7 Aug 23

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

11.0°C > 17.0°C: Mostly clear with just a few puffy clouds developing. Light westerly breeze increasing moderate at times. Excellent visibility.

Sunrise: 05:38 BST

+ = my first sighting of this species at this site this year.

++ = new species for me at this site.

Very little song noted. Only Robins and Wrens heard singing plus a single Coal Tit at the lake; with one Willow Warbler and one of the Chiffchaffs at The Flash.

Also notable was the low number of Magpies recorded. Although I do not specifically log individuals of this species I noted just two singles at the lake and heard only one or two at The Flash.

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 05:30 – 06:15 // 07:15 – 09:50

(157th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- A juvenile Common Buzzard heard begging from trees to the North of the football field.
- Of the 28 Lesser Black-backed Gulls logged flying over most were in two groups (of 16 and ten). Just two seemed to be adults and most looked like juveniles.
- Another strange date for a Sand Martin: perhaps early departing bird? This species is one of the first Spring arrivals (often in the last days of February) and also one of the first to depart.
- No Reed Warblers seen or heard. Normally they are around until mid-August. Perhaps the wet weather has affected the success of their last brood and they have departed early.

Counts of birds noted flying over here:
- 150 Canada Geese: 12 outbound in four duos/groups; 138 inbound in six groups
- 8 Greylag Geese: duo outbound; six inbound in two groups
- 4 Stock Doves: two duos
- 95 Wood Pigeons
- 28 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 4 Jackdaws

Warblers noted (the number singing in brackets):
- 16 (0) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (0) Blackcaps

Hirundines etc., noted:
- *1 Sand Martin: see notes
- 1 Barn Swallow

Counts from the lake area:
- 16 Canada Geese: arrived in three groups and later departed together.
- 2 + 2 Mute Swans
- 8 (?♂) Mallard
- 6 Moorhen
- 79 Coots
- 4 + 2 (2 broods) Great Crested Grebes
- *61 Black-headed Gulls on the football field c.06:00: no juveniles noted. No more than nine (of these?) later at the lake.

- 1 Cormorant: arrived

Noted on and around the street lamp poles around dawn:

Moths:
- *1 Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli var. humuli)
- *1 Common Grass-veneer (Agriphila tristella)
- *1 Riband Wave (Idaea aversata)
- *++1 Small Phoenix (Ecliptopera silaceata)

and:
- *1 probable Pond Olive mayfly (Cloeon dipterum)

Noted later:

Butterflies:
- *+Large White (Pieris brassicae)
- Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)
- Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina)
- *Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus)
- *Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)
- *+Peacock (Aglais io)

Moths:
- Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella)

Bees / wasps etc.:
- *Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)
- *Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)
- *Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum)
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)

Hoverflies:
- *Stripe-backed Fleckwing (Dasysyrphus albostriatus)
- *Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
- Stripe-winged Dronefly (Eristalis horticola)
- *Tapered Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax)
- *Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
- Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare)
- *Dead-head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea) [Batman Hoverfly]
- *++possible Bridged Clubtail (Neoascia tenur)
- Pellucid Fly (Volucella pellucens) [Pied Plumehorn]

Dragon-/damsel-flies:
- *Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)
- *Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum)

Other flies:
- several greenbottle species

Beetles:
- *++Cream Spot Ladybird (Calvia quattuordecimguttata)
- *7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata)
- *Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis): succinea form

Bugs:
- *Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina): all instars

Also
- White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)

One of the few early clouds adding some interest to the sunrise.

One of several skeins of mainly Canada Geese returning from feeding in the fields.

An adult Black-headed Gull in moult. Most of the black on the head is fading away and just the outer four old primaries remain on each wing, the inner primaries are regrowing and the middle ones have been dropped and are yet to start regrowing.

Not my best. You can see it is not a Barn Swallow or House Martin. This is little more than a record shot of a Sand Martin.

With the inner edge of the black at the wing tip curving smoothly this has to be a Large White (Pieris brassicae): my first of the year here. With black dots in all four wings this is a female. Butterflies all have clubbed antennae, not always as obvious as here.

This Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus) has lost much of its colour. There were also a few pristine examples flying today.

I used fill-in flash to show the markings on the underside of the wings of this rather worn Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta). It has not come out as clearly as I hoped. Ho hum.

Also my first Peacock butterfly (Aglais io) of the year here and a splendid one at that.

A female Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli var. humuli). Males are always all-white apart from the yellow head. Females of the thulensis form are mainly white.

A classic Common Grass-veneer moth (Agriphila tristella) with a wide middle stripe whose clear edge divides into four ‘fingers'.

