13.0°C > 15.0°C: Early low cloud and light drizzle started to clear and lift after 06:00. Occasional light showers persisted. Moderate WSW breeze. Very good visibility, less so in showers.
Sunrise: 04:48 BST again
* = a photo today
Priorslee Lake: 04:40 – 05:50 // 07:00 – 09:40
(133rd visit of the year)
Apart from the insects it remains depressingly quiet both on the lake and overhead.
Some information about the Common Sandpiper that I noted in April that was wearing a ring, traced at the time as ringed last year on the Scottish Borders. The ringing team have told me that it is back 'home' and noted guarding young, paired with an unringed bird.
Bird notes:
- One Canada Goose was present on the water at 04:50 with another happily munching on the erstwhile football field. Eight more flew in at 05:00. By the time I returned from The Flash two were present though whether these were any of the earlier birds is unknown. These stayed and were ignored by the Mute Swans.
- Fewer Coots today, probably staying in the reeds in the windier conditions.
- A Garden Warbler was heard singing in the Ricoh (West end) hedge at 04:45. I have not heard one here since this species' first arrival and wonder whether a pair has bred silently with song now resuming to re-establish the pair bond for a second brood. I did not hear it again. It was in addition to the two continually singing birds.
- 15 Starlings were collecting food from the football field and ferrying it back to nests. Many Starlings fledged their young about two weeks ago. As far as I know this species is normally single-brooded which suggests that replacement nests are being attended to.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 33 Canada Geese: 22 outbound (3 groups); 11 inbound together
- 8 Wood Pigeons
- no gulls
- 1 Jackdaw
- 1 Rook
Hirundines etc. noted:
- c.10 Swifts
- 4 House Martins
Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 10 (9) Chiffchaffs
- no Sedge Warblers
- 10 (9) Reed Warblers
- 12 (8) Blackcaps
- 4 (3) Garden Warblers
- 3 (1) Common Whitethroats
Counts from the lake area:
- 10 (12?) Canada Geese: see notes
- 2 + 6 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 10 (8♂) Mallard
- 2 Moorhens
- 28 + 10 (5 broods) Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Grey Heron: departed
Noted on / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
- *1 Clouded Silver moth (Lomographa temerata)
- 1 tiny green midge
- *1 Large Striped Flea Beetle (Phyllotreta nemorum)
- 1 Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider
Noted later:
First some welcome IDs from yesterday courtesy of Martin Adlam to whom many thanks:
- the fly that I initially thought a hoverfly but could not identify was a Broad Centurian (Chloromyia formosa) - a species of soldier fly.
- the smaller beetle alongside a male Swollen-thighed (Flower) Beetle (Oedemera nobilis) was a Lesser Thick-legged Flower Beetle (Ischnomera cyanea).
Now today's sightings:
As usual very many flies go unidentified and unrecorded.
I guess it was the milder conditions that kept activity going in the light drizzle.
Moths:
- *Common Nettle-tap (Anthophila fabriciana): abundant – at least 20 without looking hard
- Timothy Tortrix (Zelotherses paleana): these are probably the moths I have been flushing at dawn for the last few days; species #38 here this year
- Common Marble (Celypha lacunana)
- Silver-ground Carpet (Xanthorhoe montanata)
- Burnet Companion (Euclidia glyphica)
- Straw Dot (Rivula sericealis)
and
- *Drinker caterpillar (Euthrix potatoria)
One of at least twenty Common Nettle-tap moths (Anthophila fabriciana) I noted. This is a typically grey individual.
As they say on the BBC "another chance to see" – a Clouded Silver moth (Lomographa temerata). This is the first year I have seen more than one of these attractive moths. [Other TV stations are available].
This is bizarre. Apparently yet another caterpillar of the Drinker moth (Euthrix potatoria). This is my fifth this year and I have only ever noted one over the previous eight years.
I have not seen too many of these Honey Bees (Apis mellifera) so far this year. The generally chilly and overcast conditions have not helped.
Early in the morning I often find bumblebees apparently asleep. Have they roosted where I find them or are they just warming up? This one with a gingery thorax and a pure white tail is a Tree Bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum).
I have been puzzling over this for a while. It has short antennae so it is not a bee – it is one of the hoverflies that resembles a bumblebee. But which? It shows a dark cloud in the wing and the antennae are very short. I think it has to be one of the forms of the very variable Large Narcissus Fly (Merodon equestris).
I am slightly mystified by this damselfly that was caught up in a spider's web. What struck me was the paleness of the legs. Could it be a White-legged Damselfly (Platycnemis pennipes) - a species I have never knowingly seen. Well: apparently not as the markings on the three segments of the body that are visible all point to it being a male Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum). I was unable to get a better photo as my attempt to deprive the spider of its breakfast failed when the damselfly fell in to the undergrowth. I am still puzzled by the white legs though.
