter Moth.

I thought at the time this looked a bit small and short-winged for a cranefly, though the rather separated head suggested it might be. A search of the NatureSpot web site indicates this is a wood gnat of the genus Sylvicola. There are four UK species and they are inseparable from photos. S. cinctus is regarded and the most abundant.

This looks like another example of what I have been recording as the springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis.

This is rather confusing in that it has similar long antennae but a pale body. I have not seen such a specimen previously. A different species or just variability?

What seems to be another Staphylinidae Rove Beetle. There are about 1000 species of Rove Beetles in the UK all distinguished by having short elytra (hardened forewings) leaving a variable amount of the soft body exposed. The best match I can find on the eakringbirds web site is Tachinus laticollis, but with few of the myriad species illustrated I am not confident!

A rather different-looking Tetragnatha sp. Stretch spider. It is very plainly marked and holding its front legs in a curve.

Another fungus I found this morning. And another I will have to pass on with specific identification.

The underside view of the same group. One thing making identification more difficult is that I had to use flash in the very shady area and that tends to change the colour of the fruiting bodies.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:25 – 10:20

(232nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- As at the lake a reduction in Tufted Duck numbers.
- Two brownhead Goosanders back.
- Only two of the usual three Great Crested Grebes located.
- A Redwing heard from trees alongside Derwent Drive

Birds noted flying over here:
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

On /around the water:
- 5 Canada Geese only: two of these either flew in or emerged from the island.
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swan
- 30 (21♂) Mallard
- 17 (5♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 (0♂) Goosander
- 9 Moorhens
- 24 Coots
- 2 Great Crested Grebes only
- 29 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Grey Herons

On a lamp pole:
- 1 Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus harvestman

Around the Ivy:
- 5 Common Wasps (Paravespula vulgaris) only; in dull and slightly rainy conditions.

Elsewhere
- *1 different fungus sp.
- 3 Grey Squirrels: one of these seen on the island. How did it get there? Well swam I assume, but I am surprised this species would choose to swim even though almost all mammals can swim.

Guess what? Another unidentified species of fungus. Growing in the wooded area at the top end. This is taken by natural light.

To get any view of the underside I had to use the flash from close range with the result that it looks very washed-out.

(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

1 Wigeon 

7 Gadwall 

75 Tufted Duck 

1 Water Rail 

226 Coots 

720+ large gulls over and c.50 on the lake

1 Yellow Legged Gull

c.3100 Wood Pigeons

159 Fieldfare

31 Redwings

(Ed Wilson / John Isherwood)

2012

Priorslee Lake

c.170 Greylag Geese

3 Gadwall 

6 Pochard

19 Tufted Ducks 

146 Coots 

c.700 Black-headed Gulls logged

c.250 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

5 Herring Gulls

41 Redwings

10 Fieldfares

634 Jackdaws

198 Rooks

(Ed Wilson)

2010

Trench Lock Pool

Yellow-legged Gull

(Martin Grant)

2008

Priorslee Lake

300+ Wood Pigeons

326 Redwings

652 Fieldfare

269 Jackdaw

136 Rooks

c.75 Starlings seen leaving roost

6 Pochard

78 Tufted Ducks

4 Siskins

(Ed Wilson)

The Flash

4 Goosander

47 Greylag

95 Canada Geese 

42 Tufted Duck 

6 Redwings 

1 Kingfisher

(Ed Wilson)

2007

Priorslee Lake

Gadwall

Shoveler

21 Starlings in the roost

12 Pochard

57 Tufted Ducks

c.80 Lapwing

192 Coot 

500+ Black-headed Gulls

800+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls

1 Chiffchaff

26 lb Carp landed by one of the fishermen

(Ed Wilson)

2006

Priorslee Lake

20 Pochard

60 Tufted Ducks

1 drake Ruddy Duck

1 Water Rail

19 Lapwings

1700+ Black-headed Gulls

518+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls

334 Wood Pigeons

14 Pied Wagtails

24 Robins

27 Blackbirds

1 Fieldfare

8 Song Thrushes

12 Redwings

52 Jackdaws

142 Rooks

5 Reed Buntings

(Ed Wilson)