16 Dec 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

10.0°C: Medium-level cloud with very few breaks. Almost calm. Good visibility.

Sunrise: 08:16 GMT

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 06:45 – 09:30

(290th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- If it had not been for the geese arriving it would have been a very quiet morning.
- No Gadwall found.
- Much reduced number of Tufted Duck (vide increase at The Flash).
- Have I ever logged so few Wood Pigeons? Only two noted flying over. Juts seven in trees around the lake and along Teece Drive.
- The first 3 Black-headed Gulls arrived at 07:30. No more than 100 present at any one time.
- The Cetti's Warbler was calling in the SW area behind the sailing club shelter at 09:00. I may have heard distant song from W end at 07:40 but...

Overhead:
- 3 Canada Geese: trio outbound
- 3 Greylag Geese: duo outbound; single inbound
- 2 Wood Pigeons only!
- 8 Herring Gulls again
- 27 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Common Buzzard again
- c.200 Jackdaws
- 4 Fieldfares: together
- 6 Pied Wagtails heard

Birds leaving roost sites around the lake:
- 5 Redwings

Warblers noted:
- 1 Cetti's Warbler: calls

Counts from the lake area:
- 12 Canada Geese: arrived; eight departed
- 2 Greylag Geese: arrived with Canada Geese,
- no Gadwall
- 5 (4♂) Mallard
- 12 (6♂) Tufted Duck
- 5 Moorhens
- 61 Coots
- c.100 Black-headed Gulls
- 25 Herring Gulls
- 45 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3? Cormorants: two arrived together; one soon left; another (?) arrived shortly afterwards

Around the street lamps pre-dawn in mild conditions:

Moths:
- 7 male Winter Moths (Operophtera brumata)
- 1 male Mottled Umber (Erranis defoliaria)

Also:
- *1 Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina)
- *1 probable Agallia consobrina planthopper
- *3 different fly sp.
- *1 possible Negro Ant (Formica fusca)
- *1 small shiny all-black beetle sp.

Spiders:
- 1 Neriene montana
- 3 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spiders

Noted later:
- 1 Grey Squirrel

All the photos from here are creatures on the lamp poles again. Too dull for bird photos (and not much to photo anyway). This a Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina) in winter colours. Seems to be missing its left wing.

This is a planthopper and one that I cannot recall seeing before. Keith, Shropshire's bug recorder, thinks it may be Agallia consobrina. As usual there are several other similar species and the photo is not good-enough to confirm its identity.

One of several small unidentified flies this morning.

This is probably a female midge with 'simple' antennae.

A different female midge perhaps. This with a more slender and elongated body.

Not a good photo. I took my usual 'safety shot' before getting in to better position but it flew off! Note the spurs on the legs. That is all I know.

An ant! Probably a Negro Ant (Formica fusca) as this seems to be the only large black ant active throughout the year. Identification from photos alone is however unreliable.

I have seen this small shiny all-black beetle several times recently. The swollen hind femur is distinctive but not distinctive-enough to be able to identify the species.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:35 – 10:30

(265th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- Large number of Mallards. Possibly some duplication as there was much flying about and they were hard to keep track of.
- Significant increase in Tufted Duck count. Perhaps the birds 'missing' from the lake have come here?
- Also a high count of Goosanders. May have been more – they were playing submarines.
- A Collared Dove tempted in to song and then seen in display flight. Later two birds together. This species has been absent / scarce for many weeks post breeding season.

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

On /around the water:
- 14 Canada Geese
- 2 Greylag Geese: arrived
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 48 (32♂) Mallard
- *1 (1♂) Teal again
- 1 (1♂) Pochard still
- 59 (30♂) Tufted Duck
- 34 (10♂) Goosander
- *14 Moorhens again
- 23 Coots again
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 41 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: adults
- no Grey Herons

On / around different street lamps:
- 1 male Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata)
- 2 male Mottled Umber moths (Erranis defoliaria): neither on the same lamps as yesterday.

Around the Ivy:

Nothing

Elsewhere
- *1 Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus)

 More luck with the birds here. This drake hiding away among the tree roots was the only Teal I could find.

If food is on offer then a Wood Pigeon will have its eye on it.

An alarmingly close Moorhen. The black and brown body is glossed purplish. Amazing feet enable this species to climb vegetation if necessary.

A white flash along the flanks and white under tail. The tail is constantly twitched – here a bit blurred as it does so.

Compare and contrast the 'black' Moorhen with a 'black' Carrion Crow. Even the crow can have a hint of a blue gloss if the light is right.

Carrion Crow is not a species I photograph too often so lets have another.

What a sweetie. Butter wouldn't melt it its mouth! Or perhaps it would. A Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus) on the lookout for food.

The camera was on full zoom and I was safely shooting through the car window!

(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

5 Gadwall 

3 Pochard 

49 Tufted Ducks

238 Coots

6 Fieldfare

>256 Redwings

3 Siskins

1 Redpoll

(Ed Wilson)

The Flash

2 Teal

2 Pochard 

167 Tufted Ducks 

1 Greater Scaup 

2 Goosanders 

1 Redpoll

(Ed Wilson)

2012

Priorslee Lake

2 Little Grebe

35 Tufted Ducks

4 Gadwall

7 Pochard

149 Coot

1 Water Rail

25 Redwings

(Ed Wilson)

2011

Priorslee Lake

6 Great Black-backed Gulls

(John Isherwood)

2009

Priorslee Lake

Black-necked Grebe

5 Great Crested Grebes

23 Swans

34 Pochard

84 Tufted Ducks

1 Water Rail

Snipe

273 Coots

25 Goldfinches

7 Linnets

50 Siskins

(Ed Wilson)

2006

Priorslee Lake

3 Great Crested Grebes

4 Cormorants

9 Pochard

46 Tufted Ducks

1 Water Rail

Woodcock

70 Coots

c.220 Black-headed Gulls

104 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

2 Herring Gulls

1 Great Black-backed Gull

5 Buzzards

20 Pied Wagtails

1 Willow Tits

561 Jackdaws

149 Rooks

c.190 Fieldfare

c.120 Redwings

5 Reed Buntings

(Ed Wilson / Martin Adlam)