9.0°C > 10.0°C: Early cloud broke sufficiently to give a good sunrise. Thereafter watery sun for a while before more general cloud. Moderate WSW wind, with a few stronger gusts early on. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 07:51 GMT
* = a photo from today.
Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:25 – 09:30
(28th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- A Pheasant called from the Ricoh grounds alongside the West end footpath at 07:25.
- A Water Rail was seen in the north-east area.
- The / a Cetti's Warbler was heard to sing once along the North side.
- A Reed Bunting was heard calling in the west-end reeds but none was seen to leave this roost site. This species has become scarce recently.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 2 Canada Geese: outbound together
- 22 Wood Pigeons: 13 of these flew high North together
- 9 Herring Gulls
- 15 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 2 Cormorants: together
- 10 Jackdaws
- 88 Rooks
Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:
None
Counts from the lake area:
- 9 Canada Geese
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans: the same(?) additional cygnet briefly
- 4 (2♂) Gadwall
- 11 (8♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Pochard
- 8 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Water Rail
- 12 Moorhens
- 106 Coots
- 1 Little Grebe again
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 20 Black-headed Gulls
- 14 Herring Gulls
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- *1 Cormorant: arrived
- 1 Kingfisher
Noted on / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
- 1 Early Moth (Theria primaria)
- 1 red-eyed fly with dark wing-tips.
Later:
A slight puzzle with this Cormorant. There is no pale on the belly to indicate it is an immature but no sign of the white thigh patch and head plumes that adult birds develop in the breeding season. I guess an 'older immature' (third year perhaps).
Magpies are black and white except where they are blue-toned where the light catches the wings and tail. These can also gloss green.
Whereas Blue Tits are blue and white except where they are black – the mask and the belly strip – or yellow. This one was upset.
Really upset! I thought I heard a Goldcrest calling a did some squeaking to see whether it would appear. As usual a Blue Tit responded and seemed to be horrified with what it saw as the source of the noise.
(Ed Wilson)
The Flash: 09:35 – 10:50
(25th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- The resident Mute Swan cygnet was holding one wing at a strange angle and I wonder whether it is injured. It certainly does not fly when the cob chases it.
- There were three drake Goosander. One was a full-adult sitting in the middle of the water: the other two drakes were immatures fishing alongside three ducks.
- I could not find the Water Rail today.
- Three Song Thrushes were in full voice today. Also one non-singing bird was seen taking refuge under a parked car.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Sparrowhawk again
- 3 Jackdaws
Noted on / around the water
- 58 Canada Geese
- 1 Canada x Greylag Goose
- *16 Greylag Geese: of these 14 arrived together
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- *43 (30♂) Mallard
- 1 all-white duck (Peking(?) Duck)
- *2 (2♂) Pochard
- *56 (30♂) Tufted Duck
- *6 (3♂) Goosander
- 21 Moorhens
- 54 Coots only
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- *89 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls: immatures
- 1 Cormorant: arrived
- 2 Grey Herons
On / around the street lamp poles:
Crowded airspace as some of the 14 Greylag Geese work out how they can splash down without crashing in to each other.
A very smart duck Mallard. I am always surprised how bright the feet are though I suppose she sits on them when incubating the eggs so they do not draw attention to her.
Only two drake Pochard here today. Perhaps the third from yesterday was the one at the Balancing Lake this morning. They are only pretending to be asleep. Their red eye is keeping watch on me. A drake Tufted Duck keeps them company.
Swimming away – as they almost always are – is an immature drake Goosander. There is too much white on the flanks for a duck.
This adult Black-headed Gull is starting to acquire the dark hood as it comes in to breeding condition. Note the white 'eye-lids' that will become very obvious when the hood is fully developed.
I know it is not sharp – there was not enough light to 'freeze' the action of a Blue Tit with no visible means of support.
Today's insect find: a Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperla carnea). It does not look very green for two reasons. This species, which over-winters as an adult, loses its green colour and becomes brown for better camouflage. It has not yet 'gone green'. And it has chosen to sit on the very dark green sign for the Priorslee pub.
