27 Apr 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

6.0°C > 9.0°C: A persistent area of medium cloud refused to break or move away; clearer to N & W. Calm start again with more light E wind later. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 05:47 BST

* = a photo today

Not sure I have chosen a good time with the migrants eventually arriving (my first Swift of the year was over Newport this afternoon). I am concentrating on my aviation hobby for the next few days and there will be no reports from me.

A postscript on recent and rather late records of Willow Warbler: I read that yesterday c.100 had been logged at Hilbre Island in the mouth of the River Dee. Since the island has very little vegetation these must have been passage birds. Seems everything is late this year with bad weather in Spain and Portugal being quoted as the reason.

Priorslee Lake: 05:00 – 06:25 // 07:30 – 09:35

(101st visit of the year)

It was of course nine species of warbler yesterday: I forgot to tabulate the Garden Warbler.

Bird notes:
- The second Canada Goose seemed to come off the nest for a protracted period. I wonder what that means?
- A Grey Heron flew W over the dam at 05:25. I was unsure whether it was flying in or flying over. I did not see it again.
- A second Garden Warbler also now in a traditional nesting area.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 3 Greylag Geese: trio outbound
- 1 Feral Pigeon
- 12 Wood Pigeons
- 2 Collared Doves: together
- 2 Herring Gulls: immatures
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: also immature
- 1 Grey Heron
- 9 Jackdaws
- 4 Rooks
- 2 Ravens: together

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 4 Sand Martins
- 2 Barn Swallows
- 2 House Martins

Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler still
- 16 (13) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (1) Sedge Warbler
- 4 (4) Reed Warblers again
- 24 (17) Blackcaps
- *2 (2) Garden Warblers
- *3 (2) Common Whitethroats

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Canada Geese
- 2 Mute Swans: pen on nest
- 6 (5♂) Mallard
- 2 (1♂) Tufted Duck: departed 07:50
- 6 Moorhens
- 20 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 3 Common Sandpipers

Noted on / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
- *5 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spiders

Noted later in mostly cloudy and chilly conditions:
- Tapered Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax)

Mostly cloudy throughout. A brief burst of colour

"I hear no worms". Well you wouldn't on concrete. I noted only this one Common Sandpiper at 06:00: by 09:00 a second bird had appeared.

The Common Whitethroats are being camera-shy at the moment. One pair are happily lurking in scrubby cover, the male performing brief display flights and diving back in. This other male is performing wonderful display flights and always alights at the tops of the trees furthest away from wherever I am positioned.

Well the grey head and white throat are visible but not the brown on the flight feathers.

And this is no better.

It is not only Common Whitethroats that hide. My best photo (so far) this year of Garden Warbler. This mainly grey warbler is distinguished by having no distinguishing features! Perhaps the all dark and, for a warbler, the short and rather thick bill are notable. Like all warblers it best identified by song. To my ears it is quite distinct from Blackcap with a different rhythm and timbre. Most bird books say they are hard to tell apart. Learn Blackcap properly and you will not be fooled.

While waiting, in vain, for the Common Whitethroat to land in view this male Reed Bunting popped up. The head seems still to show a few flecks of white. I would have expected it to be jet black apart from the white eye-ring and moustache at this date.

There were five Tetragnatha sp. stretch spiders on various lamp poles pre-dawn. This was the largest of them. It seems to have a deformed right pedipalp.

My other hobby. This is a Bell 505 Jet Ranger X registered to the suitably anonymous "65383 Inc., as Trustee" in Wilmington, Delaware in the USA – a tax-advantageous location. It is new and was only registered on 2nd April. This link HERE will tell you all I know.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:30 – 07:25

(98th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- A pair of Mallard seen with five ducklings. These were not tiny so I assume they are the remnant of the brood of nine seen last Sunday.
- A drake Pochard new in: a very unusual date.
- I saw the Herring Gull in flight and confirmed that today's bird at least was a second year.
- At least two Willow Warblers: possibly a third though it may have been one of the others moving about.
- A Sedge Warbler again. This bird was somewhere at the bottom end. I heard it sing twice when I was a long way away and could not pinpoint the location. When I was closer it had stopped singing (or moved on). Likely a different bird to that recorded yesterday.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 1 Cormorant

Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 2 (2) Willow Warblers
- 8 (7) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (1) Sedge Warbler again
- 7 (5) Blackcaps

Noted on / around the water:
- 32 Canada Geese: of these a pair departed
- 3 Greylag Geese
- 4 Mute Swans
- 20 (17♂) + 5 (1 brood) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 1 (1♂) Pochard
- 17 (12♂) Tufted Duck
- 11 Moorhens
- 25 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe again
- 1 Herring Gull: second year

On / around the street lamp poles or elsewhere:

Nothing noted

It's no wonder I sometimes struggle to find many drake Mallard some days. Here are seven roof-sitting.

