14 May 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

8.0°C > 14.0°C: A few patches of mainly high cloud. Some (Autumn?) mist over the lake early. Calm start with very light 'W' wind developing. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 05:15 BST

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 04:35 – 05:50 // 06:45 – 09:25

(111th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- The Common Sandpiper was a surprise: it is rather late for a passage bird. It was also unusual in that it was flushed on at least five occasions and at no time did I hear it call. They are typically noisy birds.
- It is some days since I saw or heard a Common Buzzard at the time I visit. One of the residents enquired as to whether they are nesting in the Ricoh copse this year. They may be: they are often unobtrusive until the young start begging for food.
- The Willow Warbler was singing at the W end throughout today.
- I am reasonably confident that there were four singing Garden Warblers this morning.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 7 Canada Geese: outbound together
- 2 Stock Doves: pair again
- 12 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Collared Dove
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: (near) adults
- 5 Cormorants: quartet and single
- 23 Jackdaws
- 2 Rooks

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 4 Swifts
- 2 Barn Swallows

Probably more individual Swifts as sometimes four; sometimes none; sometimes four again

Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 13 (12) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (2) Sedge Warblers
- 9 (8) Reed Warblers
- 19 (17) Blackcaps
- 4 (4) Garden Warblers
- 1 (1) Common Whitethroat

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 2 (1 brood) Canada Geese: goslings still surviving
- 2 Mute Swans: pen seen still on nest with cob often in close attendance
- 6 (5♂) Mallard
- 4 Moorhens
- 23 + 14 (5 broods) Coots
- *6 Great Crested Grebes again
- 1 Common Sandpiper
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: (near) adult, briefly
- 1 Grey Heron

On / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:

Again nothing noted

Noted later in mainly cloudy conditions:

Butterflies:
- Green-veined White (Pieris napi)
- *Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)

Moths
- *Green Long-horn (Adela reaumurella)
- Common Nettle-tap (Anthophila fabriciana)
*** yesterday's unknown moth has been identified by the Shropshire recorder as a Thistle Bell (Epiblema scutulana)

Bees / wasps etc.
- *Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum)
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- *Possibly a Flavous Nomad Bee (Nomada flava)

Hoverflies:
- Stripe-backed Fleckwing (Dasysyrphus albostriatus)
- Common Spotted Field Syrph (Eupeodes luniger)
- Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare)
- *Pellucid Fly (Volucella pellucens) [Pied Plumehorn]

Dragon- / damsel- flies:
- none

Flies:
- *Dark-edged Bee-fly (Bombilius major)
- Greenbottle Lucilia sp.
- Alder Fly (Sialis lutaria)
- Scorpion Fly (Panorpa sp.)
- *Yellow Dung Fly (Scathophaga stercoraria)
- plus the usual many other flies of many species

Bugs etc.:
- 1*4 Spot Ladybird (Propylea quattuordecimpunctata)
- Nettle Weevil (Phyllobius pomaceus)
- Red-and-Black Froghopper (Cercopis vulnerata)
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)

Spiders
- Cucumber Green Orb Spider-type (possibly Araniella cucurbitina)
- *Crab spider Misumena vatia
- Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider

Not an inspiring sunrise with very little colour.

A Great Crested Grebe doing its Dagwood impression. I did wonder whether the hunched back feathers might indicate there were juveniles on the back. I saw no further evidence.

A smart Speckled Wood butterfly (Pararge aegeria). This species is multi-brooded and smart new individuals can be encountered any time between late March and October.

A rather scruffy-looking bumblebee. It is an Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum).

How about these antennae? I only got one chance at this insect and this is not exactly a stunning photo but I am certain this is a Green Long-horn moth (Adela reaumurella) even though it looks black rather than the glossy dark green it often looks.

Possibly a Flavous Nomad Bee (Nomada flava)

The only cooperative hoverfly this morning was this Pellucid Fly (Volucella pellucens). It is also known as a Pied Plumehorn and it is just possible to make out the slightly plumed antennae.

I am always happy to see a Dark-edged Bee-fly (Bombilius major). I noted my first on the early date of 25 March. This seems a rather late date. It shows some wear and tear on the right wing.

Hairy or what? A Yellow Dung Fly (Scathophaga stercoraria).

I am also always happy to see a 14 Spot Ladybird (Propylea quattuordecimpunctata).

This Crab spider Misumena vatia is still on the same Cow Parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris) as it was a week ago. Each time it seems rather less yellow and more white which I suppose blends better with the flowers. It still is easy to spot though.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 05:55 – 06:40

(108th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- I give up with the goslings! No Canada Goose goslings found. A single Greylag gosling with a pair of adults and a group of five goslings with a single adult Greylag! Perhaps others inside the island?
- Two Mallard ducklings on the edge of the island with a duck Mallard: possibly more as hard to see as they clambered between all the tree roots.
- Yesterday's battling group of Tufted Ducks not seen, All the five noted eventually climbed inside the island and essentially disappeared.
- The two Swifts seen were very distant and over historic breeding area of St Georges.
- Only two juvenile Coots noted in what was usually the group of four. Were the others just hiding? They seem a bit big to have been predated.
- A third Great Crested Grebe was keeping out of the way.

Birds noted flying over here:

None

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 2 Swifts
- 1 Barn Swallow again

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

Noted on / around the water:
- 26 + zero Canada Geese: of these a pair departed
- 5 + 5 (2 broods) Greylag Geese: of these a pair arrived
- 3 Mute Swans
- 22 (17♂) + 2 (1 brood) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 5 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 6 Moorhens yet again
- 20 + 2 (1 brood) Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes still

Noted on / around the street lamp poles
- 1 Common European Earwig (Forficula auricularia): same place as yesterday

Noted elsewhere:
- 1 Grey Squirrel

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash:

- single Moorhens beside each pool again.
- 1 Chiffchaff singing beside the lower pool still.
and
- 1 springtail sp. on a street lamp pole

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

- just a few plumed and other midges

(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

Hobby

(Ed Wilson)

2011

Priorslee Lake

Black-tailed Godwit

3 Whimbrel

(Ed Wilson)

2009

Priorslee Lake

Common Tern

5 Common Sandpiper

(John Isherwood)

2006

Priorslee Lake

2 Ruddy Ducks

(Ed Wilson)