A Riband Wave moth (Idaea aversata). It is coming towards the end of this species normal flight season though recently there has occasionally been a second generation later in the year.

A rather faded Small Phoenix moth (Ecliptopera silaceata). My first of the year.

Rather confusing: from the abdomen pattern this has to be a Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) though it should show long antennae. Perhaps not visible from this angle though none of the other shots I took show the antennae either.

A Common Carder Bee (Bombus pascuorum) trying to hide.

And a rather worn specimen with the ginger 'pile' on the thorax distinctly faded.

A third specimen at the top sharing the photo with a Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius).

With downward-sloping yellow bands and two stripes on the thorax this Stripe-backed Fleckwing hoverfly (Dasysyrphus albostriatus) is straightforward to identify.

This was the only Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus) I noted this morning. Until I went to the USA in mid/late-July this species was abundant.

A male Tapered Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax).

A Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax).

The markings on the thorax identify this as a Dead-head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea) also known as the Batman Hoverfly.

The 'waisted' abdomen and apparently single pair of yellow spots suggest this is possibly a Bridged Clubtail hoverfly (Neoascia tenur). Not a species I have seen previously and not all the diagnostic features can be seen here so it will have to remain unconfirmed.

I noted just two damselflies this morning: this male Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum) and also a female of the same species.

A female Common Darter dragonfly (Sympetrum striolatum).

This is probably a Pond Olive mayfly (Cloeon dipterum). It is a male with the so-called turbinate eyes used to pick out females among dancing swarms.

This is a new species for me, though apparently not uncommon. It is a Cream Spot Ladybird (Calvia quattuordecimguttata). It was running around the leaves at high speed and this was the best of a series I took.

 A particularly 'clean-looking' 7 Spot Ladybird (Coccinella 7-punctata).

 In contrast the multi-spotted succinea form of a Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis).

An early instar of a Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina).

A slightly more developed instar with several black marks on the abdomen.

 'Plane' of the day. The usual mainly red West Midlands Air Ambulance seems to be away at the moment probably on overhaul and for the last four weeks this replacement from the pool of helicopters all operated by Babcock Mission Critical Services Onshore Ltd. based at Gloucestershire Airport has been on duty. Marketed as an Airbus Helicopters EC 145T2 it is basically an MBB-Bk 117 D-2 (MBB is the new identity of what was once Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm: German you know!)

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:20 – 07:10

(146th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- Just the two geese noted. No doubt they were all out feeding in the fields and were the inbound birds seen later over the lake.
- Two Great Crested Grebes were close together at the top end; a pair was seen at a possible different nest site beside the island apparently bringing food to young in the nest though rather too distant to be sure; another adult near this pair.
- The Willow Warbler gave one partial song. No doubt a migrant as most of these birds leave by the end of August and none bred here.

Birds noted flying over here:

None

Warblers noted (the number singing in brackets):
- 1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 7 (1) Chiffchaffs

Hirundines etc., noted:
- 6 House Martins, briefly. A juvenile heard calling and a food-pass noted.

Noted on / around the water
- 1 Canada Goose
- 1 Greylag Goose: arrived
- 3 + 4 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 20 (?♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck.
- 23 (?♂) Tufted Duck
- 14 Moorhens
- 35 Coots
- 5 Great Crested Grebes: see notes
- 2 Black-headed Gulls
- *4 Cormorants: of these one departed and two arrived together
- 1 Grey Heron

Noted on / beside the street lamp poles around the water etc.:

Moths:
- *+1 Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata)
- *1 Engrailed (Ectropis crepuscularia)
- *+1 Swallow Prominent (Pheosia tremula)

other things:
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)

Noted elsewhere around The Flash:
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)

One of the Cormorants decides to leave.

Here showing the underwing rather better.

A Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata) here on the orange Neighbourhood Watch sign near the academy. I noted one on the sign last year also. I am not sure what its four-legged companion is. My best guess is a harvestman that has lost half its legs.

This moth is an Engrailed (Ectropis crepuscularia) notable by being on a street lamp pole upon which I have never previously recorded and moths.

In contrast this Swallow Prominent moth (Pheosia tremula) was on one of the two shaded street lamp poles at the top end where I see this species every year. This species has two generations each year. Unusually I failed to record any from the first generation that flies in June.

(Ed Wilson)

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Between the lake and The Flash on / around street lamp poles:

Moths:
- none

also
- Yellow Dung Fly (Scathophaga stercoraria)

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel

Nothing noted

(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
2 Common Sandpipers
(Ed Wilson)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Hobby
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
Oystercatcher
(Martin Adlam)