23 Feb 24

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

2.0°C > 6.0°C: Scattered cloud with light showers visible. Just frosted early. Light southerly wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 07:11 GMT

* = a species photographed today

Some of yesterday's displaced Tufted Duck back at The Flash.

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:10 – 09:20

(40th visit of the year)

Highlight today was a Tawny Owl that flew past me at the West end, heading to the south-west copse at 06:30

Other bird notes:
- no sign of the recently near-resident pair of Canada Geese
- one of the Mute Swan cygnets not seen. One has been spending much of the time away from the others but usually joins up with them at some stage. This did not happen today.
- one of the groups of Starlings flying over contained at least 150 birds. Four other small groups noted, totalling 57 birds.
- a party of 24 Fieldfare to the East is not common at this date.

Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 7 Canada Geese: a single, a pair and a quartet outbound
- 1 Stock Dove
- 29 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Collared Dove
- 17 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls
- 29 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 81 Jackdaws
- 50 Rooks
- >200 Starlings: five groups
- 24 Fieldfare
- 1 Pied Wagtail

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans
- no Canada Geese
- 7 (5♂) Mallard
- 27 (16♂) Tufted Duck
- 5 Moorhens
- 43 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- c.75 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately
- 1 Grey Heron: arrived and departed

Noted on or around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
Nothing much on the dew / frost-covered lamps

Moths:
- *1 Lead-coloured Drab Orthosia populeti

Flies:
- 1 winter midge sp.

Other insects:
- 1 springtail Tomocerus sp.

Noted later:
- *several fly sps. sunning on a street lamp pole; one perhaps a Fannia sp.?

The early dawn was almost cloudless.

A few clouds but the time of sunrise. Just about visible here is a remnant shower.

A closer view of that precipitation hanging from the cloud.

"I can see you". Quite what this secretive Jay was doing was hard to say. I don't think is was building its nest. If it was raiding a nest that seems rather early. I think it is not a nest anyway: I favour it being a squirrel's dray.

A moth covered in dew and / or frost making identification slightly less straightforward. It is a Lead-coloured Drab Orthosia populeti: moth species #9 for me here this year. Last recorded by me on 20 March 2022.

One of several species of fly that took to basking in the sun on a street lamp pole. Obsidentify suggested this might perhaps be a Fannia sp. Its other suggestions were all hoverflies which it clearly isn't. The greenish, pointed abdomen would seem to be important.

Here is a different fly: I think one of Muscid flies. Obsidentify was again obsessed with hoverflies which again it clearly isn't.

This is not what I thought. It is not a dead and soggy caterpillar but a dead and soggy willow catkin.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:25– 10:45

(41th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the pair of Gadwall may have been inside the island: I could not get a clear-enough view to confirm this.
- a Stock Dove was display-flighting over the Derwent Drive houses.
- *small groups of Siskins in alders along the West side and at the top end.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 29 Canada Geese: two of these departed
- 6 Greylag Geese: two of these departed
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- ? Gadwall: see notes
- *23 (16♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck
- 40 (18♂) Tufted Duck
- 13 Moorhens
- 44 Coots
- no Great Crested Grebe
- 3 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull: departed
- *1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: also departed

Of note.

Nothing else

A duck Mallard caught at an angle that shows well the blue / mauve speculum.

A perfect splash-down.

The pale eye suggests this is immature gull is a second year bird at least.

 It is a Lesser Black-backed Gull showing a strongly patterned underwing.

A close-up of a Wood Pigeon illustrating the multitude of tones on the head and neck, the strange shape of the iris and the bare skin on top of the bill.

Magpies have been noisily chasing and squabbling as they pair up. This one seems to have lost a few battles.

Another species with a long tail – a Long-tailed Tit.

 It is a while since I photographed a friendly Robin.

One of a number of male Siskins feeding on Alders.

A rush of blood to the head for this one.

Chomp, chomp.

Again...

...and again.

 I included this as it shows the rarely seen yellow rump.

Anything the Siskins can do the Goldfinches will try.

Plane of the day. This is a Cessna 150 built in Reims, France during 1980 under licence from, and using parts made by Cessna Aircraft of Wichita in Kansas, USA. It has been in the UK since 1982 and has had 12 previous owners. It currently has a Slough owner. If it has a transponder this was not activated so I have no idea of its routing.

(Ed Wilson)

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Sightings from previous years

2014
Priorslee Lake
5 Cormorants
3 Grey Herons
8 Pochard
8 Tufted Duck
1 Water Rail
1 Kingfisher
6 Redwings
391 Jackdaws
217 Rooks
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
201 Tufted Ducks
2 Goosanders
(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock Pool
4 Great Crested Grebes
(Ed Wilson)

Hortonwood
21 Redwings
(Dave Tromans)

2013
Priorslee Lake
Glaucous Gull
(Observer Unknown)

The Flash
Drake Scaup
(Richard Vernon)

2012
Priorslee Lake
1 Glaucous Gull
1 Caspian Gull
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Observer Unknown)

2010
Priorslee Lake
2 Wigeon
55 Pochard
104 Tufted Duck
1 Common Gull
2 Ravens
22 Linnets
(Ed Wilson)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Iceland Gull
200 Black-headed Gulls
400 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
20 Herring Gulls
1 Yellow-legged Gull
Glaucous Gull
(Ed Wilson, Martin Adlam)

2008
Priorslee Lake
Iceland Gull
(Pete Nickless)

2007
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe
3 Cormorant
5 Pochard
9 Tufted Duck
2 Kestrel
556 Wood Pigeon
27 Robin
23 Blackbird
1 Fieldfare
14 Redwing
47 Magpie
100 Jackdaw
96 Rook
16 Greenfinch
3 Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Little Grebes
6 Great Crested Grebes
1 Heron
2 Cormorants
9 Pochard
36 Tufted Ducks
3 Water Rails
c.420 Wood Pigeon
c.60 Starling
29 Pied Wagtails
23 Blackbirds
6 Greenfinches
17 Siskins
1 Redpoll
6 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)