7 Dec 21

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

1.0°C > 3.0°C: High overcast, lowering with increasing lower-level cloud. Rain, mostly light, after 09:00. Moderate SSE wind, increasing somewhat. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 08:06 GMT

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 06:35 – 09:05

(282nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- A pair of Mallard flew in from the E accompanied by what seemed to be a very small duck, presumably a Teal. They all landed about as far away from me as they could. Later when I was in that area all the Mallard had disappeared and I was none the wiser.
- A more normal number of Black-headed Gulls. The first 15 arrived at 07:25 with numbers building up to at least 250 birds.
- I was keeping out of the wind and not in the area where I would have expected to hear any Cetti's Warblers.
- A Pied Wagtail flushed off the dam at 07:10 when it was still very dark. Two here later. Only two noted passing over.
- Siskins were about the only small birds flying about. Exactly how many different birds were involved is hard to say.

Overhead:
- 10 Wood Pigeons
- 4 Herring Gulls
- 61 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Common Buzzard again
- 112 Jackdaws
- 5 Rooks
- 1 Redwing
- 2 Pied Wagtails only heard
- >12 Siskins: see notes

Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:
- 5 Redwings
- 3 Reed Buntings

Warblers noted:

None

Counts from the lake area:
- 5 (3♂) Gadwall
- 9 (6♂) Mallard
- 1 possible Teal: see notes
- 31 (17♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (?♂) Goosander: departed
- 3 Moorhens
- 45 Coots
- >250 Black-headed Gulls
- 16 Herring Gulls
- 122 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron

At / around the street lamps pre-dawn:

Moths:
- *2 Winter Moths (Operophtera brumata)

Also
- *1 beetle sp.? Same as yesterday.

Spiders or Harvestman:
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider

Later:

Nothing noted

Not much from a very dull and dreary lake visit. One of two Winter Moths (Operophtera brumata) on the lamp posts. This species will be active until at least the turn of the year. If you drive in the countryside after dark these will be the moths you will see in the headlights.

This is, I assume, the same as yet unidentified beetle that I photographed yesterday. Strangely I remember it being on a different lamp post. Age, I expect. A search through the, gulp, 855 beetle species illustrated on the eakringbirds web site does not help with identification. If it is a larva then that is not surprising as larvae are not illustrated.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:10 – 10:00

(257th visit of the year)

A quick canter around before the rain really set in. Nothing special to report.

Birds noted flying over here:

None

On /around the water:
- 6 Canada Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 31 (20♂) Mallard
- 3 (3♂) Pochard
- 49 (20♂) Tufted Duck
- *25 (13♂) Goosander
- 9 Moorhens
- 23 Coots
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 29 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull: adult, departed
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: adults
- *1 Grey Heron

On / around street lamps or around the Ivy:

Nothing

Marginally more light here. From this angle the hook of the tip of the bill of Goosanders shows well. A duck here, riding choppy waters.

Bad hair day!

It is better facing in to the wind as these two ducks demonstrate.

This Grey Heron lurking in a dark corner has had a bit of a surprise. If you look closely it has caught a fish – and a stick.

Enlarged as much as I dare. Had I noticed this at the time I would have stayed to watch how it solved the problem of dropping the stick without losing the fish. The fish has red gills and banded body so must be a Perch (Perca fluviatilis)

(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

2012

Priorslee Lake

9 Pochard.

55 Tufted Ducks.

153 Coots.

615 Black-headed Gulls

354 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

21 Herring Gulls.

(Ed Wilson)

2009

Priorslee Lake

4 Great Crested Grebes

9 Cormorants

33 Swans

25 Pochard

61 Tufted Ducks

297 Coots 

2 Buzzards

19 Goldfinches

2 Siskins

1 Redpoll

(Ed Wilson)

2006

Priorslee Lake

3 Great Crested Grebes

1 Cormorant

17 Greylag Goose

9 Pochard

46 Tufted Ducks

>1400 Black-headed Gulls

>230 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

5 Herring Gulls

1 Yellow-legged Gull 

1 Great Black-backed Gull

23 Robins

16 Blackbirds

2 Fieldfares

3 Redwings

259 Jackdaws

257 Rooks

7 Reed Buntings

(Ed Wilson)

2005

Priorslee Lake

2 Little Grebes

9 Pochard

31 Tufted Duck

234 Coot

205 Jackdaws

473 Rooks

154 Fieldfare

4 Redwings

8 Redpolls

46 Siskins

6 Reed Buntings

(Ed Wilson)