29 Mar 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

5.0°C > 8.0°C: A few small areas of high cloud early, Still hazy. Low cloud for a while c.09:45. Light NE wind. Moderate visibility.

Sunrise: 06:52 BST

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 05:50 – 09:05

(75th visit of the year)

Bird of the day was a very early Common Sandpiper on the concrete slipway by 06:55. My first record in March. Bird species #75 for me here this year.

Bird notes:
- Little Grebe(s) were heard calling in both the NE and NW areas. Two pairs here? None seen.
- The Great Crested Grebes were less confusing with 10 birds on the water, all paired and all five pairs visible at the same time.
- A Great Spotted Woodpecker was seen bounding in from a long way to the E – a tiny dot when I first saw it.
- A second singing Blackcap now.
- The party of 23 Redwings were heading S. Have they been watching the weather forecast and decided not to head off for Scandinavia just yet?
- One Dunnock was delivering a strange song. In the middle of every one of the usual jaunty jumble of notes there was a single call note of Chaffinch. Most odd.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 5 Canada Geese: a pair and a trio outbound
- 54 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Collared Dove
- 2 Herring Gulls: both immatures flying S
- 26 Jackdaws
- 8 Starlings: together
- 23 Redwings: together

Hirundines etc. noted:

None

Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler again
- 14 (14) Chiffchaffs again
- 2 (2) Blackcaps

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Canada Geese: throughout
- 2 Mute Swans
- 5 (4♂) Mallard
- 2 (1♂) Tufted Duck again
- 4 Moorhens
- 32 Coots
- Little Grebe(s) heard again: see notes
- 10 Great Crested Grebes
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: two adults and one first year, all individually and briefly

On / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
- many plumed midges Chironomus plumosus
- many smaller midges, likely Chaoborus crystalinus
No spiders

Species noted later:
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- Grey Squirrel

As the sunrise moves in to the E photos need to be taken from a different vantage point.

Another different perspective.

And the long view. Distinctly hazy.

A surprise was this Common Sandpiper, here rather against the light. Typical first dates for Spring passage are 9th/10th April and this is my first March record.

Considering the light-level at sun-up I was pleased how much detail I could get. Some birds do not have far to migrate, spending the winter around the southern English coast. Most go to Africa and many go to sub-Saharan Africa though they likely go around the coast.

A feature of this species is its constant tail bobbing as demonstrated in this shot taken with a slow shutter speed.

Two male Pied Wagtails on the 'boxing ring' on top of the dam.

A disagreement about which way to go.

Not strictly flowers, though in a way they are. This is a large willow bush covered in catkins.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:10 – 10:05

(72nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- The cob Mute Swan was still on the grass alongside Derwent Drive throughout. I hope he is not unwell.
- The pair of Shoveler seem to have shoved off.
- Two puzzling Black-headed Gulls today. One was yesterday's bird with adult wings and tail but no black on the head. The other had a complete black hood with a deep red bill suggesting an adult. Yet the wing-pattern of brown feathers and an obvious tail band meant it must be a first year bird.
- I heard a Reed Bunting here on March 14 but have not seen or heard one since. One of the residents told me they have one currently coming to their feeders.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 4 Jackdaws

Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 6 (6) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (2) Blackcaps

On /around the water:
- 34 Canada Geese
- 2 Greylag Geese
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans: number of eggs unknown
- 22 (18♂) Mallard
- the all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck) not seen
- 2 (1♂) Teal
- 49 (29♂) Tufted Duck
- 12 Moorhens
- 27 Coots again
- 2 Great Crested Grebes again
- 2 Black-headed Gulls: see notes
- 3 Herring Gull: two first years and one third year

Noted on / around the street lamp poles
- many plumed midges (Chironomus plumosus)

Noted elsewhere:
- 1 Grey Squirrel

The 2019 Mute Swan and one of the 2021 first year birds looking 'friendly'. Bottom foreground are the long-staying pair of Teal.

I may need to revise my thinking about the 2019 bird. I had assumed that because the resident cob had, more or less, allowed it to stay it was a female. Here it seems to be the larger of the two birds and has a significant swelling at the base of the bill: this is larger in males. So perhaps it is a cob after all.

 I suppose there is a good evolutionary reason for the Coots' stupid-looking feet.

As noted this Black-headed Gull shows a complete black hood with a deep red bill which suggests it is an adult. Yet the wing-pattern of brown feathers and an obvious tail band means it must be a first year bird.

(Ed Wilson)

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Priorslee Avenue underpass

A quick visit here yielded two insects that were not the usual plumed midges. This is my first proper cranefly of the year after a number of the small (unidentifiable by me) 'winter craneflies'. This seems to be Tipula rufina, noted as a Spring-flying species.

This is a distinctive-looking insect. It seems rather fat-bodied and relatively short-winged for a midge. I cannot offer any other suggestion.

(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 Little Grebes

3 Great Crested Grebes

4 Cormorants

1 Grey Heron

31 Tufted Duck

3 Redwings

5 Sand Martins

7 Chiffchaffs

1 Willow Warbler

(Ed Wilson)

The Flash

2 Great Crested Grebes

1 Cackling Goose

2 Common Teal

49 Tufted Ducks

3 Great Spotted Woodpeckers

4 Chiffchaffs

(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock Pool

3 Great Crested Grebes

17 Tufted Ducks

1 Blackcap

2 Chiffchaffs

(Ed Wilson)

Trench Middle Pool

3 Tufted Duck

3 Chiffchaffs

(Ed Wilson)

2013

Priorslee Lake

2 Gadwall

7 Wigeon

Iceland Gull

(John Isherwood and et al)

The Flash

1 Shoveler

2 Pochard

(John Isherwood)

Horsehay Pool

2 Mandarin Ducks

(Paul Spear)

2012

Priorslee Lake

3 Great Crested Grebes

16 Tufted Duck 

2 Blackcaps

12 Chiffchaffs

(Ed Wilson)

The Flash

4 Great Crested Grebes 

47 Tufted Duck

1 Blackcap

5 Chiffchaffs

(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill

2 Red-legged Partridges

(Ed Wilson)

2008

Priorslee Lake

Oystercatcher

Blackcap

5 Chiffchaffs

Sand Martins

7 Gadwall

(Ed Wilson, John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill

2 Wheatear

6 Sky Larks

1 Fieldfare

3 Redwings

Lapwing

Green Woodpecker

14 Linnets.

(Ed Wilson) 

2006

Priorslee Lake

 Barn Owl

25 Sand Martins

3 Chiffchaffs

1 Willow Warbler

47 Redwings

4 Meadow Pipits

12 Tufted Duck

4 Jays

433 Wood Pigeons

(Ed Wilson)