Safer ground here. Nothing too special but a fine specimen of a male Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura elegans).
Two tiny creatures, neither of which I can identify! Top left with long antennae and a metallic-looking thorax perhaps suggests one of the Cephidae (stem-boring sawflies). The one that caught my eye is the one-antenna'd fly with a red end to its abdomen. It is the wrong shape for any of the ruby-tailed wasps. I have no more ideas.
And two more small creature! The one on the right looks to be a dagger fly – the long proboscis is I think hanging between the front legs. It may have been responsible for what appears to be a rather unwell midge scrunched up on the left.
One of the larger Muscid flies at rest on a Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica). Flies probably weigh too little for the irritant hairs of the plant to penetrate their bodies.
Rather misnamed I think. It is a Large Striped Flea Beetle (Phyllotreta nemorum). I guess it is 'large' for a flea beetle as it was tiny on a lamp pole pre-dawn. At the time I thought it all-black. The camera revealed otherwise. A new insect for me.
This is a Mirid bug. I am logging these as Calocoris alpestris though as usual there are 'confusion species'.
Not easy to see what is going on here. I was trying to see what the dark insect was in the umbellifer when I noticed that it was in the jaws of a crab spider Misumena vatia. To make life more difficult the spider is positioned away from the camera and we are looking at its rear.
The eating and digging bits. This was lying on the path just as I emerged from the Priorslee Avenue tunnel. How it got there is a mystery and there are no obvious mole-hills in the vicinity and no sign of injury to the body.
Noted elsewhere:
- 2 Grey Squirrels
(Ed Wilson)
Between the lake and The Flash:
- An adult Moorhen heard and two juveniles seen at the lower pool.
- A very upset adult Moorhen heard at the upper pool with a dead adult bird on the grass beside the pool.
- 1 Blackcap again singing between the two pools.
- 1 Garden Warbler singing between the upper pool and the academy grounds. First here this year!
(Ed Wilson)
In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:
- The Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) chrysalis remains.
- 1 Common Swift (Hepialus lupulinus) moth back again? My best-ever year for this species.
- 1 unidentified cranefly
- 1 caddis fly sp.
- many midges
I guess it was the milder conditions that kept activity going in the light drizzle.
Moths:
- *Common Nettle-tap (Anthophila fabriciana): abundant – at least 20 without looking hard
- Timothy Tortrix (Zelotherses paleana): these are probably the moths I have been flushing at dawn for the last few days; species #38 here this year
- Common Marble (Celypha lacunana)
- Silver-ground Carpet (Xanthorhoe montanata)
- Burnet Companion (Euclidia glyphica)
- Straw Dot (Rivula sericealis)
and
- *Drinker caterpillar (Euthrix potatoria)
Bees, wasps, etc.
- *Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)
- *Tree Bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum)
- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- Broad-striped Rhogogaster sawfly (Rhogogaster scalaris)
- Dark Rhogogaster sawfly (Rhogogaster viridis)
- *unidentified sawfly sps.
- *Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)
- *Tree Bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum)
- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
- Broad-striped Rhogogaster sawfly (Rhogogaster scalaris)
- Dark Rhogogaster sawfly (Rhogogaster viridis)
- *unidentified sawfly sps.
Damselflies:
Many not closely examined
- *Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
- *Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura elegans)
- *Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
- *Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura elegans)
Hoverflies:
- *Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- Common Spotted Field Syrph (Eupeodes luniger)
- Tiger Hoverfly (Helophilus pendulus)
- *Large Narcissus Fly (Merodon equestris)
- Common Twist-tail (Sphaerophoria scripta) [was Long Hoverfly]
- Syrphus sp. (S. ribesii / S. vitripennis)
- *Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- Common Spotted Field Syrph (Eupeodes luniger)
- Tiger Hoverfly (Helophilus pendulus)
- *Large Narcissus Fly (Merodon equestris)
- Common Twist-tail (Sphaerophoria scripta) [was Long Hoverfly]
- Syrphus sp. (S. ribesii / S. vitripennis)
Other flies:
- Black Snipefly (Chrysopilus cristatus)
- Downlooker Snipefly (Rhagio scolopaceus)
- *dagger fly sp.
- Scorpion Fly (Panorpa sp.)
- Black Snipefly (Chrysopilus cristatus)
- Downlooker Snipefly (Rhagio scolopaceus)
- *dagger fly sp.
- Scorpion Fly (Panorpa sp.)
