13 Mar 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

8.0°C: Cloud from overnight rain beginning to break. Fresh SSE wind. Very good visibility.

[Sunrise: 06:32 GMT]

* = a photo today

Early rain delayed my start. I visited The Flash first. It was "mission accomplished" at the lake, with four Sand Martins as my first this year.

Priorslee Lake: 09:05 – 09:55

(60th visit of the year)

Only viewing from the Castle Farm Way lay-by.

The four Sand Martins were present between 09:05 and 09:25 only. Bird species #69 for me here this year [it was species #68 on 04 March last year].

Bird notes:
- Just one Little Grebe seen at the W end.
- The three Great Crested Grebes behaved as yesterday: two birds in the S and E areas, only sometimes together; the other bird in the NW area.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 2 Canada Geese: pair inbound
- 3 Black-headed Gulls
- 10 Herring Gulls
- 7 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Canada Geese: pair throughout
- 2 Mute Swans
- 4 (3♂) Mallard
- 19 (10♂) Tufted Duck
- no Moorhens
- 28 Coots again
- 1 Little Grebe
- 3 Great Crested Grebes again
- 2 Black-headed Gulls
- *1 Common Gull. Arrived and departed
- 1 Cormorant: immature

Noted from the lay-by.

Nothing else of interest

A Common Gull

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Flash: 08:10 – 08:55

(57th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- I could not locate any Teal today.
- Small groups of Tufted Ducks were flying around and hard to keep track of. There may be a small element of double-counting.
- A Great Crested Grebe found: lurking under overhanging vegetation around the island. I could only see one bird.
- Eight Chiffchaffs noted: six singing, one calling only and *one silent bird.
- A Mistle Thrush was singing once more in trees near The Priorslee.
- At least 20 Siskins around. Some were in Alders very close to the W side bath swaying wildly in the brisk wind = no photos.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 2 Stock Doves
- 1 Black-headed Gull
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull

On /around the water:
- 22 Canada Geese: one pair of these arrived
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 29 (19♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- no Teal
- 79 (52♂) Tufted Duck
- 11 Moorhens
- 24 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 6 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull: first year, arrived

On /around the street lamp poles or elsewhere around here:

Nothing noted

A Chiffchaff looking rather quizzically at me from behind the obligatory twig. Note that while the legs are black the feet are more pinkish.

Now peering to get a better view of me. This is a rather yellow-plumaged specimen more reminiscent of a recently moulted juvenile in Autumn. The plumage tones do vary within and between races of this species.

Visible here behind the bill is what is called a pollen horn. As the bird probes nectar in, typically pussy willow at this date, pollen gets transferred to its feathers. In damp weather the pollen sticks together around the base of the bill. I did not hear this bird call or sing while I was photographing it.

"I'm off". An armpit view. The feathers here are known as axillaries.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

1st winter female Greater Scaup

20 Tufted Duck. 

1 Kingfisher

(Gary Crowder)

2013

Priorslee Lake

3 Great Crested Grebe

37 Tufted Duck

27 Wigeon

2 Gadwall

1 Cormorant

24 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

4 Herring Gull

1 Great Black-backed Gull

(Martin Grant)

2012

Priorslee Lake

1 Water Rail

(John Isherwood)

Priorslee Flash

1 Chiffchaff

(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill

30 Fieldfare

1 Redwing

7 Lapwing

2 Stock Dove

(John Isherwood)

2010

Priorslee Lake

5 Great Crested Grebes

1 Heron

6 Gadwall

4 Pochard

48 Tufted Ducks

1 Lapwing

>1100 Black-headed Gulls

c.30 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

5 Herring Gulls, all on the water

(Ed Wilson)

2007

Priorslee Lake

Woodcock

5 Cormorant

6 Grey Heron

19 Tufted Duck

4 Stock Dove

25 Robin

22 Blackbird

8 Redwing

3 Chiffchaff

47 Magpie

143 Jackdaw

5 Reed Bunting

(Ed Wilson, Martin Adlam)

2006

Priorslee Lake

1 Little Grebe

4 Great Crested Grebes

7 Pochard

45 Tufted Ducks

2 Ruddy Ducks

1 Lapwing

148 Jackdaws

34+ Siskins

6 Redwings

14 Greenfinches

2 Reed Buntings

(Ed Wilson)