A record shot of a most uncooperative drake Pochard. It was always 'the other side' of the water and continually diving. My previous record here was on 8th March. A very small number breed in the Midlands but most are long gone to mainland Europe where they breed on reedy lakes. A most unusual date for here.

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash

- 2 Moorhens heard at the upper pool giving alarm calls – a cat in the area?
- 2 Blackcaps: one singing and one calling between the pools

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel

- 1 Brindled Pug (Eupithecia abbreviata) moth still on the roof but some distance away.
- 3 owl midges Psychodidae sp.: I did not photograph any of them!

(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

4 Great Crested Grebes 

2 Greylag Geese

3 Common Sandpipers 

1 Reed Warblers 

1 Common Whitethroat 

11 Blackcaps 

10 Chiffchaffs 

2 Willow Warblers 

(Ed Wilson)

The Flash

Wood Warbler

2 Great Crested Grebe 

1 Greylag Goose 

1 Richardson's / Cackling-type Canada Goose 

16 Tufted Duck 

5 Blackcaps 

Wood Warbler

1 Chiffchaff

6 Willow Warblers

(Ed Wilson)

The Wrekin

3 Wood Warblers

1 Redstart

5 Pied Flycatchers

2 Tree Pipits

2 Redpolls

1 Siskin

(Ed Wilson, JW Reeves)

2012

Priorslee Lake

6 Tufted Duck

6 Swift

50 Swallow

25 House Martin

2 Sand Martin

1 Grasshopper Warbler

1 Wheatear

1 Sedge Warbler

6 Common Sandpiper

(John Isherwood, Martin Grant)

Nedge Hill

1 Lesser Whitethroat

26 Wheatear

1 Greenland Wheatear

1 Fieldfare

1 Raven

(John Isherwood)

2011

Priorslee Lake

1 Wood Sandpiper

1 Common Sandpiper

1 Sedge Warbler

1 Lesser Whitethroat

1 Swift

(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill

2 Wheatear

1 Lesser Whitethroat

(John Isherwood)

2008

Priorslee Lake

3 Sedge Warblers

6 Reed Warblers

2 Lesser Whitethroats

2 Whitethroats

1 Garden Warbler

9 Blackcaps

9 Chiffchaffs

1 Willow Warbler

1 Little Grebe

2 Common Sandpipers 

c.10 Sand Martins

c.45 Swallows

1 House Martin

(Ed Wilson)

The Flash 

4 Sand Martins

12 Swallows 

2 Blackcaps

4 Chiffchaffs

4 Willow Warblers

(Ed Wilson)

The lane to the E of Priorslee

6 Whitethroats

1 Blackcap

3 Chiffchaffs 

1 Willow Warbler 

2 Linnets 

3 Yellowhammers

(Ed Wilson)

2007

Priorslee Lake

9 Great Crested Grebes

5 Tufted Ducks

2 Ruddy Ducks

1 Kestrel

2 Stock Doves

2 Swallows

House Martins

2 Grey Wagtails

Chiffchaff

Willow Warbler

1 Jay

(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill

2 Swallows

House Martin

Ring Ouzel

Fieldfare

Common Whitethroat

Blackcaps

Chiffchaff

Willow Warblers

(Ed Wilson)

Priorslee Flash

1 Swallow

6 Willow Warbler

Reed Bunting

(Ed Wilson)

2006

Priorslee Lake

5 Great Crested Grebes

1 Heron

3 Greylag Geese

2 Ruddy Ducks

3 Common Sandpipers

1 Stock Dove

7 Swallows

3 Grey Wagtails

26 Wrens

17 Robins

30 Blackbirds

9 Song Thrushes

1 Sedge Warbler

3 Reed Warblers

8 Blackcaps

4 Chiffchaffs

2 Willow Warblers

5 Greenfinches

5 Reed Buntings

(Ed Wilson)