3.0°C > 5.0°C: A morning of three halves (sic). Overcast at low level to start. After 08:30 blue patches and the sunny intervals for a while. Then back to low overcast again. Just frosted to start. Light westerly breeze. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 08:21 GMT still
* = a species photographed today
Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:20 – 09:30
(6th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- Pochard gone yet again!
- The composition of the Tufted Ducks has gone back to more ducks than drakes.
- A more normal number of Black-headed Gulls today with at least 180 noted on the water. A smaller number overhead with most of these as singles or small groups flying with Herring Gulls.
- Many more Herring than Lesser Black-baked Gulls today.
- All the unusual behaviour of the gulls may well be attributable to floods providing alternative sources for drinking and bathing.
Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 2 Stock Doves
- 6 Wood Pigeons
- 29 Black-headed Gulls
- 39 Herring Gulls
- 11 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 32 Jackdaws
- 5 Rooks
- 2 Mistle Thrushes: together
- 1 Pied Wagtail
Birds seen leaving roosts around the lake.
- 13 Redwings: there were at least 6 more that did not leave
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 2 Mute Swans
- 8 (6♂) Mallard
- 35 (14♂) Tufted Duck
- 13 Moorhens
- 76 Coots
- c.180 Black-headed Gulls
- *9 Herring Gulls
- 1 Yellow-legged Gull
- 1 Cormorant: arrived
- 1 Grey Heron
Bird species added today to the year list from here.
None
The (semi) nocturnal community on or around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
Cool temperature and dew-covered poles reduced the haul.
The (semi) nocturnal community on or around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
Cool temperature and dew-covered poles reduced the haul.
Moths:
- *1 Winter Moth Operophtera brumata
- *1 Winter Moth Operophtera brumata
Flies:
- 2 winter craneflies Trichocera regelationis
- 2 winter craneflies Trichocera regelationis
Other insects:
- 1 globular springtail
- 1 globular springtail
Spiders:
- *1 Stout Sac Spider Clubiona sp.
On the Teece Drive fence:
A presumed adult Herring Gull with extensive head-streaking. This will quickly be moulted out as they acquire breeding plumage. I cannot explain why the inner primaries are slightly misaligned, almost as if several have yet to complete their post-moult growth which should have been completed in the Autumn.
- *1 Stout Sac Spider Clubiona sp.
On the Teece Drive fence:
Nothing noted
An unusually tame (hungry?) Song Thrush allowed a closer than usual approach.
And for me to walk around to its other side.
Just the one spider noted this morning: a Stout Sac Spider Clubiona sp. Note the eye-shine from the camera flash. Does the red-eye function work on insects I wonder? I must try.
The Flash: 09:35 – 10:40
A different view of the (Common) Striped Woodlouse Philoscia muscorum. From this angle it looks more striped (though I would have thought 'banded' a better name; 'striped' would seem to apply better to marks along the abdomen).
Not what I expected to find: new flowers on the Common Ivy (Hedera helix). All the other clusters in this view are well on their way to forming berries, with many others in the area already with berries being attacked by the Wood Pigeons.
(Ed Wilson)
2014
Priorslee Lake
2 Scaup
5 Great Black-backed Gulls - 4 adult and a 1st winter
(John Isherwood)
2013
Priorslee Lake
1st winter Caspian Gull
6 Great Black-backed Gulls
(John Isherwood)
2012
Priorslee Lake
2 adult Caspian Gulls
10+ Yellow-legged gulls (most adults and 3rd-winters, at least 1 1st-winter)
10 Great Black-backed Gulls
(J W Reeves)
2011
Priorslee Lake
Adult Mediterranean Gull
Pair of Brambling
(Ed Wilson)
2010
Priorslee Lake
Evening Report
An adult winter Ring-billed Gull at about 3:15pm
3 adult Common Gulls
(Ed Wilson)
Daytime Report
4 Common Gull
2 adult Yellow-legged Gull
1 adult Great Black-backed Gull
Black-necked Grebe
1 Snipe
(Jason, Pete Jordan and Ian & Jim)
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 09:35 – 10:40
(6th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- There were few geese around so there was no obvious reason why I could not see any Common Teal lurking around the edge of the island.
- So where did all the Tufted Ducks come from? 35 yesterday; 92 today. I did wonder whether some were birds from the Balancing Lake that had just flown in after being flushed off by e.g. the sailing club using the water. However ten minutes earlier when I was at the lake there was no evidence of the arrival of the sailing club: nor were there enough Tufted Ducks there to start with.
- Two of the Great Crested Grebes were doing a desultory head-shaking display with the third looking on from a distance.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
Noted on / around the water:
- 4 Canada Geese
- 4 Greylag Geese
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 1 (1♂) Gadwall
- 38 (25♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck
- *92 (48♂) Tufted Duck
- *2 (0♂) Goosander
- 11 Moorhens
- 42 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 9 Black-headed Gulls
- *3 Herring Gulls: first, third and adult winters
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately
Bird species added today to the year list from here.
Bird notes:
- There were few geese around so there was no obvious reason why I could not see any Common Teal lurking around the edge of the island.
- So where did all the Tufted Ducks come from? 35 yesterday; 92 today. I did wonder whether some were birds from the Balancing Lake that had just flown in after being flushed off by e.g. the sailing club using the water. However ten minutes earlier when I was at the lake there was no evidence of the arrival of the sailing club: nor were there enough Tufted Ducks there to start with.
- Two of the Great Crested Grebes were doing a desultory head-shaking display with the third looking on from a distance.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
Noted on / around the water:
- 4 Canada Geese
- 4 Greylag Geese
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 1 (1♂) Gadwall
- 38 (25♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck
- *92 (48♂) Tufted Duck
- *2 (0♂) Goosander
- 11 Moorhens
- 42 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 9 Black-headed Gulls
- *3 Herring Gulls: first, third and adult winters
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately
Bird species added today to the year list from here.
None
Noted on the street lamp poles:
- *1 (Common) Striped Woodlouse Philoscia muscorum: same as yesterday
Noted on the street lamp poles:
- *1 (Common) Striped Woodlouse Philoscia muscorum: same as yesterday
A Mrs. Tufted Duck. These always show a small 'tuft'.
One of the two duck Goosanders here today.
The other one appears to have a mouthful............
..............The unfortunate fish is a Perch ( Perca fluviatilis)
A first winter Herring Gull.
Here being pursued by a third winter bird.
(Ed Wilson)
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Sightings from previous years without links are below
2014
Priorslee Lake
2 Scaup
5 Great Black-backed Gulls - 4 adult and a 1st winter
(John Isherwood)
2013
Priorslee Lake
1st winter Caspian Gull
6 Great Black-backed Gulls
(John Isherwood)
2012
Priorslee Lake
2 adult Caspian Gulls
10+ Yellow-legged gulls (most adults and 3rd-winters, at least 1 1st-winter)
10 Great Black-backed Gulls
(J W Reeves)
2011
Priorslee Lake
Adult Mediterranean Gull
Pair of Brambling
(Ed Wilson)
2010
Priorslee Lake
Evening Report
An adult winter Ring-billed Gull at about 3:15pm
3 adult Common Gulls
(Ed Wilson)
Daytime Report
4 Common Gull
2 adult Yellow-legged Gull
1 adult Great Black-backed Gull
Black-necked Grebe
1 Snipe
(Jason, Pete Jordan and Ian & Jim)