16 Nov 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

9.0°C > 10.0°C: Yet another misty and murky morning. Looked to be clearing at 09:30 but didn't and drizzle returned. Light winds. Poor visibility; good for a while only.

Sunrise: 07:33 GMT

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 06:10 – 09:10

(262nd visit of the year)

Very much fog-affected here with visibility never being greater than across the width of the water

Bird notes:
- I may have heard the Cetti's Warbler give the initial note of its loud song: or it may have been one of the chattering Starlings winding up to leave. Either way there was nothing heard or seen subsequently.
- The roosting Starlings left as two concurrent huge groups that merged in to one making counting impossible. By far the largest number I have seen this season.
- One Song Thrush singing, briefly.
- Only two Reed Buntings were heard calling in the usual roost area at the W end. Later I noted nine birds leaving the S side bushes with at least four more birds still present in this area. I could not see or hear any at the W end after this time.

Overhead:
- 2 Wood Pigeons
- 2 Herring Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 8 Jackdaws: others heard
- >30 Pied Wagtails heard only

Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:
- c.1000 Starlings: see notes
- ? Reed Buntings: see notes

Warblers noted:
- ? Cetti's Warbler: see notes

Fog affected counts from the lake area:
- 2 Greylag Geese: departed
- 1 (1♂) Gadwall only
- 6 (3♂) Mallard
- 25 (14♂) Tufted Duck
- 7 Moorhens
- ? Coots: no meaningful count possible
- >75 Black-headed Gulls
- 9 Herring Gulls
- 39 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

At / around the street lamps pre-dawn:

Moths:
- *1 Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata)
with:
- *1 Birch Shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus)
- *1 mayfly sp., perhaps a Pond Olive (Cloeon dipterum)

Spiders and Harvestman:
- 2 Tetragnatha sp. Stretch spiders
- *2 Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus harvestmen
- 1 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestmen

Noted later:
On the wooden fence between Teece Drive and the Wesley Brook:
- 2 Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus harvestmen
- *1 Paroligolophus agrestis harvestmen

A Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata). Compared with the November Moth group this species is smaller and has more rounded corners to the wing tip. It is often equally stunningly marked! It has a drop of rain on its left wing. This is moth species #121 for me around the lake this year.

So what is this then (apart from the tip of one of my fingers)? It is the underside view of a...

Birch Shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus). Rather similar to the slightly larger Hawthorn Shieldbug (Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale) most easily separated at this time of year by the black tip to the abdomen (red on the Hawthorn Shieldbug)

Just about as far away from its name would imply – a mayfly in November. Most likely a Pond Olive (Cloeon dipterum). My previous sighting here was on 23 October.

This is a female Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus harvestman. The pedipalps of females are both shorter and smaller than the males I usually see. The abdomen is an almost mahogany colour which I have not seen before: Nigel, the Spiderman, confirms this is within the colour range of this species, albeit less usual.

A Paroligolophus agrestis harvestmen that has been in the wars – only five legs remaining! I found this on the wooden fence separating Teece Drive from the Wesley Brook.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:15 – 10:15

(235th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- I remain puzzled as to why both the number and apparent sexual composition of the Tufted Duck varies so much from day to day. While some birds are still quite difficult to sex (presumably first years still moulting) then that does not seem a wholly adequate explanation.
- Of the four drake Goosanders two were in almost full adult breeding plumage; the other two moulting still.
- I never managed to see all three Great Crested Grebes at the same time but am fairly certain that all the usual three – one adult; one first winter and one I can never decide about – were present.
- Unusually for this date I recorded all four species of common finch – Chaffinch, *Bullfinch, Greenfinch and (over 30) Goldfinch.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 2 Jackdaws
- 4 Redwings
- 1 Meadow Pipit
- 1 Pied Wagtail

On /around the water:
- 13 Canada Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 32 (20♂) Mallard
- 2 (1♂) Teal again
- 38 (15♂) Tufted Duck
- 8 (4♂) Goosander
- 12 Moorhens
- Coots not counted
- 3? Great Crested Grebes
- 28 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Grey Herons

On various lamp poles:
- *3 Winter Moths (Operophtera brumata)
- *2 Mottled Umber moths (Erranis defoliaria)
- *mating pair of Plumed midges (Chironomus plumosus?)

On / around the Ivy:
- At least 2 Common Wasps (Paravespula vulgaris)

Nothing else of note.

A male Bullfinch was out in the open briefly. Poor light though.

Not all Winter Moths are as plain as the one I photographed at the lake. Note the same well-rounded wing-tips. This is another winter species where the female is flightless and with this species possessing the tiniest vestigial wings. I have still to double-check the moths for 2021 here but I think this is species #49.

I have remarked previously on the variability of Mottled Umber moths (Erranis defoliaria). Here is one well-marked example.

And a much darker example with the ground colour almost obscuring the cross-bands on the wings.

Something I have not seen before – a pair of plumed midges mating. I usually record these as Chironomus plumosus and certainly that species is very variable in colour – some have yellow and some green abdomen as well as the black of these two. However these were noticeably smaller than those I see most often so I am not sure. 'Plumed midge sp.'

(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
1 Wigeon 
5 Gadwall 
2 Teal 
69 Tufted Duck 
215 Coots 
19 Lapwings 
c.400 Black-headed Gulls
c.220 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
21 Herring Gulls 
74 Starlings
8 Fieldfare
38 Redwings 
93 Jackdaws
19 Rooks
3 Ravens
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Priorslee Lake
12 Greylag Geese
3 Wigeon
1 Shoveler 
3 Pochard 
11 Tufted Ducks 
Snipe
c.35 Redwings
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake
2 Caspian Gulls
8 Yellow-legged Gulls
1,600 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
30+ Herring Gulls
4 Great Black-backed Gulls
Hybrid Lesser Black-backed x Herring Gull
(Tom Lowe)

2007
Priorslee Lake
140 Golden Plover
1 Gadwall
2 Wigeon
(John Isherwood)

2006
Priorslee Lake
4 Cormorants
29 Pochard
54 Tufted Ducks
>675 Black-headed Gulls
2571 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
3 Herring Gulls
272 Wood Pigeons
32 Robins
26 Blackbirds
212 Fieldfares
5 Song Thrushes
50 Redwings
7 Mistle Thrushes
5 Goldcrests
563 Jackdaws
144 Rooks
33 Starlings
1 Redpoll
6 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)