24 Nov 23

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

7.0°C: Spells of drizzle / light rain until after 08:00. Thereafter improving, often sunny eventually. Fresh north-westerly wind gusting strong at times. Very good visibility but moderate during drizzle.

Sunrise: 07:46 GMT

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

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:05 – 09:20

(244th visit of the year)

Highlight today was my first Shelduck here this year that dropped in after 08:00. 2023 bird species #99 for me here.

Bird notes:
- Four Canada Geese went outbound as two concurrent duos on slightly different lines. Later a calling single and a trio flew south-west at the same time: the earlier birds returning?
- Relatively few large gulls today with only five Herrings (all first winters) and four Lesser Black-backs (all adult) at the normal early arrival time which has seen upwards of 100 birds arrive earlier this week. A small number later.

Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 8 Canada Geese: see noted
- 13 Wood Pigeons
- 22 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 8 Cormorants: a single and a septet
- 2 Common Buzzards
- 16 Jackdaws
- 1 Rook
- 11 Starlings
- 2 Pied Wagtails

Birds seen leaving roosts around the lake:
- c.250 Starlings left the north-west reeds in three groups.

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 2 Mute Swans
- *+1 (0♂) Shelduck: arrived
- 9 (6♂) Mallard
- 50 (27♂) Tufted Duck
- 7 Moorhens
- 135 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- c.275 Black-headed Gulls
- *16 Herring Gulls
- 34 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately
- 2 Grey Herons: one present throughout; the other chased away.

The (semi) nocturnal community on or around the street lamp poles at dawn:
It was drizzling when I visited here and most things were hiding

Moths:
- *1 Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata)

Otherwise:

Flies etc.:
- 2 plumed midges
- 1 winter cranefly Trichocera regelationis
- *1 other winter cranefly Trichocera sp.
- 1 wood gnat, likely Sylvicola fenestralis
- *1 Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperia carnea)

Bugs etc.:
- *1 unidentified globular springtail

Spiders and allies:
- 1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.
- *1 spider exoskeleton

Noted later on the Teece Drive fence:

With the wind blowing directly on to the fence, just:
- 1 Alder Leaf Beetle (Agelastica alni)
- 1 harvestman Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus

New groups of fungus found:

None but:
- one of the Clouded Funnel (Clitocybe nebularis) groups has now sprouted at least 42 fruiting bodies.
- *the Birch Polypore (Piptoporus betulinus) now much larger than when I first photographed it.

Not a brilliant shot. Just a record of the (Common) Shelduck that dropped in. It always seemed to be a long way from whatever edge I visited. Without an obvious swelling at the base of the bill I assumed this was a duck. However the bill looks rather dull-coloured and it may be a first-winter of either sex.

This is a first winter Herring Gull illustrating all the plumage features of a typical bird of this age.

A Winter Moth (Operophtera brumata) playing the numbers. The green is moss or lichen on the street lamp pole. And looking closely I see top left is a hitherto unnoticed globular springtail.

A winter cranefly Trichocera sp. There was another of the same genus of which I only managed a blurred photo. That had a dark mark in the centre of the wings identifying it as Trichocera regelationis.

Yes: it is a Common Green Lacewing (Chrysoperia carnea). These go brown in winter and this one is starting that process.

A spider exoskeleton: no ideas as to species. Spiders have a hard outer exoskeleton and as they grow they split their old exoskeleton and crawl out of it. For a while the spider is soft and vulnerable. The old exoskeleton takes a while to decompose, usually falling to the ground. This one was still caught in a web.

I first photographed this Birch Polypore (Piptoporus betulinus) on 4 November. It is now much larger.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:25 – 10:20

(228th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- After many weeks of very low geese numbers suddenly 35 Greylags.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 11 Canada Geese
- 35 Greylag Geese
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 1 (1♂) Gadwall
- 44 (29♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck
- 1 (1♂) Pochard
- 58 (33♂) Tufted Duck
- 12 Moorhens
- 42 Coots
- 4 Great Crested Grebes
- 26 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull: third winter
- 2 Grey Herons
- *1 Kingfisher

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

Moths:
- 1 Sprawler (Asteroscopus sphinx): its 18th day
Nothing else.

Noted elsewhere around The Flash:

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

Hoverflies:
- *Common Drone Fly (Eristalis tenax): just one

Other flies:
- just three individuals noted.

New groups of fungus found:

None

A slightly better Kingfisher photo. At least it is more or less in focus. The bill looks to be all-dark suggesting this is a male. Adult females have varying amounts of orange on the lower mandible. An immature bird would appear less bright. I edged slowly forward to try to get closer but the bird moved, unusually without making its usual "referee's whistle" call note, and was gone.

The only hoverfly I saw this morning was this Common Drone Fly (Eristalis tenax).

(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

2013
Priorslee Lake
6 Gadwall
2 Teal
3 Pochard
114 Tufted Duck
228 Coots
1 Snipe
Tawny Owl
157 Fieldfare
63 Redwings
208 Jackdaws
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
31 Tufted Ducks
3 Goosander
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Priorslee Lake
35 Greylag Geese
3 Gadwall
9 Pochard
19 Tufted Ducks
157 Coots
1 Yellow-legged Gull
1 Great Black-backed Gull.
18 Redwings
16 Fieldfares
4 Siskins
3 Redpoll
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake
6 Yellow-legged Gulls
700 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
(John Isherwood / Tom Lowe)

2007
Priorslee Lake
A male Stonechat
1 Gadwall
(John Isherwood)

Priorslee Flash
Great Black-backed Gull
5 Goosander
(John Isherwood)

East of Priorslee
60 Golden Plover
(John Isherwood)