13.0°C > 19.0°C: Early mist in the area otherwise variable amounts of puffy clouds with good sunny spells. Light mainly south-easterly breeze. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 04:46 BST
* = a photo of this species today
+ = my first sighting of this species at this site this year.
++ = new species for me at this site.
Priorslee Balancing Lake: 04:40 – 05:45 // 06:55 – 09:40
++ = new species for me at this site.
Priorslee Balancing Lake: 04:40 – 05:45 // 06:55 – 09:40
(131st visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- For the first time this year the Mute Swan family appeared at the bottom of the concrete ramp. The cygnets are noticeably significantly smaller than those at The Flash.
- Not surprisingly there were only three juvenile Great Crested Grebes noted. Still a bumper number of adults doing not very much.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 3 Stock Doves: single and duo
- 11 Wood Pigeons
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 4 Cormorants: two duos
- 3 Jackdaws
- 1 Rook
Warblers noted (the number singing in brackets):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 10 (10) Chiffchaffs
- 11 (11) Reed Warblers
- 10 (9) Blackcaps
- 1 (1) Garden Warblers
- 2 (0) Common Whitethroats
Hirundines etc., noted:
- >10 Swifts
- 1 Barn Swallow
- 2 House Martins
Counts from the lake area: it remains very quiet
- 2 + 2 Mute Swans
- no Mallard
- 1 + 1 (old brood) Moorhens
- 29 + 33 (13? broods) Coots
- 14 + 3 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Grey Heron: briefly
Noted on and around the street lamp poles around dawn:
- *1 micro-moth (photo with Shropshire recorder for 'help'!)
- 1 small caddis fly sp.
Noted later: the soaking waist-high vegetation dissuaded me from straying off the paths.
Bird notes:
- For the first time this year the Mute Swan family appeared at the bottom of the concrete ramp. The cygnets are noticeably significantly smaller than those at The Flash.
- Not surprisingly there were only three juvenile Great Crested Grebes noted. Still a bumper number of adults doing not very much.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 3 Stock Doves: single and duo
- 11 Wood Pigeons
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 4 Cormorants: two duos
- 3 Jackdaws
- 1 Rook
Warblers noted (the number singing in brackets):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 10 (10) Chiffchaffs
- 11 (11) Reed Warblers
- 10 (9) Blackcaps
- 1 (1) Garden Warblers
- 2 (0) Common Whitethroats
Hirundines etc., noted:
- >10 Swifts
- 1 Barn Swallow
- 2 House Martins
Counts from the lake area: it remains very quiet
- 2 + 2 Mute Swans
- no Mallard
- 1 + 1 (old brood) Moorhens
- 29 + 33 (13? broods) Coots
- 14 + 3 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Grey Heron: briefly
Noted on and around the street lamp poles around dawn:
- *1 micro-moth (photo with Shropshire recorder for 'help'!)
- 1 small caddis fly sp.
Noted later: the soaking waist-high vegetation dissuaded me from straying off the paths.
Butterflies:
- Large Skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus)
- *Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)
- *Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus)
Moths:
- *+leaf mines of the Horse-chestnut Leaf-miner (Cameraria ohridella)
- Common Marble (Celypha lacunana)
- unidentified grass moths
- Silver-ground Carpet (Xanthorhoe montanata)
- Silver Y (Autographa gamma)
Bees / wasps etc.:
- *Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)
- *Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum)
- *Tree Bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum)
- *Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)
- Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)
Dragon-/damsel-flies:
- Azure Damselfly (Coenagrion puella)
- Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
- Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura elegans)
Hoverflies:
- *Bumblebee Blacklet (Cheilosia illustrata)
- Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
- Common Spotted Field Syrph (Eupeodes luniger)
Other flies:
- Black Snipefly (Chrysopilus cristatus)
- Scorpion Fly Panorpa sp.
- Semaphore fly (Poecilobothrus nobilitatus)
- a greenbottle
- various flies
- *midge sp.
Beetles:
- Alder Leaf Beetle (Agelastica alni)
- Swollen-thighed Beetle (Oedemera nobilis)
Bugs:
- 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata): adult and +*pupa
Also
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)
- *unidentified slug.
- *Common Toad (Bufo bufo)
- *Cucumber Green Orb Spider (Araniella sp. possibly A. cucurbitina)
- +**flowers of Common (or Black; or Lesser) Knapweed (Centaurea nigra)
- +**flowers of Nipplewort (Lapsana communis)
- +**flowers of Self-heal (Prunella vulgaris)
Sunrise time. Note the bank of mist in the distance.
A juvenile Goldfinch waits for a meal from it parents.
A Speckled Wood butterfly (Pararge aegeria).
And a Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus).
A Garden Bumblebee (Bombus hortorum). This species always strikes me as having longer antennae than other species.
Raising another leg! The tip of the abdomen in this species may be white (as here) or...
...red, as here.
This one with off-white bands. Normally these are slightly orange-tinged – hence the name.
I am sure this slug was only too happy to see the rain.
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 05:50 – 06:50
(120th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- Where does the all-white drake duck disappear to? I presume inside the island. It is a long while since I noted it flying.
Birds noted flying over here:
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 1 Cormorant
Warblers noted (the number singing in brackets):
- 5 (5) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (1) Blackcap
Hirundines etc., noted:
- 12 Swifts
Noted on / around the water
- 134 Canada Geese
- 35 Greylag Geese
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 21 (16♂) + 5 (1 brood) Mallard
- no all-white duck (Peking(?) Duck)
- 4 (2♂) Tufted Duck
- 5 Moorhens
- 23 + 3 (3 broods) Coots
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
Noted on / around the street lamp poles around the water:
- *3 Garden Grass-veneer moths (Chrysoteuchia culmella): all on different lamp poles
- *1 other micro-moth (photo with Shropshire recorder for 'help'!)
- 1 Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperia carnea)
Noted elsewhere:
- *1 micro-moth (photo with Shropshire recorder for 'help'!)
- Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- flea beetles
(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
2008
Telford Town Centre
A singing Sedge Warbler by the entrance to the Blue Willow car park.
(Ed Wilson)
2008
Telford Town Centre
A singing Sedge Warbler by the entrance to the Blue Willow car park.
(Ed Wilson)