26 Dec 22

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

St. Stephen's Day for any Irish readers

3.0°C > 2.0°C: Mainly clear with an isolated very light passing shower. Frost. Moderate SW wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 08:21 GMT still

* = a photo from today.

Priorslee Lake: 06:40 – 09:15

(261st visit of the year)

Two highlights this morning:
- A Woodcock flew from the East at 07:25, probably going to roost in a wooded area somewhere around the lake.
- I noted a group of 41 Wood Pigeons flying North high overhead at 08:35. A few minutes later a group of at least 225 flew North far to the West. Several much smaller groups followed. At least 315 birds in total in these groups. No more than seven were noted on purely local movements.

Bird notes:
- Four Canada Geese flew in at 07:35 only to leave again a few moments later. 18 flew off at 07:40 leaving 28 on the lake.
- Both Jackdaws and Rooks were heard overhead at 07:35. Despite having positioned myself so as to be looking at the brightest area of the sky I could not locate these birds. A few Jackdaws were seen later.
- A Cetti's Warbler was heard giving its less commonly heard staccato call notes.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 10 Canada Geese: three groups outbound
- 2 Greylag Geese: duo outbound
- 1 Stock Dove
- >320 Wood Pigeon: as highlighted
- 7 Herring Gulls
- 45 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Jackdaws: others heard
- Rooks heard only
- 1 Linnet
- 2 Siskins

Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:
- 2 Redwings again
- 4 Reed Bunting

Counts from the lake area as best I could:
- 50 Canada Geese: see notes
- 1 Greylag Goose: a single departed on its own
- 2 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 6 (4♂) Gadwall
- 3 (2♂) Mallard
- 4 (2♂) Pochard
- 31 (16♂) Tufted Duck again
- 10 Moorhens
- 191 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- c.175 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls
- 6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Noted on / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
- no moths
- *1 springtail / aphid? sp.

Seen later:

Nothing of note

A few clouds arriving ahead of a slight shower produced some colour briefly.

Almost as colourful looking West.

All I could find on the street lamp poles pre-dawn was this. Now is it a springtail? Or can I see spines at the tip of the abdomen which suggests perhaps an aphid?

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:20 – 10:20

(251st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- A Song Thrush was singing again: today on the East side, towards the top end.

Noted flying over:
- 2 Starlings

Noted on / around the water
- 18 Canada Geese
- 2 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 44 (30♂) Mallard
- 1 all-white duck (Peking(?) Duck)
- 19 (12♂) Tufted Duck
- *5 (0♂) Goosanders
- *17 Moorhens
- *37 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- *79 Black-headed Gulls
- *1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 3 Grey Herons
- *2 Cormorants

On / around the street lamp poles or elsewhere:
Nothing noted

A female Goosander flaps her wings. Had it been an immature drake (they also have brown heads) then the white on the wing would extend across the whole width.

I am used to seeing Coots fighting: less so Moorhens.

Just how many birds are there? There seem to be too many 'bits' and I am not sure where the white shafts come from.

So there were three. The yellow leg of one escaping to the right. The one being chased in the foreground is an immature, not so dark-bodied as an adult. This species had a very successful breeding season last year.

There are probably many erstwhile juveniles that need to find their own territory.

An adult winter Black-headed Gull about to fly down the camera lens. Note the brighter colour of the legs as birds begin to come in to breeding condition.

What seems to be our resident Lesser Black-backed Gull here, for comparison, with an adult winter Black-headed Gull.

An immature Cormorant at rest. Note the green-blue eye. Also a first-winter Black-headed Gull and a Coot.

In the bushes leading to The Priorslee there was another Redwing. It really wasn't wanting to show itself!

Also lurking was this male Greenfinch

(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

Two 1st-winter female Scaup

(Unknown)

2012

Priorslee Lake

A drake Scaup

4 Gadwall

10 Great Black-backed Gull

(Kriss Webb)

2009

Priorslee Lake

1 Black-necked Grebe

5 Great Crested Grebes

4 Gadwall

26 Pochard

97 Tufted Ducks

3 Goosander

327 Coots

5 Redwings

4 Fieldfare

10 Goldfinches 

14 Siskins

(Ed Wilson)