7 Feb 23

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

0.0°C > 3.0°C: Mainly clear with some remnant mist after earlier fog. Frosty. Light winds. Mostly good visibility.

[Sunrise: 07:43 GMT]

* = a photo from today.

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 11:15 – 11:35

(33rd visit of the year)

Another later visit post-The Flash waiting for the fog to clear. Viewing from the dam-top area only.

Bird notes:
- Four pairs of Gadwall was about the only excitement.

Counts from the lake area:
- 7 Canada Geese
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 8 (4♂) Gadwall
- 2 (1♂) Mallard
- 6 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 9 Moorhens again
- 105 Coots again
- 5 Great Crested Grebes again
- 9 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull again
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant again

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:40 – 11:10

(31st visit of the year)

Thin ice along the East side at the top end.

Bird notes:
- One drake Common Teal located. Others hiding?
- A second Great Crested Grebe seen. The two did not seem interested in each other.

Birds noted flying over here:
- 1 Sparrowhawk

Noted on / around the water
- 30 Canada Geese
- 1 Greylag Goose again
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- 48 (30♂) Mallard
- 1 all-white duck (Peking(?) Duck)
- 1 (1♂) Pochard again
- 78 (49♂) Tufted Duck
- *2 (1♂) Goosander
- 20 Moorhens again
- 52 Coots
- *2 Great Crested Grebes
- 62 Black-headed Gulls
- *2 Herring Gulls: immatures
- *2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: adults
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Grey Heron

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

I am still rather confused by some of the Goosanders. This is far too pale along the flanks to be a duck so it has to be an immature drake. I can find no references in the literature to immature drakes still being separable from adult drakes at this date. He seems to be watching me out the corner of his eye even though I was using my car as a hide.

Two Great Crested Grebes this morning. This one with head-plumes dipped in the water is adopting what I believe is a threat posture. But at what?

This was the other one. It was behind the other bird and lurking in the shadiest area of the water. Note that this one is only beginning to grow its head-plumes.
Make an 'X'! An adult winter Black-headed Gulls shows how.

A better 'X'!?

A long-range super-enlarged photo of a second winter Herring Gull moulting in to second summer plumage with a single new tail-feather showing clearly.

I guess it is effect of today's strong lighting. This adult Lesser Black-backed Gull has unusual pale patches in its right wing.

An idea borrowed from Japanese or Chinese art. An immature Cormorant in the mist. I am not sure what the pale loop at top left is. My best guess is that it is some broken fishing line which is covered in rime ice from the fog.

A male Great Tit. Males have a wider 'zip' down the belly.

What has he found?

Seems he has managed to extract a seed.

He seems to think there may be something else inside. Must be difficult without hands.

A Long-tailed being rather cautious and keeping somewhat hidden.

It did pop out. In its bill is lichen which it will use to line the nest it is building.

A closer view.

In my experience a rather unusual sighting around The Flash. Here is a male Starling sitting atop just about the tallest tree it could find. Demonstrating the green cross code: look right...

...and left. It is identifiable as a male because the base of the bill is blue. Females have a pink base to their bill during the breeding season.

Zoomed right in with the camera and enlarged with a photo editor it is just possible to see that the white markings are lines of white arrows.

A not-so-smart Robin even without the shadows across its body.

Lots of friendly Robins around here.

"Plane of the day": No surprise that this is a Delta Air Lines aircraft. It is an Airbus A330 200 series flying from Minneapolis-St. Paul to Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport.

The Flight Radar 24 data. It shows the aircraft's registration as N854NW which indicates this 2004 aircraft was ordered by and delivered to Northwest Airlines prior to their take-over by Delta Air Lines in 2008.

(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 Velvet Scoter
3 Scaup
9 Pochard
9 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c80 Black-headed Gulls
(Gary Crowder)

Telford Central Railway Station
35 Redwing
(Gary Crowder)

Horsehay Pool
1 Caspian Gull
(Tom Lowe)

2013
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site:
2 Glaucous Gulls
1 Caspian Gull
(Kris Webb)

2012
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebes
15 Pochard
54 Tufted Duck
c.1200 Black-headed Gulls
1 Common Gull
c.420 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.30 Herring Gulls
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
(Ed Wilson)

Priorslee Flash
10 Pochard
47 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock
2 Little Grebes
30 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake
3 Pochard
6 Goosanders
4 Pale Brindled Beauty moths
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
34 Greylag Geese
9 Pochard
56 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
775 Black-headed Gulls
488 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
3 Herring Gull
1 Great Black-backed Gull
28 Robins
19 Blackbirds
8 Song Thrushes
1 Redwing
1 Willow Tit
41 Magpies
250 Jackdaws
100 Rooks
4 Greenfinches
2 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Gadwall
22 Pochard
63 Tufted Ducks
164 Coots
600 Wood Pigeons
c.1300 Black-headed Gulls
84 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
9 Herring Gulls
21 Robins
24 Blackbirds
9 Song Thrushes
3 Willow Tits
11 Greenfinches
15 Siskins
17 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)