16 Oct 23

Priorslee Lake and The Flash

3.0°C > 7.0°C: A touch of frost. Mainly thin high cloud giving some watery sun. Early mist over the water with a very light mainly easterly breeze later. Good visibility.

Sunrise: 07:37 BST

+ = my first sighting of this species at this site this year.
++ = new species for me at this site.
* = a species photographed today

Highlight was my Egyptian Goose of the year in the area. It flew off from the Balancing Lake at 06:25. Species #97 for my 2023 bird list at the lake.

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 05:50 – 09:40

(213th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- I did not visit the football field at the usual time when Black-headed Gulls are feeding there. Nevertheless it was clear there were many fewer around than usual with the maximum count at any one time just ten birds with a few others seen arriving later.
- No large groups of Jackdaws noted on post-roost dispersal (c.07:15 at present). Unusually a group of 52 flew South to the far West at 09:20.
- A Grey Wagtail was seen, untypically, in a small Oak tree at the West end.

Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 3 Canada Geese: inbound together
- 22 Feral Pigeon: 19 flying East as 6 singles/ groups; a trio flying West
- 2 Stock Doves: singles
- 767 Wood Pigeons: of these 619 were in fourteen migrant groups flying South
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 24 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 9 unidentified large gulls
- 1 Skylark
- 88 Jackdaws
- 51 Redwings: in three groups
- 2 Pied Wagtails
- 1 Siskin
- 1 Lesser Redpoll

Warblers noted:

None

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 2 Mute Swan
- 1 (1♂) Gadwall
- 3 (2♂) Mallard
- 7 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 5 Moorhens
- 140 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- c.15 Black-headed Gulls
- 6 Herring Gulls
- 28 Lesser Black-backed Gulls

On or around the street lamp poles at dawn:

Moths:
- 7 November Moth agg. (Epirrita dilutata agg.)

Other things:
- ++1 fly, perhaps Scoliocentra villosa
- 1 spider sp., probably either Zygiella x-notata or Z. atrica.
- 1 male harvestman Leiobunum blackwalli
- 2 harvestmen Paroligolophus agrestis

Noted later:
- 4 harvestmen Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus
- 4 more harvestmen Paroligolophus agrestis
Still no Alder Leaf Beetles.

I've found another setting on the camera. A view well before dawn with the street-lights illuminating Castle Farm Way.

Street-lights out and some colour in the high cloud.

As good as it got with some mist visible over the water.

Not the Sargasso Sea just the algal bloom on the lake.

Some people still allow their dogs in the water. You shouldn't anyway (Severn Trent asks you to keep them on a lead) but don't blame Severn Trent if your dog gets sick.

A conundrum. From the left: an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull; a sub-adult Herring Gull (too much black on the bill for a full adult); a first winter Herring Gull; and an adult? The back colour is slightly darker than the sub-adult Herring Gull.

The perception of the tone can vary with the angles of the light but this alternative perspective shows a similar difference in tone. Not enough I think for it to be a Yellow-legged Gull. It looks somewhat larger than the sub-adult and perhaps it is one of the darker Scandinavian races? It is in my log as a Herring Gull.

Redwings are wary and flighty birds unless the weather is really bad. My best effort with a small group devouring the Hawthorn berries at the West end.

Not a good photo but something you do not see very often. A Grey Wagtail in a tree – albeit a rather small Oak tree. These wagtails are usually found beside water.

Most of one of the migrant groups of Wood Pigeons all heading South. I do not know where they end up. Many years ago I watched more than 10,000 fly West along the South Coast of Cornwall. What would they when they got to Lands End? Wood Pigeons do occur on the Scilly Isles but only in small numbers.

An enlarged view of a small part of the same group.

Watch out! Two November Moths (Epirrita dilutata agg.) being eyed-up by a harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis.

Another fly that thanks to the app I can provisionally identify as Scoliocentra villosa. It is from the family Heleomyzidae whose larvae feed on decaying plant and animal matter. It is just about a third of an inch long (8mm if you prefer).

An another of the same. Note the orange abdomen and, less common in flies, orange legs.

Pre-dawn a male harvestman Leiobunum blackwalli with the white surrounds to the eyes looking like head-lights. Another with a shortage of legs. As with spiders all harvestmen should have eight legs. Females of this species have a more elongated body with a dark area on the saddle.