Beetles etc.:
- Swollen-thighed (Flower) Beetle (Oedemera nobilis)
- 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata)
- Nettle Weevil (Phyllobius pomaceus)
- Swollen-thighed (Flower) Beetle (Oedemera nobilis)
- 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata)
- Nettle Weevil (Phyllobius pomaceus)
Bugs:
- *Birch Shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus)
- *Mirid bug Calocoris alpestris
- *Birch Shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus)
- *Mirid bug Calocoris alpestris
Slugs / snails:
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis) as ever
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis) as ever
Spiders:
- Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider
- *crab spider Misumena vatia
- unidentified small spider
- Tetragnatha sp. stretch spider
- *crab spider Misumena vatia
- unidentified small spider
Mammals:
- *Mole (dead)
- *Mole (dead)
Plants for the year noted:
- Field or Common Horsetail (or Mare's tails) (Equisetum arvense)
- Knotgrass (Polygonum aviculare)
Neither of these was 'first seen' today, just first made it to my log. Neither was photographed.
- Field or Common Horsetail (or Mare's tails) (Equisetum arvense)
- Knotgrass (Polygonum aviculare)
Neither of these was 'first seen' today, just first made it to my log. Neither was photographed.
There were several of these more rufous forms.
A Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus) tucking it to a buttercup.
This rather lurid creature is a Birch Shieldbug (Elasmostethus interstinctus).
I cannot remember when I last saw a Mole, dead (as here) or alive.
I did promise to find a Common Spotted-orchid (Dactylorhiza fuchsii) showing the spots on the leaves which give the species its name. Here it is.
(Ed Wilson)
The Flash: 05:55 – 06:55
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 05:55 – 06:55
(129th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- Just eight Canada Goose goslings noted with the single small bird not located.
- All four Mute Swan cygnets present and correct. The pen had no company to assist.
- The pair of Mallard with two tiny ducklings again beside the island. Also by the island was a duck Mallard with five ducklings, these larger than any ducklings I have seen this year.
- Many juvenile Coots are now getting adventurous and easier to see. That said one of the broods today was very new, probably hatched yesterday.
- A third Great Crested Grebe has appeared again and all three stayed well apart from each other.
Birds noted flying over here:
Bird notes:
- Just eight Canada Goose goslings noted with the single small bird not located.
- All four Mute Swan cygnets present and correct. The pen had no company to assist.
- The pair of Mallard with two tiny ducklings again beside the island. Also by the island was a duck Mallard with five ducklings, these larger than any ducklings I have seen this year.
- Many juvenile Coots are now getting adventurous and easier to see. That said one of the broods today was very new, probably hatched yesterday.
- A third Great Crested Grebe has appeared again and all three stayed well apart from each other.
Birds noted flying over here:
None
Hirundines etc. noted:
- 10 Swifts
- 3 House Martins
Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 5 (5) Chiffchaffs
- 7 (4) Blackcaps
A return to form after yesterday's low count.
Noted on / around the water:
- 130 + 8 (2 broods) Canada Geese
- 6 Greylag Geese
- *4 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 21 (17♂) + 7 (2 broods) Mallard
- 1 all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 10 (7♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 + 2 (1 brood) Moorhens only
- 21 + 13 (6 broods) Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
On / around the street lamp poles:
Nothing noted
Hirundines etc. noted:
- 10 Swifts
- 3 House Martins
Warblers noted (figures in brackets relate to singing birds):
- 5 (5) Chiffchaffs
- 7 (4) Blackcaps
A return to form after yesterday's low count.
Noted on / around the water:
- 130 + 8 (2 broods) Canada Geese
- 6 Greylag Geese
- *4 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 21 (17♂) + 7 (2 broods) Mallard
- 1 all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 10 (7♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 + 2 (1 brood) Moorhens only
- 21 + 13 (6 broods) Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
On / around the street lamp poles:
Nothing noted
Noted elsewhere:
- 2 Grey Squirrels
All four Mute Swan cygnets were on the water this morning attended by mum only.
(Ed Wilson)
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Between the lake and The Flash:
- An adult Moorhen heard and two juveniles seen at the lower pool.
- A very upset adult Moorhen heard at the upper pool with a dead adult bird on the grass beside the pool.
- 1 Blackcap again singing between the two pools.
- 1 Garden Warbler singing between the upper pool and the academy grounds. First here this year!
(Ed Wilson)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:
- The Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) chrysalis remains.
- 1 Common Swift (Hepialus lupulinus) moth back again? My best-ever year for this species.
- 1 unidentified cranefly
- 1 caddis fly sp.
- many 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
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Reed Warbler
Willow Tit.
(John Isherwood)
Redhill
Kestrel
Linnet
Stock Dove
Yellowhammer.
(John Isherwood)
2009
Priorslee Lake
9 Swifts
4 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)
2007
Priorslee Lake
Raven
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebes
1 Tufted Duck
2 Ruddy Duck
1 Kestrel
3 Stock Doves
4 Swift
2 Swallow
12 House Martin
7 Reed Warbler
2 Lesser Whitethroat
1 Common Whitethroat
1 Garden Warbler
10 Blackcaps
5 Chiffchaffs
2 Willow Tit
19 Magpies
8 Greenfinch
6 Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson)