29 Dec 23

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

6.0°C > 8.0°C: A clear start with a little high cloud. Later lower cloud developed and it was again rather dull. Moderate westerly wind again gusty at times. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 08:22 GMT again
* = a species photographed today

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:35 – 09:40

(274th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- Despite the clear start the Black-headed Gulls were no earlier in arriving with the first c.200 arriving at 07:35 with eventually c.500 again.
- Once again no large gulls settled on the water.
- At last: a decent count of Jackdaws passing on roost dispersal no doubt helped by the clear weather. Still well below the four-figure counts of years past.
- *15 Redwings were seen feeding on the football field.

Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 6 Canada Geese: three duos outbound
- 6 Wood Pigeons
- 4 Herring Gulls
- 21 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 294 Jackdaws
- 1 Rook
- 1 Siskin

Birds seen leaving roosts around the lake.
None

Counts from the lake area:
- 7 Canada Geese: arrived
- 2 + 2 Mute Swans
- 6 (4♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Pochard
- 39 (20♂) Tufted Duck
- 11 Moorhens
- 96 Coots
- c.500 Black-headed Gulls
- *2 Cormorants: arrived separately
- 2 Grey Herons: one briefly, chased away; the other departed

The (semi) nocturnal community on or around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:

Moths:
- *1 male Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria: same place as yesterday

Flies:
- *1 cranefly Limonia nubeculosa

Beetles:
- *1 Cabbage-stem Flea Beetle Psylliodes chrysocephala

Other insects:
- *1 springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis
- *1 tiny globular springtail

Spiders:
- *1 money spider possibly Erigone sp.
- *1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.

Fungus
Fungus around the lake:
- *Crimped Gill Plicatura crispa [also Plicaturopsis crispa]
- *newly found example Hairy Curtain Crust Stereum hirsutum

Noted on the Teece Drive fence:
- *1 Wood Gnat Sylvicola sp., likely S. fenestralis

Already looking a bit lop-side the waning Cold Moon out of what were clear skies at this time.

High cloud arrived before sunrise. Just a sliver of red on the horizon.

This Cormorant is an immature (a few spots of white in the breast) so it will not be getting any white head plumes. Note the hooked tip to the upper mandible.

I wonder why they are called Redwings? There were 15 on the fenced football field.

The male Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria in exactly the same place as yesterday. Did it make a conscious decision to settle on the only patch of moss growing on the street lamp pole as camouflage?

A similar question could be asked here. Good luck seeing seeing the detail of this cranefly Limonia nubeculosa.

Same here. I had to a lot of jiggling with the photo editor to make it more visible. It is a Wood Gnat Sylvicola sp., likely S. fenestralis. I could not attempt a better photo as it did not like the camera flash and flew off. Most things tend not to when I photo them before dawn.

A Cabbage-stem Flea Beetle Psylliodes chrysocephala

If you look carefully there are two springtails here. Most obvious is Pogonognathellus longicornis; below its left antenna is one of the globular springtails. No wonder I have so much trouble trying to get a decent photo of them: so small!

Obsidentify was 100% sure this was a money spider Erigone sp. However the three UK species in the genus are only 0.1" (3mm) and this was certainly much larger than that – at least 0.5" (12.5mm) I would judge. So?

A Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp. Not sure what the vertical mark is.

Newly found fungus: a suggestion from Obsidentify checked with the NatureSpot web site gives it the most likely identity of Crimped Gill Plicatura crispa also Plicaturopsis crispa.

This example Hairy Curtain Crust Stereum hirsutum I found on a newly-fallen tree branch.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:45 – 10:45

(256th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- Very little change to note.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
None

Noted on / around the water:
- 3 Canada Geese
- 25 Greylag Geese
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall
- 44 (29♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck
- 5 (3♂) Pochard
- 87 (44♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 (0♂) Goosander
- 11 Moorhens only: too many dog-walkers
- 41 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebes
- 24 Black-headed Gulls
- *2 Herring Gulls: one first winter; one third winter again
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adult
- 1 Cormorant: departed
- 1 Grey Heron

On the ivy bank:
Nothing noted

I have logged this as a third winter Herring Gull It is possible it is a fourth winter. Signs of immaturity are the single dark-tipped feather in the tail; the white 'mirror' only in the outer primary feather; and the dark smudging just outboard of the bend in the forewing. At this date it is equally possible that it is as third winter beginning a moult in to third summer plumage.

Helicopter of the day. The Midlands Air Ambulance Airbus Helicopters EC 145T2 en route to a very local incident – I could hear it circling looking for a suitable landing site though it was no longer visible. It flies from its own compound at the edge of RAF Cosford.

(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

2012
Priorslee Lake
Drake Scaup
2 Yellow-legged Gulls
3 Great Black-backed Gulls
(Martin Grant)

2011
Priorslee Lake
4 Yellow legged Gull
22 Great Black-backed Gulls
(John Isherwood)

Priorslee Flash
Tundra Bean Goose
(John Isherwood)

Holmer Lake
9 Goosander
(John Isherwood)

2009
Priorslee Lake
1 Black-necked Grebe
4 Gadwall
2 Water Rail
2 Caspian Gull
Yellow-legged Gull
Ring-billed Gull
(John Isherwood/Richard Vernon/Dawn Balmer/Peter Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
1 Cormorant
3 Wigeon
30 Tufted Duck
4 Pochard
180+ Coot
3 Yellow-legged Gulls
4000+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls
65 Herring Gulls
1000+ Black-headed Gulls
(Martin Adlam)

2006
Priorslee lake
1 Little Grebe
3 Pochard
10 Tufted Ducks
1 Lapwing
>550 Black-headed Gulls
>108 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
c.40 Redwings
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee lake
c.3200 Lesser black-backed Gulls
c.1700 Black-headed Gulls
c100 Herring Gulls
8 Great Black-backed Gulls
4 Yellow-legged Gull
(Martin Adlam/Ed Wilson/John Isherwood)