2.0°C > 3.0°C: The Telford microclimate wins again. Thin medium overcast at home: mist and low cloud at the lake with the mist lifting to give a brief red sunrise, only for low cloud to dominate again. Rain after 09:15 (10:30 it forecast on my app.). Light south-easterly wind. Poor visibility becoming good.
Sunrise: 07:00 GMT
* = a species photographed today
There will be no report for the next few days while, weather permitting, I pursue my aviation pastime.
Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:00 – 09:10
(44th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- only one of the Mute Swan cygnets noted. That made several flights including leaving to the West for a while – the first time I have seen either of the cygnets beyond the environs of the water. It soon returned to be further chased by the cob. Where was the other one?
- many of the Black-headed Gulls barely had time to sit on the water before they were off again.
- *today the Cetti's Warbler seemed to make two anti-clockwise circumnavigations of the lake. Either that or there are now two birds.
Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 2 Stock Doves: together
- 28 Wood Pigeons
- 16 Black-headed Gulls
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 5 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 7 Jackdaws
- 3 Rooks
- 2 Pied Wagtails
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 + 1 Mute Swans: see notes
- 5 (3♂) Mallard
- 20 (13♂) Tufted Duck
- 10 Moorhens
- 47 Coots
- Little Grebe heard only
- no Great Crested Grebes
- 108 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately
- 1 Grey Heron
Noted on or around the street lamp poles pre-dawn:
Moths:
- *1 Dotted Border Agriopis marginaria
- *1 Dotted Border Agriopis marginaria
Other things:
- 3 differently-sized springtails
Later:
- 3 differently-sized springtails
Later:
Nothing noted
The mist began to lift and the appearance of a red sky caught me badly positioned for a photo.
Jays are always wary and tend to perch where they can see you but are mostly hidden behind branches.
A Dotted Border Agriopis marginaria. It was under the horizontal part of the street lamp holding the LED array. A specimen with the clearest 'dotted border' I have seen this year.
The Flash: 09:15– 10:00
(46th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- the cob Mute Swan has stopped chasing the geese and is now trying to persuade last year's cygnets to leave. He seems to split one away from the other three. Whether it is always the same one is impossible to say. Perhaps it is the only male cygnet a therefore more of a threat?
- I have no idea why there were many fewer Coots today. Perhaps they were doing what I should have been doing – sheltering from the rain.
- back in January I noted a female Great Spotted Woodpecker excavating a nest hole in a tree at the top end. Since then I have neither seen nor heard any woodpeckers here (or at the Balancing Lake). Neither have I been able to relocate the tree with the nest hole. I hope it was not one of the trees 'thinned' by council contractors.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
Singles of both Herring (on the left) and Lesser Black-backed Gulls were here today. A few black marks in the Herring Gull's tail suggests a third year bird. The solid dark tail band on the Lesser Black-back suggests a second year bird. This is a different bird to that seen yesterday which was an adult.
The Lesser Black-backed Gull rested on the water close to the bank but flew away just as I pressed the shutter (or whatever passes for that on modern cameras). Here it is evident the tail band is not as neat as it appear on a flying bird when the tail feathers are held closed.
As it settles back on the water with wings fully spread note that the inner webs of the inner primaries are pale. On a Herring Gull the whole inner primaries would appear pale, not just the inner webs. Note too that the secondary feathers are not solid black as they often appear to be: they have paler tips and outer fringes.
(Ed Wilson)
Sightings from previous years
2014
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
2 Iceland Gulls
(Observer Unknown)
2013
Priorslee Lake
31 Wigeon
7 Gadwall
5 Pochard
18 Tufted Ducks
1 Greater Scaup
2 Lapwings
c.1600 Black-headed Gulls
c.800 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.100 Herring Gulls
1 Iceland
1 Glaucous Gull
1 Caspian Gull
1 Yellow-legged Gull
38 Redwings
2 Fieldfare
15 Siskins
(Ed Wilson, Martin Grant, Tom Lowe)
The Flash
1 Little Grebe
10 Pochard
123 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)
Trench Lock Pool
21 Tufted Duck
1 Goosander
(Ed Wilson)
Horsehay Pool
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Tom Lowe)
