18 May 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

9.0°C > 15.0°C: A cloudless start with a few puffy clouds developing after 08:00. Light SSE breeze. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 05:09 BST

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 04:40 – 05:45 // 06:45 – 09:25

(114th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- There were at least seven adult Great Crested Grebes. Two birds went for a protracted flight around and around and may or may not have departed. Thereafter I could find a maximum of six so it is possible there were originally eight.
- One of the Garden Warblers was singing from the Ricoh copse close to the Priorslee Avenue underpass. I have not heard one in this general area previously.
- Some of the House Sparrows have made it as far as the dam-face and appeared to be collecting nesting material.

Birds noted flying over here: not much in poor conditions.
- 4 Canada Geese: two pairs outbound
- 3 Greylag Geese: trio outbound
- 4 Wood Pigeons only
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: (near) adult
- 3 Cormorants: duo and single
- 5 Jackdaws

Hirundines etc. noted:
- >7 Swifts; up to 3 at 05:10; 7 at 08:10 probably different birds
- 1 Barn Swallow

Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
** intensity and duration of song starting to decline.
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 14 (13) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (2) Sedge Warblers
- 6 (6) Reed Warblers
- 14 (13) Blackcaps
- 3 (3) Garden Warblers
- no Common Whitethroat

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 2 (1 brood) Canada Geese
- 2 Greylag Geese: briefly
- 2 + 8 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 5 (3♂) Mallard
- 5 Moorhens
- 17 + 8 (3 broods) Coots only
- 7? Great Crested Grebes

Noted on / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
- *plumed midges

Noted later:

Somewhat breezy conditions with the SE blowing on to the sun-lit areas:

Butterflies:

None

Moths
- Common Roller (Ancylis badiana)
- Drinker caterpillar (Euthrix potatoria)

Bees / wasps etc.;
- *Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- *Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum)
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- Tenthredo sawfly sp.

Hoverflies:
- Cheilosia albitarsus agg. (C. ranunculi (Early Buttercup Cheilosia) or C. albitarsis (Late Buttercup Cheilosia))

- Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- Common Spotted Field Syrph (Eupeodes luniger)
- Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare)
- White-footed Hoverfly (Platycheirus albimanus)
- *Superb Ant-hill Hoverfly (Xanthogramma pedissequum)

Dragon- / damsel- flies:
- *Azure Damselfly (Coenagrion puella)
- Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
- *Red-eyed Damselfly (Erythromma najas)
- Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura elegans)
- *Emerald Damselfly (Lestes sponsa)

Flies:
- Alder Fly (Sialis lutaria)
- Scorpion Fly (Panorpa sp.)

Bugs etc.:
- Red-and-Black Froghopper (Cercopis vulnerata)
- Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus)
- *Hairy Shieldbug or Sloe Bug (Dolycoris baccarum)
- Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis)
- *unidentified small green beetle
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)

Spiders
- Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider

New flowers:
- *White Campion (Silene latifolia)

I was a day and a bit too late taking this photo for it to be a proper blood moon.

A typically scruffy-looking Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum) with the orange 'pile' on the thorax and off-white bands across the abdomen.

Another rather scruffy bumblebee with a less extensive and more yellow-toned 'pile' plus a similar-toned midriff band. It is an Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum).

I guess this is just a 'regular' plumed midge though I have not previously noted one resting with its wings held at right angles to its body. It enables a dark cloud in the wings to be seen.

This stunner is a Superb Ant-hill Hoverfly (Xanthogramma pedissequum). Stephen Falk calls this group, with justification, 'dayglo syrphs'. They do really stand out.

Separation of male Azure Damselfly (Coenagrion puella) from Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum) is most easily done by examination the marking on what is called tergite two – the first obvious body segment below the thorax. This is an Azure Damselfly which has a black U-shaped mark. On a Common Damselfly the mark looks like an ace of spades.

After some detective work I think this is a female Emerald Damselfly (Lestes sponsa), a species I have never recorded in Shropshire. I am slightly concerned that it is not resting with its wings partially open, as this species frequently does.

New for the year for me is the business-end of a female Red-eyed Damselfly (Erythromma najas).

This is a Hairy Shieldbug, also known as a Sloe Bug (Dolycoris baccarum). It does not look particularly hairy but the three white bands on the antennae rule out the only confusion species, the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (Halyomorpha halys) which has two bands.

There are many small beetles that look like this so it will stay as a 'beetle sp.' I am not sure whether those might be eggs at the top. Or perhaps frass?

Definitely "answers on a post card" for this blob I found on the stem of a nettle (so I did not investigate too closely). I thought it might be a spider carrying an egg sac. The photo shows no evidence of a spider.

The flower of a White Campion (Silene latifolia). I think the blue flowers are all Green Alkanet (Pentaglottis sempervirens) though I did not specifically check.

(Ed Wilson)

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

The Flash: 05:50 – 06:40

(111th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- I have no idea where many of the drake Mallard were hiding. Perhaps they have found a sunny spot on a roof I cannot see.
- A duck Mallard was on the island where I noted the bird with the single duckling yesterday: I could see no duckling today.
- The Coots seem to be having a poor breeding season so far. Many of the adults I logged today were scattered around the water and several nests were devoid of birds.
- A third Great Crested Grebe has (re)appeared.
- A late date for the Common Sandpiper here.
- For at least the last 10 days I have recorded a Great Spotted Woodpecker, usually only calling and usually at the top end. I hope it is breeding here as there seems to be none at the lake this year.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 4 Greylag Geese: together
- 1 Cormorant again
- 3 Starlings

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 3 Swifts

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

Noted on / around the water:
- *41 + 8 (2 (3?) broods) Canada Geese
- 1 Greylag Goose
- 3 Mute Swans
- 11 (7♂) Mallard: no ducklings
- 1 (1♂) all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 2 (1♂) Tufted Duck again
- 5 Moorhens only again
- 18 + 4 (1 brood) Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- *1 Common Sandpiper

On / around the street lamp poles
Nothing noted

Noted elsewhere:
- 1 Grey Squirrel

The Canada Geese goslings have already been rounded up in to a crèche. Here we see six small ones and one noticeably larger individual. Two more goslings were out of the photo top left. I must say looking at the photo I wonder whether there are goslings from three broods – the top one looks smaller still than the five together.

Another "won't win prizes". A Common Sandpiper on the island. The white area extending up the shoulder is the best feature to identify this species at a distance. As noted at the lake yesterday an unusually late date for a Spring migrant. It is possible that these late birds are first year birds that will not breed and can afford to take their time.

(Ed Wilson)

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

Between the lake and The Flash:

- a pair of Mallard sitting in the grass near the upper pool on my way to The Flash only
- single Moorhen at the both pools.
- 1 Chiffchaff singing back beside the upper pool
- 1 Blackcap singing by the upper pool

(Ed Wilson)

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

In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

- the usual midges
- *1 owl midge sp.
- *an unusually marked fly(?) sp.

A fuzzy "me and my shadow" from this owl midge.

I am stumped by this fly – or at least I assume it is a fly. I cannot immediately find anything similar on the internet.

(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

2013

Priorslee Lake

Spotted Flycatcher

Wheatear

(Ed Wilson)

2007

Priorslee Lake

Whimbrel

2 drake Ruddy Ducks

(Ed Wilson)

2006

Priorslee Lake

2 Ruddy Ducks

(Ed Wilson)