16 Oct 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

8.0°C > 10.0°C: Clear throughout. Light West wind. Excellent visibility.

Sunrise: 07:37 BST

* = a photo from today.

Priorslee Lake: 06:20 – 09:10

(226th visit of the year)

Highlight today was a small party (c.20) of Golden Plover seen in a very typical flight formation very far to the East over the farm fields. A new species this year for me here and on a very typical date. For reasons I do not understand I only ever see flocks in the Autumn and never on their return passage in the Spring.

Other bird notes:
- The male Pheasant was seen again at the West end.
- As noted under the entry for The Flash (below) I suspect that many of the Canada Geese (and the Tufted Ducks) flew off later when the yachts were on the water.
- One of the four Mute Swans cygnets has seemed somewhat weaker than the others for several days. It was especially apparent this morning when it hardly seemed to get in the air.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 57 Greylag Geese: all inbound in two groups
- 1 Stock Dove
- 63 Wood Pigeons
- c.20 Golden Plover: distant
- 3 Cormorants: together
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 7 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull
- 5 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 89 unidentified large gulls: pre-dawn
- 223 Jackdaws
- 119 Rooks
- 4 Redwings
- 2 Skylarks
- 4 Pied Wagtails
- 1 Meadow Pipit

Warblers noted:
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler: in very brief song

Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:
- 11 Reed Buntings: at least two more heard calling from the roost area

Counts from the lake area:
- 96 Canada Geese: none apparently arrived or departed while I was present
- *4 Greylag Geese: arrived as separate duos; departed together
- 2 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 6 (3♂) Gadwall
- 5 (3♂) Mallard only
- *1 (0♂) Common Teal
- 31 (>9♂) Tufted Duck
- 10 Moorhens
- 203 Coots
- 13 Great Crested Grebes
- >175 Black-headed Gulls
- 4 Herring Gulls
- 7 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 12 unidentified large gulls: pre-dawn

Noted on / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn

Dew again on the lamp poles:

- *2 November Moths agg. (Epirrita dilutata agg.) again
- *1 plumed midge (Chironomus plumosus)
- *1 other midge sp.
- *2 springtails Pogonognathellus longicornis-type
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spider (Larinioides sclopetarius)
- 1 Mitostoma chrysomelas harvestman

Noted later:
- Red Admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta)
- *possible Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- *Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)

The half Hunter's Moon – more or less.

A few of the Canada Geese in front of the clear sunrise.

One of the Greylag Geese that dropped in for a few minutes.

The duck Common Teal is still here.

One to show scale. The November Moth type has a wing-length of c.15mm (0.6"). At the tip of its right wing is a plumed midge, though it looks perhaps too small for a Chironomus plumosus.

I think this must be a Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum). At the time I thought it was too slender and more like a mining bee or even an Ivy bee. The markings seem not quite right for any of these.

A female (the eyes do not meet) Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax).

Another midge. The scale here is provided the plastic tie around the street lamp pole.

This is one of the Pogonognathellus springtails but perhaps the antennae are too short for a P. longicornis?

Whereas this one appears to have long antennae – but only one. Perhaps the antennae are very brittle.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:15 – 10:25

(217th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- The Mute Swan cygnets were all trying hard to fly. They are having to teach themselves.
- I suspect that the Canada Geese that flew in and most of the Tufted Ducks all arrived in response to the sailing club's yachts disturbing them from the Balancing Lake.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 7 Jackdaws

Noted on / around the water
- *51 Canada Geese: of these 35 flew in
- 2 Greylag Geese
- 2 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- *43 (27♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white duck (Peking(?) Duck)
- *36 (>8♂) Tufted Duck: see notes
- 17 Moorhens
- 23 Coots only
- 3 Great Crested Grebes: all three immatures
- 18 Black-headed Gulls
- 5 Cormorants
- *2 Grey Herons

On / around the street lamp poles:
Nothing noted

Noted later:
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)

Two Canada Geese, possibly refugees from the sailing boats at the Balancing Lake, make a noisy entrance.

A drake Mallard photo-bombing some Tufted Duck.

Coming in under the impression I had some food. It is a camera!

Some of the Tufted Ducks, also possible refugees from the sailing boats at the Balancing Lake. The four closest birds all have the white flanks of adult drakes. It can be difficult to separate the ducks from immature birds at this time of year. Two Canada Geese look on.

There are obviously two drakes here. I suspect the closest of the right hand birds will also moult in to adult drake plumage over the coming months as there is already some white in its flanks. The 'tuft' that gives this species its name is rather short at this time of year.

Certainly four drakes. Does the bird on the left have too long a tuft for a duck and therefore perhaps be an immature drake?

Grey Herons are rather large and threatening to smaller birds when in flight.

Plane of the day #1: this is a 1981 vintage Piper PA-28 Cherokee Archer owned by Tatenhill Aviation Ltd. which performs flying training and pleasure flights from Tatenhill Airport near Burton-on-Trent. Piper PA-28s are one of the most abundant light aircraft in current use, with updated variants still in production 60 years after its introduction.

Plane of the day #2: another product of Piper Aircraft of Lock Haven in Florida is the twin-engined Piper PA-34 Seneca. It was produced over a period of almost 50 years but is no longer for sale new. This 1998-build aircraft has recently been acquired by Ravenair Aircraft Ltd. based at Liverpool John Lennon Airport where it joins a fleet of training aircraft. Some, like this one, are dedicated on more advanced multi-engine courses preparing potential commercial aviation pilots.

(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

2011

Priorslee Lake

14 Redwing

(Ed Wilson)

2010

Priorslee Lake

Common Gull, though it could have been Mew/Ring-billed Gull!

Yellow Legged Gull

(Mike Cooper/Ed Wilson)

2007

Priorslee Lake

2 Ruddy Ducks 

42 Redwing

(Ed Wilson)

2006

Priorslee Lake

4 Wigeon

1 Shoveler 

8 Pochard

64 Tufted Ducks

30 Robins

(Ed Wilson)