31 May 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

8.0°C > 12.0°C: Intermittent mostly light rain until c.06:30. Stayed mostly cloudy at medium-high level before clearing somewhat from the W after 08:15, still with plenty of cloud about. Light W wind throughout. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 04:53 BST

* = a photo today

Priorslee Lake: 04:45 – 05:55 // 06:45 – 09:40

(126th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- The resident pair of Canada Geese and their well-grown gosling were present throughout. When I arrived there were eight more adults together on the water. Another four flew in and stayed for a while. All these 12 had gone by 06:55. After 09:00 yet another five flew in. The cob Mute Swan seemed rather sanguine about these, less so when three Greylag Geese dropped in.
- Another one of the Mute Swan cygnets has gone missing. Just six now.
- At least 50 Swifts were overhead at 05:15, some very high up. By 07:15 I estimated no more than 30 though later numbers built again until over 75 in the area by 09:00.
- Mostly rather fewer warblers were noted braving the wet conditions. Exceptions were:
- a very noisy second singing Sedge Warbler in the SE area was new. An addition to the long-term songster along the S side.
- after a number of days of "was that really a Common Whitethroat I heard briefly" a trio was seen sneaking around behind the sailing club shelter. No song heard, just a few scolding churrs.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 17 Canada Geese: duo and group of 15 inbound
- 19 Greylag Geese: 17 outbound loosely together; duo inbound
- 2 Stock Doves: singles
- 7 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Herring Gull: immature
- 3 Cormorants: together
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 1 Jackdaw
- 1 Rook
- 4 Starlings

Hirundines etc. noted:
- >75 Swifts: see notes
- 2 Sand Martins
- 2 Barn Swallows
- 4 House Martins

Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler as ever
- 11 (9) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (2) Sedge Warblers
- 6 (6) Reed Warblers
- 13 (11) Blackcaps
- 2 (2) Garden Warblers
- 3 (0) Common Whitethroats

Counts from the lake area:
- 19 + 1 (1 brood) Canada Geese: see notes
- 3 Greylag Geese: arrived and chased away
- 2 + 6 (1 brood) Mute Swans: another cygnet missing
- 6 (5♂) Mallard again
- 2 Moorhens
- 22 + 7 (4 broods) Coots
- 1 Little Grebe: still only heard
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adult stayed some while
- 1 Grey Heron: departed again

Noted on / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
- *1 Dark-barred Twin-spot Carpet moth (Xanthorhoe ferrugata)
- *1 Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata)
- [no Pale Tussock moth (Calliteara pudibunda) but one still at The Flash]
- *1 Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperia carnea)
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider

Noted later:

A reasonable haul considering the brief sunny spell that had only partially dried some of the vegetation.

Moths:
- *Common Slender (Gracillaria syringella)

Bees, wasps, etc.
- Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum)
- *Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum)
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- one species of ichneumon
- *Broad-striped Rhogogaster sawfly (Rhogogaster scalaris)

Hoverflies:
- Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- Tapered Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax)
- *Migrant Field Syrph [Migrant Hoverfly] (Eupeodes corollae)
- Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare)
- *Orange-belted Leafwalker (Xylota segnis)

Damselflies:
- Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
- Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura elegans)

Other flies:
- Greenbottle Lucilia ampullacea
- Scorpion Fly (Panorpa sp.)
- *Dolichopus sp. 'green(?)-eyed fly'

Beetles etc.:
- *a rotund blue-black beetle
- Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis)
- *24 Spot Ladybird (Subcoccinella vigintiquattuorpunctata)

Bugs:
- Red-and-Black Froghopper (Cercopis vulnerata)
- *Hairy Shieldbug or Sloe Bug (Dolycoris baccarum)

Slugs / snails:
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)

Spiders:
- *crab spider sp. (Misumena vatia)
- Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider

Mammals:
- 2 Grey Squirrels

New flowers for the year noted:

None

Definitely the find of the day for me was this tiny micro-moth, a Common Slender (Gracillaria syringella). Just 7mm long (about a quarter of an inch for us oldies). I saw this in flight and managed to spot where it landed. I have inverted the image for easier viewing. My literature describes this species as very common but it must be very easy to overlook. A new species of moth for me.

