23 Aug 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

16.0°C > 19.0°C: Early broken cloud again gave way to mist and low cloud rolling in. Lifted slowly and some sunny spells after 08:30. Another calm start with a light SSW breeze later. Some early poor visibility eventually very good.

Sunrise: 06:05 BST

* = a photo from today

Priorslee Lake: 04:45 – 06:20 // 07:20 – 09:30

(180th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- A sleeping drake Tufted Duck was new since yesterday.
- The >185 Wood Pigeons counted flying over included a very loose group of at least 110 birds flushed from trees to the far NE that drifted over.
- One of the pairs of Great Crested Grebes that did not seem to be nesting has a brood of at least two juveniles. There are now six extant broods of at least 13 juveniles.
- Yesterday a few Lesser Black-backed Gulls stopped off on the water and all the passing gulls were tempted to drop in for a drink at least. Today a lone bird came and went and none of the over-flying birds deigned to visit.
- Five House Martins seemed to be flying high S over the football field at 07:25. At the time I thought they might be migrants. Then at 09:20 a group of seven did the same only for what I presume were the same birds to return a few minutes later. Perhaps all the same birds on feeding forays - the birds would normally head in to the breeze to minimize the closing speed on any insect prey.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 3 Canada Geese: outbound together: others heard but lost in the mist again
- 10 Greylag Geese: outbound in two groups
- 1 Feral Pigeon again
- 2 Stock Doves: together
- >185 Wood Pigeons: see notes
- 1 Black-headed Gull
- 1 Herring Gull
- 19 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Jackdaw
- 17 Rooks

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 8 Barn Swallows: three small parties S / SW
- 7? House Martins: see notes

Warblers noted:
- 1 Cetti's Warbler: called in SE area
- 7 Chiffchaffs again: one of these in quiet, sporadic song again
- 1 Sedge Warbler
- 1 Reed Warbler
- 4 Blackcaps

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 9 (?♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Tufted Duck
- 5 Moorhens only
- 76 Coots
- *14 + 13? (six broods) Great Crested Grebes
- 13 Black-headed Gulls only [but 27 on the football field at 06:10]
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull only
- 1 Grey Heron: departed 05:30

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

Moths:
- 5 Common Grass-veneers (Agriphila tristella)
- *1 unidentifiable plume moth
- 1 Straw Dot (Rivula sericealis): same wings only as yesterday

and:
- *1 Common Crane-fly (Tipula oleracea)
- *1 female ichneumon sp.
- *1 unknown spider sp.
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spider (Larinioides sclopetarius)
- 1 Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus harvestman
- *1 possible Opilio parietinus harvestman

Noted later:

New for the year

- *Woundwort Shieldbug instar (Eysarcoris venustissimus)
- *possible Paroligolophus meadii harvestman

I read in the latest edition of the British Wildlife that recorders of many species groups, especially flies and their allies, are noting a large decline in both species and numbers. They attribute this only in part to the hot and dry conditions.

Repeat sightings:

Bees, wasps etc.:
- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)

Hoverflies:
- Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- Tapered Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax)
- *Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare)

Damsel-/Dragon- flies:
- Brown Hawker (Aeshna grandis)

Other flies:
- Lucilia sp. of greenbottle
- Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperia carnea)

Bugs:
- 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata)

Beetles:
- *Alder Leaf Beetle-type (Agelastica alni?)

With one patch of mist moving away a quick photo of the sunrise before more mist and low cloud arrived.

A Wood Pigeon shows what to do about an itch. My neck won't contort like this.

The latest pair of Great Crested Grebes to show juveniles. At least two are seen here on the parent's back. Others could be hunkered down.

Yes well! A dew be-spattered moth the legs of which suggest it is one of the plume moths. Sadly these all typically rest with their wings at right angles to the body and none, as I hoped, rest like this. In the absence of being able to see any markings it can only be 'plume moth sp.'!

A female Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare) leaving a Field Bindweed flower (Convolvulus arvensis). The male has a longer thinner body and square yellow spots – hence chequered. This species has yellow antennae, just about visible here.

Common in name and common in reality. Here is a Common Crane-fly (Tipula oleracea). With the pointed abdomen it is a female – it is her ovipositor.

Talking of ovipositor this small ichneumon was on one of street lamp poles. The ovipositor looks to long and frail to be used to pierce another insect's body to that she can lay eggs to parasitise the host.

