3.0°C > 7.0°C: Clear to E with medium-low cloud to W gradually spreading across. Calm start with light SE breeze developing. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 07:56 GMT
* = a photo today
Priorslee Lake: 06:40 – 09:20
(28th visit of the year)
At last: something different! A Little Egret flew low W over at 07:40. Bird species #63 for me here in 2022.
Other bird notes:
- A drake Gadwall has reappeared.
- A Woodcock flew around the small copse in the SW area and disappeared towards the M54 at 06:55. It on another circuit, or another, did the same thing a minute or two later.
- The early gull arrival consisted of only three Lesser Black-backed Gulls followed a few minutes later by just 27 Black-headed Gulls. All these departed within 10 minutes. Thereafter I noted ten Black-headed Gulls briefly on the water, perhaps earlier birds returning? Much later two Herring Gulls and one Lesser Black-backed Gull stopped off for a bathe.
- A significant passage of Black-headed Gulls passing overhead, all going SSW either in dedicated groups of up to 26 birds or among groups of larger gulls. I have seen flocks of Black-headed Gulls passing overhead on Spring passage but this is too early and they were going in the wrong direction. So where were they going and why? And why so few on the water?
- I counted 45 Magpies leaving their roost area in the NW part of the area. A depressingly large total but well down on the 80+ noted in the winter of 2017/2018.
- The number of passing Jackdaws remains much reduced. I have rarely exceeded 100 any morning this winter whereas a few years ago I sometimes saw several flocks that I estimated totalled more than 1000 birds. I just hope their roost site and / or feeding area have moved rather than their numbers have crashed.
- Another sighting of a lone Starling leaving the reeds apparently having roosted there. As I drive away I note that some Starlings have returned around the estate where they usually breed.
- Eight Song Thrushes and one Mistle Thrush in song.
- *Another group of 35 Redwings seen: these were in trees alongside Teece Drive.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 3 Canada Geese again: two outbound very loosely together; one inbound
- 1 Greylag Goose: outbound
- 1 (1♂) Mallard
- 1 Stock Dove
- 34 Wood Pigeons: 52 of these in three groups
- *118 Black-headed Gulls
- 11 Herring Gulls
- 78 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Little Egret
- 2 Cormorants: together
- 73 Jackdaws
- 4 Siskins
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 3 (1) Mute Swans
- 1 (1♂) Gadwall
- 8 (6♂) Mallard
- 10 (5♂) Tufted Duck
- 5 Moorhens
- 36 Coots
- 27 Black-headed Gulls only: see notes
- 2 Herring Gulls
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- *3 Cormorants: arrived separately; one departed again
- 1 Grey Heron
On or around the street lamps:
- *1 Pale Brindled Beauty moth (Phigalia pilosaria)
- 2 'winter craneflies'
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider again – different pole
Not an exciting sunrise. This might appeal to cloud fans.
A drake Gadwall was around again.
There were four Long-tailed Tits chasing around. It was a challenge to capture them perched.
Here it is again.
One of the others.
A Redwing alongside Teece Drive. I've complained about twigs in the foreground before.
This is a Pale Brindled Beauty moth (Phigalia pilosaria). I last noted one here on 30 January 2019 – a consistent date.
(Ed Wilson)
The Flash: 09:25 – 10:25
(27th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- Most of the geese apparently still out.
- Two additional drake Pochard and twenty more Tufted Ducks since yesterday. Some of the Tufties may have been refugees from the lake once the boating started, though there were only 12 there earlier.
- A more typical number of gulls were present after the recent bonanza.
Bird noted flying over here:
- 1 Sparrowhawk again
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull again
On /around the water:
- 11 Canada Geese
- 2 Greylag Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 47 (27♂) Mallard
- 1 all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 3 (3♂) Pochard
- 71 (34♂) Tufted Duck
- 16 Moorhens
- 26 Coots again
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 54 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull: first winter
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: (near) adult
- no Cormorant
- 1 Grey Heron
On /around the street lamp poles:
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 09:25 – 10:25
(27th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- Most of the geese apparently still out.
- Two additional drake Pochard and twenty more Tufted Ducks since yesterday. Some of the Tufties may have been refugees from the lake once the boating started, though there were only 12 there earlier.
- A more typical number of gulls were present after the recent bonanza.
Bird noted flying over here:
- 1 Sparrowhawk again
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull again
On /around the water:
- 11 Canada Geese
- 2 Greylag Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 47 (27♂) Mallard
- 1 all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 3 (3♂) Pochard
- 71 (34♂) Tufted Duck
- 16 Moorhens
- 26 Coots again
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 54 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull: first winter
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: (near) adult
- no Cormorant
- 1 Grey Heron
On /around the street lamp poles:
Nothing
Otherwise
- 1 Grey Squirrel again
- 1 Grey Squirrel again
(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
2014
Priorslee Lake
2 Cormorants
1 Teal
7 Pochard
66 Tufted Duck
3 Greater Scaup
1 Velvet Scoter
91 Coots
1 Woodcock
50 Herring Gulls
33 Redwings
c.495 Jackdaws
(Ed Wilson)
The Flash
106 Tufted Ducks
(Ed Wilson)
Trench Lock Pool
7 Pochard
25 Tufted Duck
4 Goosander
44 Coots
(Ed Wilson)
Park Pool, Chetwynd near Newport
31 Shoveler
(Ed Wilson)
2013
Priorslee Lake
29 Wigeon
10 Gadwall
8 Pochard
59 Tufted Ducks
1 Scaup
169 Coots
>300 Starlings
13 Redwings
46 Fieldfare
211 Jackdaws
(Ed Wilson, John Isherwood)
The Flash
9 Pochard
54 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)
Trench Lock Pool
2 Goosander
Sparrowhawk
(John Isherwood)
Holmer Lake
1 Gadwall
9 Goosander
1 Little Grebe
Goldcrest
Nuthatch
(John Isherwood)
2012
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebes
21 Pochard
42 Tufted Duck
c.190 Black-headed Gulls
48 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
8 Herring Gulls
Glaucous Gull
75 Redwing
16 Bullfinch
(Ed Wilson, Martin Grant)
Priorslee Flash
1 Pochard
43 Tufted Ducks
282 Black-headed Gulls
3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
2 Herring Gulls
(Ed Wilson)
2010
Priorslee Lake
1 Water Rail
4 Gadwall
2 Willow Tit
(John Isherwood)
2009
Priorslee Lake
A female Ruddy Duck
500+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Herring & Black-headed Gulls.
1 Yellow-legged Gull
1 Great Black-backed Gull
(Ed Wilson)