Another new moth for the year is this Dark-barred Twin-spot Carpet moth (Xanthorhoe ferrugata) on a lamp pole pre-dawn despite the rain.

Sharing the same lamp pole was this very easy to identify Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata). I will probably see several more of these, unlike the carpet moth which whilst just about annual is usually a one-off.

The general scruffy appearance is a good clue that this is an Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum). The identity is confirmed by three areas of buff / orange, though on this specimen the midriff band is hardly apparent.

 I have not seen one of these Common Green Lacewings (Chrysoperia carnea) for several weeks.

These Broad-striped Rhogogaster sawflies (Rhogogaster scalaris) seem very common at the moment.

With the yellow markings wrapping around the side of the abdomen this has to be a Migrant Field Syrph, also known as Migrant Hoverfly (Eupeodes corollae). The 'migrant' epithet is not entirely appropriate as this species is not exclusively a migrant from Europe and neither is it the only species whose numbers are boosted in such a way.

One day I will find one of these Orange-belted Leafwalker hoverflies (Xylota segnis) with its wings open...

This is probably the same species of green-eyed and hairy fly that I photographed yesterday. But...

 ...from another angle the eyes seem to be red. Note the thick basal part of the antennae. A bit more research on the web leads me to the conclusion that it is one of the Dolichopus species which, as so often, cannot be specifically identified from photographs.

"A rotund blue-black beetle" is about all I can tell you here apart from it being another insect that seems to like buttercups.

This ladybird is a 24 Spot Ladybird with the scientific name – take a deep breath – Subcoccinella vigintiquattuorpunctata. The pattern of spots somewhat resembles one form of the Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) but the head lacks the bright white patches of the latter species. It is also very small. The number of spots is variable on both species.

To get and idea as to its size here it is wandering up toward the life-line on the palm of my hand.

I found another of these Hairy Shieldbugs or Sloe Bugs (Dolycoris baccarum) today.

The crab spider Misumena vatia with its legs in the correct orientation unlike the one I photographed yesterday.

 (Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:00 – 06:40

(122nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- A Canada Goose was sitting on the Derwent Drive footpath brooding at least three goslings in the rain at 06:05. I did not wish to disturb it so the exact number of goslings is unknown. Later they had been moved by dog-walkers but I could not see where to.
- The potential love-affair between the 2019 Mute Swan and one of the 2021 birds seems to be over. The two 2021 siblings are now very much staying together and keeping apart from the 2019 bird. I was informed that there had been a report (on Facebook?) of a fourth Mute Swan yesterday.
- No juvenile Moorhens located.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 1 Jackdaw

Hirundines etc. noted:
None

Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 3 (3) Chiffchaffs
- 3 (2) Blackcaps
After yesterday's excesses...

Noted on / around the water:
- 94 + 3? (1 brood) Canada Geese: see notes
- 10 Greylag Geese
- 3 Mute Swans
- 19 (17♂) Mallard: no ducklings seen again
- 1 (1♂) all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 5 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 Moorhens only
- 19 + 9 (4 broods) Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe once again

Noted on / around the street lamp poles:
- 1 Pale Tussock moth (Calliteara pudibunda): same position for its ninth day.

Elsewhere:
Nothing of note

 (Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash:

- Moorhens calling at both pools. Investigation of alarm calls from the upper pool flushed...
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Chiffchaff singing, today back on a favourite song-post atop a dead tree alongside the lower pool.

 (Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

- The Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) chrysalis again.
- *1 Common Swift moth (Hepialus lupulinus) on the roof.
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider

Another moth photo I have inverted for easier viewing. This is a Common Swift (Hepialus lupulinus). It was on the roof of the tunnel. A common moth last seen by me in the area in very early June in both 2018 and 2019. 

 (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

Long Lane, Wellington

13 Ringed Plover

2 Dunlin

(JW Reeves)