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
2 Yellow-legged Gulls.
(Tom Lowe)
2012
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebes
3 Pochard
32 Tufted Duck
4 Curlew
2 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)
Trench Lock
26 Tufted Duck
9 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
13 Herring Gulls
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Ed Wilson)
2010
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe as noted
6 Great Crested Grebes
4 Gadwall
39 Pochard
57 Tufted Ducks
99 Coots
29 Blackbirds
4 Redwing
8 Song Thrushes
22 Siskins
3 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)
2009
Priorslee Lake
Common Gull
6 Ravens
(Ed Wilson)
Woodhouse Lane
Stonechat
(John Isherwood)
2007
Priorslee Lake
4 Cormorant
2 Pochard
15 Tufted Duck
1 Ruddy Duck
1 Peregrine Falcon
26 Robin
11 Redwing
63 Magpie
196 Jackdaw
12 Greenfinch
10 Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Little Grebes
6 Great Crested Grebes
2 Cormorants
7 Pochard
35 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
800 Wood Pigeon
142 Starlings
14 Pied Wagtails
18 Robins
20 Blackbirds
11 Fieldfare
10 Song Thrushes
2 Willow Tits
15 Greenfinches
11 Siskins
7 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)
(Ed Wilson)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Flash: 09:15– 10:00
(46th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- the cob Mute Swan has stopped chasing the geese and is now trying to persuade last year's cygnets to leave. He seems to split one away from the other three. Whether it is always the same one is impossible to say. Perhaps it is the only male cygnet a therefore more of a threat?
- I have no idea why there were many fewer Coots today. Perhaps they were doing what I should have been doing – sheltering from the rain.
- back in January I noted a female Great Spotted Woodpecker excavating a nest hole in a tree at the top end. Since then I have neither seen nor heard any woodpeckers here (or at the Balancing Lake). Neither have I been able to relocate the tree with the nest hole. I hope it was not one of the trees 'thinned' by council contractors.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
None
Noted on / around the water:
- 19 Canada Geese
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall
- 25 (17♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck
- 61 (36♂) Tufted Duck
- 10 Moorhens
- 29 Coots
- 3 Black-headed Gulls
- *1 Herring Gull
- *1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
Of note:
Noted on / around the water:
- 19 Canada Geese
- 2 + 4 Mute Swans
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall
- 25 (17♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) all-white feral duck
- 61 (36♂) Tufted Duck
- 10 Moorhens
- 29 Coots
- 3 Black-headed Gulls
- *1 Herring Gull
- *1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
Of note:
Nothing else
Wings wide apart.
(Ed Wilson)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sightings from previous years
2014
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
2 Iceland Gulls
(Observer Unknown)
2013
Priorslee Lake
31 Wigeon
7 Gadwall
5 Pochard
18 Tufted Ducks
1 Greater Scaup
2 Lapwings
c.1600 Black-headed Gulls
c.800 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.100 Herring Gulls
1 Iceland
1 Glaucous Gull
1 Caspian Gull
1 Yellow-legged Gull
38 Redwings
2 Fieldfare
15 Siskins
(Ed Wilson, Martin Grant, Tom Lowe)
The Flash
1 Little Grebe
10 Pochard
123 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)
Trench Lock Pool
21 Tufted Duck
1 Goosander
(Ed Wilson)
Horsehay Pool
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Tom Lowe)
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
2 Yellow-legged Gulls.
(Tom Lowe)
2012
Priorslee Lake
4 Great Crested Grebes
3 Pochard
32 Tufted Duck
4 Curlew
2 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)
Trench Lock
26 Tufted Duck
9 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
13 Herring Gulls
1 Yellow-legged Gull
(Ed Wilson)
2010
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe as noted
6 Great Crested Grebes
4 Gadwall
39 Pochard
57 Tufted Ducks
99 Coots
29 Blackbirds
4 Redwing
8 Song Thrushes
22 Siskins
3 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)
2009
Priorslee Lake
Common Gull
6 Ravens
(Ed Wilson)
Woodhouse Lane
Stonechat
(John Isherwood)
2007
Priorslee Lake
4 Cormorant
2 Pochard
15 Tufted Duck
1 Ruddy Duck
1 Peregrine Falcon
26 Robin
11 Redwing
63 Magpie
196 Jackdaw
12 Greenfinch
10 Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Little Grebes
6 Great Crested Grebes
2 Cormorants
7 Pochard
35 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
800 Wood Pigeon
142 Starlings
14 Pied Wagtails
18 Robins
20 Blackbirds
11 Fieldfare
10 Song Thrushes
2 Willow Tits
15 Greenfinches
11 Siskins
7 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)