15 Dec 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

10.0°C: Medium / low cloud with very few breaks. Light SW wind. Good visibility.

Sunrise: 08:15 GMT

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 06:45 – 09:25

(289th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- The first 22 Black-headed Gulls arrived at 07:40. Many more than yesterday with at least 250 present.
- The outbound Jackdaws mainly in a single tight group – c.250 in that group? 20 later.
- The Cetti's Warbler calling along the N side at 07:35. It, or another, then sang several times as it moved away toward the NE area.
- The Mistle Thrush on its song post alongside Teece Drive. A Song Thrush in partial song in the same area.

Overhead:
- 3 Greylag Geese: single outbound; duo inbound
- 1 Feral Pigeon again
- 71 Wood Pigeons: 61 of these in two loose groups flying W along the line of the A5 to the N
- 8 Herring Gulls
- 59 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Cormorants together
- 1 Common Buzzard
- c.270 Jackdaws
- 1 Rook
- 1 Fieldfare
- 1 Redwing
- 5 Pied Wagtails heard

Roost sites

Not visited at appropriate time.

Warblers noted:
- 1 Cetti's Warbler: calls and song

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall
- 5 (3♂) Mallard
- 45 (21♂) Tufted Duck
- 1? Little Grebe: heard only again
- 3 Moorhens
- 53 Coots
- c.250 Black-headed Gulls
- 16 Herring Gulls
- 42 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant: arrived

Around the street lamps pre-dawn in mild conditions:

Moths:
- 10 male Winter Moths (Operophtera brumata)
- 2 Mottled Umbers (Erranis defoliaria)

Also:
- 1 Common Flower Bug (Anthocoris nemorum)
- 1 Plumed midge (Chironomus plumosus)
- 1 fly sp.

Spiders or harvestman:
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spider (Larinioides sclopetarius)
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider
- 1 other spider sp.

Noted later:

Nothing

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:30 – 10:25

(264th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- After several weeks of drake Goosanders equalling or outnumbering brownheads there was an excess of brownheads today.
- Coal Tit and Blue Tit in full song. A Great Tit was trying.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 2 Sparrowhawks: male and female, separately
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

On /around the water:
- 22 Canada Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 36 (23♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Teal
- 1 (1♂) Pochard again
- 34 (14♂) Tufted Duck
- 26 (6♂) Goosander
- 14 Moorhens
- 23 Coots
- 2 Great Crested Grebes as ever
- 32 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Grey Herons

On / around different street lamps:
- 2 Mottled Umber moths (Erranis defoliaria)
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider

Around the Ivy

Nothing

One of four Mottled Umber moths (Erranis defoliaria) seen this morning, three of them very different from each other. This specimen from the lake has the black spots in the forewing and a shadow of the wavy cross-band.

This is a 'classic' specimen with black spots in the forewing and both cross-bands strongly contrasting with a pale background. This and the next example were at The Flash.

The other end of the spectrum. A more or less unmarked specimen with just some mottling against a very dark background. I have no idea why one species should be so variable when visually inseparable moths (the November-moth complex for instance) can be different species. Answers on the back of an envelope...

This is one of the Anthocoridae family of plant bugs. Most cannot be identified to species level: this one can: a Common Flower Bug (Anthocoris nemorum).

My first Plumed midge (Chironomus plumosus) for a while. The plumes on the antennae are easier to see on the shadow.

Possibly the smallest fly I have seen. This photo was taken on macro and has been enlarged as much as I dare before it pixelates.

A tiny spider here – about a quarter the size of my little finger-nail. It has lost one leg and I asked about that as I have seen several such spiders. It is worth quoting in full the response from Nigel – the Shropshire Spider Man: "It’s an adult male money spider but I can’t go any further.
Spiders shed legs as a defence mechanism if they are trapped by a leg. Males often lose them to females when trying to mate. There are special break points which are immediately sealed by muscular action to prevent fluid loss which is not just to preserve body fluids but some spiders extend their legs by hydraulic action so can’t afford to lose the precious fluid. The missing leg will grow back in immature spiders after each moult but starts off complete but very small and may never grow to be of much use. If the leg is lost after adulthood the leg will not grow back as they have no more moults to go!
Harvestmen are even more prone to shedding legs and the shed leg will continue to kick to distract predators – a bit like some lizards tails.
Limb shedding as a defence is called autotomy – at least in arachnids."

(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

48 Magpies

2 Ravens

134 Starlings

1 Siskin

6 Gadwall 

2 Teal 

6 Pochard 

115 Tufted Ducks

1 Water Rail 

235 Coots 

258 Black-headed Gulls

27 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

24 Herring Gulls

3 Great Black-backed Gulls

32 Fieldfare

96 Redwings

(Ed Wilson)

The Flash

4 Pochard 

198 Tufted Ducks 

1 Greater Scaup 

6 Goosanders

(Ed Wilson)

2012

Priorslee Lake

1 Little Grebe.

4 Gadwall

8 Pochard

50 Tufted Ducks

1 Goosander

1 Water Rail

168 Coots

296 Wood Pigeons

3 Redwings

1 Fieldfare

203 Jackdaws

41 Rooks

4 Siskins

1 Redpoll

(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock Pool

1 Heron

34 Swans

2 Shoveler

1 Pochard

41 Tufted Duck

1 Goldeneye

170 Coots

(Ed Wilson)

2010

Priorslee Lake

10 Pochard

19 Tufted Ducks

Curlew

2 Fieldfare

23 Redwings

c.25 Siskins 

(Ed Wilson)

The Flash

33 Tufted Ducks

1 drake Goosander 

1 Common Gull

(Ed Wilson)

2009

Priorslee Lake

Black necked Grebe

30 Mute Swans

2 Gadwall

27 Pochard

93 Tufted Ducks

1 Teal

263 Coot

2 Yellow-legged Gulls

600 Black-headed Gulls

Goldcrest

11 Siskins

(Ed Wilson/John Isherwood)

2006

Priorslee Lake

3 Herons

25 Pochard

41 Tufted Ducks

64 Coots

>500 Black-headed Gulls

>1700 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

7 Herring Gulls

35 Robins

30 Blackbirds

c.30 Fieldfare

c.24 Redwings

259 Jackdaws

232 Rooks

3 Reed Buntings

(Ed Wilson)