There were many more of these possible Alder Leaf Beetles (Agelastica alni). One here on a grass stem.

And four gathered on a single Common or Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica) with a fifth lurking below.

Talking of nettles: some weeks ago the sailing club cleared the side of their access road to provide better visibility. As a result there has been new growth and these are now in flower – or as in flower as they ever seem to be.

Also spurred in to growth and flower at an unusual date is this Dandelion (Taraxacum sp.). There are only three people in the UK who can identify each of the 250+ recognised species of this group and I am not one of them.

This is clearly an early instar of a shieldbug – later instars show the evolution of the wings and do not have a clean separation across the abdomen. There are no illustrations of Woundwort Shieldbug (Eysarcoris venustissimus) at this stage but it is the only shieldbug instar that is this colour. A new species for me.

An attractively marked spider. That is about all I can say about it. Markings on the abdomen of spiders is often not helpful in identification as there is much variability in each species.

This harvestman ought to be easy with its very long legs and relatively long pedipalps. The key suggests it is Opilio parietinus though the tone on the saddle seems too dark. So only a possible ID.

Another harvestman I am not sure about. An identification chart that Nigel sent me points to this, with its rows of spikes across the abdomen, being a Paroligolophus meadii. Not a species that I have recorded previously and not one that is well illustrated on the internet.

It seems an early Autumn not just for all the leaves falling from the water-deprived trees. Here are some hips from a Dog Rose (Rosa canina agg.).

These are haws from Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna). These seem very early. Will they last until the Redwings arrive in October? I pause only as the leaves in the photo do not look quite right. My PlantNet app., when shown this photo, gave as the top selection as Japanese Quince (at only 3%!). This is a garden shrub and rather unlikely.

Blackberries from the copious Brambles (Rubus fruticosus agg.) did not seem that early in ripening – I usually reckon the last week in July for those in sunny spots. Berries seem larger than usual which is odd with a water shortage. The last few moist days have sent many of them mouldy, as here, and this does seem early.

These fruits are the poisonous berries of Snowberry (Symphoricarpos sp. probably S. albus).

Berries of Bittersweet [or Woody Nightshade] (Solanum dulcamara) are also poisonous. The fruits will ripen red. One of the flowers is just about hanging on at the left end.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:25 – 07:15

(176th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- Certainly only five adult Mute Swans meaning one has gone missing since Sunday.
- The drake Gadwall was sometimes close to the only duck Gadwall I noted.
- Even fewer Tufted Ducks.
- Many more Moorhens with some of the many youngsters having become accustomed to being fed by the fishermen and wandering around the paths.
- Rather fewer Coots most likely due to the dull conditions meaning the birds tucked up in vegetation overhanging the edge of the island were very difficult to see.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Warblers noted (no song recorded):
- 2 Chiffchaffs
- 1 Blackcap

Noted on / around the water:
- 30 Canada Geese: ten of these flew off in two groups
- 1 Greylag Goose again
- 5 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 2(1♂) Gadwall
- 23 (?♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white duck (Aylesbury Duck)
- 14 (?♂) Tufted Duck only
- 21 Moorhens
- 64 Coots
- *2 + 4 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 18 Black-headed Gulls: no juvenile / first-winter birds
- 6 Cormorant: five of these arrived together
- 1 Grey Heron again

Noted on / around the street lamp poles:
- 5 Common Grass-veneer moths (Agriphila tristella)
- Yellow Dung Fly (Scathophaga stercoraria)

Three of the four juvenile Great Crested Grebes looking alert.

Here is the fourth with one of its parents. Here we see the juveniles are more or less full grown though I expect their wings are not yet fully feathered.

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash:

- 8 Starlings on an adjacent house roof is unusual for the date

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Moths:

None

but
- *4+ plumed midges (Chironomus plumosus?)
- *1 cranefly Tipula lateralis
- 4 White-legged Snake Millipedes (Tachypodoiulus niger)
- 1 Common Rough Woodlouse (Porcellio scaber)

A few days ago I photographed a female plumed midge with simple antennae. Here is one of the male plumed midges, probably Chironomus plumosus.

This is a bit confusing with the camera flash making this look as if it has four wings. Not so. The wing pattern on the real wings and the pale line down the abdomen suggest this is the cranefly Tipula lateralis. A female with the ovipositor. 

(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

Nedge Hill

1 Redstart

(John Isherwood)

2006

Priorslee Lake

3 Common Terns

(Ed Wilson)