The fence alongside Teece Drive is the place to be if you area a harvestman. Here are a quartet of harvestmen Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus.

On the same fence: see how many legs are missing from these four harvestmen Paroligolophus agrestis.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:45 – 10:55

(198th visit of the year)

I have a report of a Smew duck being seen on both Saturday and Sunday. If so then be prepared to be invaded by Shropshire birders as this is a rarity in the County. It is also an unusual date, this species typically resulting from very hard-weather on Continental Europe. Nothing is ever impossible though and if anyone has a photo please send it to priorsleelake@hotmail.com

Bird notes:
- the drake Gadwall was on open water today. Other recent sightings of it or of a pair have been of birds tucked up against the island.
- A mixed group of Siskins and Goldfinches was seen flying around the island. I could not tell how many of each there might be.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 15 Wood Pigeons in migrant group flying South
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 2 Jackdaws

Warblers noted:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 16 Canada Geese: of these six flew in together
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 1 (1♂) Gadwall
- 38 (24♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck
- 22 (13♂) Tufted Duck
- 44 brownhead Goosander
- 17 Moorhens
- 41 Coots
- 3 + 2 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 14 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: briefly
- 5 Cormorants: a single departed; then a single and a trio arrived
- 1 Grey Heron

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

Moths:
- 2 November Moth agg. (Epirrita dilutata agg.)

Other things:
- 1 stretch spider Tetragnatha sp.
- 1 harvestman Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus
- 1 harvestman Leiobunum rotundum

Noted elsewhere around The Flash:

Bees / wasps etc.:
- Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris)

Flies:
- two flies probably from the Anthomyiidae or Root-maggot flies group.

Fungus:
- Rufous Milkcap (Lactarius rufus) or Xerocomus rubellus

Fruits added to the Autumn collection:
- Black Bryony (Dioscorea communis) [aka Lady's-seal or Black Bindweed]
- Honeysuckle (Lonicera sp.)

Two of trio of Cormorants arriving together.

 Patience! A Grey Heron looking for a meal to pass by.

A Common Wasp (Paravespula vulgaris) getting down to business and attacking an unopened Ivy flower.

One of two flies probably from the Anthomyiidae or Root-maggot flies group. There are many flies in this group, all rather similar and most shown on the NatureSpot web site with a red border meaning that an expert is needed to confirm the identity. I am not that expert!

And the other one. This one has red eyes. Perhaps just the angle of light? Perhaps sexual difference? Perhaps a different species? Both sitting on nettle leaves.

The fruits of Black Bryony (Dioscorea communis). Don't eat!

Here fruits and flower buds on Honeysuckle (Lonicera sp.). Probably best not to eat these berries either. Some varieties are cultivated as "honeyberries" and these are fine and very nutritious. Wild varieties contain toxins that probably won't kill you but are best avoided.

The top end is a happy hunting ground for fungus. I found this species today.

And a different fruiting body of the same species. My app gave two suggestions for this: Rufous Milkcap (Lactarius rufus) or Xerocomus rubellus. The latter appears also to be known as the Ruby Bolete and, as is the way with taxonomists, renamed to become Hortiboletus rubellus. It is less likely to be this species as it is mainly found in the South of England. If it is Rufous Milkcap then it should age to become funnel-shaped. I would like to have a photo of the stem and gills. It was so close to uneven ground I would have needed to pick one of the fruits which I did not want to do.

Well it was a long way away! Plane of the day is an twin-engined 10-seat AgustaWestland AW169 built in 2016 when the company was known as Finmeccanica. It is owned by a company trading from the former Hawker Aircraft aerodrome at Dunsfold where parts of Top Gear used to be (are?) filmed. The helicopter has had an interesting life spending its first eight months in Victoria, Australia.

(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
14 Redwing
(Ed Wilson)

2010
Priorslee Lake
Common Gull, though it could have been Mew/Ring-billed Gull!
Yellow Legged Gull
(Mike Cooper/Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
2 Ruddy Ducks
42 Redwing
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
4 Wigeon
1 Shoveler
8 Pochard
64 Tufted Ducks
30 Robins
(Ed Wilson)