A not very interesting plane of the day. It is one of the 19 Eurocopter EC135s operated as #1 Flying Training School (1FTS) out of RAF Shawbury. These are recent Airbus Helicopters built machines and known to the forces as Juno HT.1s. 1FTS trains helicopter pilots for all four branches of the military (Air Force, Army, Marines, and Navy).
(Ed Wilson)
Counts from the lake area:
- 9 Canada Geese
- 2 + 5 Mute Swans: the same(?) additional cygnet briefly
- 4 (2♂) Gadwall
- 11 (8♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Pochard
- 8 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Water Rail
- 12 Moorhens
- 106 Coots
- 1 Little Grebe again
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 20 Black-headed Gulls
- 14 Herring Gulls
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- *1 Cormorant: arrived
- 1 Kingfisher
Noted on / around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
- 1 Early Moth (Theria primaria)
- 1 red-eyed fly with dark wing-tips.
Later:
Nothing of note
Shaky hands at very early doors. It was almost totally cloudy and this was, I suspected, the best I was going to get from the sunrise. Luckily not so.
The cloud broke sufficiently to give some colour.
Which became extensive for a short while.
Maximum colour looking through the trees alongside Castle Farm Way.
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 09:35 – 10:50
(25th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- The resident Mute Swan cygnet was holding one wing at a strange angle and I wonder whether it is injured. It certainly does not fly when the cob chases it.
- There were three drake Goosander. One was a full-adult sitting in the middle of the water: the other two drakes were immatures fishing alongside three ducks.
- I could not find the Water Rail today.
- Three Song Thrushes were in full voice today. Also one non-singing bird was seen taking refuge under a parked car.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Sparrowhawk again
- 3 Jackdaws
Noted on / around the water
- 58 Canada Geese
- 1 Canada x Greylag Goose
- *16 Greylag Geese: of these 14 arrived together
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- *43 (30♂) Mallard
- 1 all-white duck (Peking(?) Duck)
- *2 (2♂) Pochard
- *56 (30♂) Tufted Duck
- *6 (3♂) Goosander
- 21 Moorhens
- 54 Coots only
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- *89 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls: immatures
- 1 Cormorant: arrived
- 2 Grey Herons
On / around the street lamp poles:
Nothing noted
Of note elsewhere:
- *1 Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperla carnea)
Of note elsewhere:
- *1 Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperla carnea)
Drakes have even brighter feet.
It does have wings!
I think this Robin needs its toe-nails cut.
(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
2014
Priorslee Lake
1 female Velvet Scoter
3 Scaup
2012
Priorslee Lake
Dunlin
6 Great Crested Grebes
14 Pochard
58 Tufted Duck
1 Dunlin
>5000 gulls, mostly Lesser Black-backed Gulls
1 Common Gull
20 Great Black-backed Gulls
(Ed Wilson, Mike Cooper)
Trench Pool
11 Pochard
46 Tufted Ducks
94 Coots
(Ed Wilson)
2011
Priorslee Lake
14 Pochard
19 Tufted Ducks
2 Sparrowhawk
16 Linnets
Siskin in song
4 Pale Brindled Beauty moths
(Ed Wilson)
2009
Priorslee Lake
3 Golden Plover
Willow Tit
(Ed Wilson)
2007
Priorslee Lake
19 Pochard
32 Tufted Ducks
1 Goosander
1 Goldeneye
>700 Black-headed Gulls
>432 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.30 Herring Gulls
34 Robins
17 Blackbirds
3 Redwings
1 Willow Tit
34 Magpies
11 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
10 Great Crested Grebes
2 Little Grebe
2 Gadwall
16 Pochard
101 Tufted Ducks
159 Coots
1 Water Rail
c.1100 Black-headed Gulls
16 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
14 Herring Gulls
2 Great Black-backed Gulls.
1 Willow Tit
2 Siskins
13 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)