9 May 24

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

11.0°C > 16.0°C: An area of cloud again prevented any colourful sunrise. Otherwise mainly sunny. Light north-easterly wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 05:23 BST

* = a species photographed today
! = a new species for me here this year
!! = a new species for me in Shropshire

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 05:05 – 06:10 // 07:15 – 09:40

(101st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- after yesterday's correction indicating the resident Canada Geese had seven goslings they certainly had only six today.
- the resident Greylag Geese still have five goslings.
- three Mute Swans visited and were chased away.
- what I assume was 'our' Lesser Whitethroat was singing quietly at 05:05. I did not hear it again.

Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 2 Canada Geese: single outbound and single inbound
- 2 Greylag Geese: pair inbound
- 17 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Jackdaw

Hirundines etc.
None Where are they all?

Warblers noted (the figure in brackets relates to birds heard singing):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 18 (17) Chiffchaffs
- 9 (9) Reed Warblers
- 18 (16) Blackcaps
- no Lesser Whitethroat
- no Common Whitethroat
'nominal' warbler:
- 4 (4) Goldcrests

Counts from the lake area:
- 6 + 6 (1 brood) Canada Geese: two additional pairs throughout
- 2 + 5 (1 brood) Greylag Geese
- 5 Mute Swans: see notes
- 5 (4♂) Mallard
- 2 Moorhens
- 25 + 1 (1 brood) Coots
- 7 Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adults, briefly

Seen on the street lamps poles pre-dawn:

Arthropod:
- 1 Blunt-tailed Snake Millipede Cylindroiulus punctatus

Spiders:
- 1 Stout Sac Spider Clubiona sp.

Noted later:

Moths:
- Common Nettle-tap Anthophila fabriciana

Bees, wasps etc.
- probable Flavous Nomad Bee Nomada flava
- !Bramble Sawfly Arge cyanocrocea
- !!sawfly Athalia cordata

Hoverflies:
- Spring Epistrophe Epistrophe elegans [Spring Smoothtail]
- Blotch-winged Hoverfly Leucozona lucorum [Blotch-winged Whitebelt]
- Chequered Hoverfly Melanostoma scalare [Long-winged Duskyface]
- Grey-spotted Boxer Platycheirus albimanus [Grey-spotted Sedgesitter or White-footed Hoverfly]
- !Common Twist-tail Sphaerophoria scripta [Long Hoverfly]
- Syrphus sp. S. ribesii / S. vitripennis
- !*Orange-belted Leafwalker Xylota segnis

Dragon-/damsel-flies:
- !Common Blue Damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum
- Large Red Damselfly Pyrrhosoma nymphula

Other flies:
- Common Crane-fly Tipula oleracea

Bugs:
- Red-and-Black Froghopper Cercopis vulnerata
- Dock Bug Coreus marginatus

Beetles:
- Alder Leaf Beetle Agelastica alni: very many
- Raspberry Beetle Byturus tomentosus
- Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis var. succinea

Molluscs:
- !!Greenhouse Slug Ambigolimax valentianus
- !!Ash-black Slug Limax cinereoniger
- Kentish Snail Monacha cantiana

Spiders:
- Bridge Orb-web Spider Larinioides sclopetarius
- Nursery Web Spider Pisaura mirabilis
- Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.

Flowers:
- Hawthorn Crataegus monogyna flower
- Common Hogweed Heracleum sphondylium: first of the new generation.

These are the two adult Greylag Geese with five goslings. Note the closer bird has started its post-breeding wing moult. How will it teach the goslings to fly? Always assuming that the cob Mute Swan does not drown them first.

The visiting trio of Mute Swans arrive.

A Goldfinch in the sun.

With long antennae this is not a bee or a wasp but one of their allies: a sawfly. This is a Bramble Sawfly Arge cyanocrocea

 ...whereas this sawfly has a dark line along the side of the abdomen and seems to be Athalia cordata.

I can only assume this is a Common Twist-tail hoverfly Sphaerophoria scripta. It has much reduced yellow markings. I cannot match it against it with any other species in the genus.

My first Common Blue Damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum of the year on exactly the same date as I saw my first in 2023. Not very 'blue' at the moment. All damselflies are pale when they first emerge.

You might think damselflies are rather benign and gentle creatures. The cranefly can testify otherwise. In fact dragon- and damsel-flies are all voracious predators. This view shows the strange black bands across the damselfly's eyes.

One of many slugs I found on the wall of the sailing club HQ. I think this is a Greenhouse Slug Ambigolimax valentianus.

 A different species. I think this is an Ash-black Slug Limax cinereoniger.

 This Nursery Web Spider Pisaura mirabilis seems to have crossed its fingers in the hope of luring some prey.

A Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp. has wrapped up its prey. Looks to be an interesting hoverfly. I cannot positively identify it.

Some of the Hawthorn bushes Crataegus monogyna are in full flower.

My first new-of-the-year Common Hogweed Heracleum sphondylium. A few made it through the winter looking very sad.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Flies:
- 2 craneflies Tipula lateralis

Arthropod:
- 1 Blunt-tailed Snake Millipede Cylindroiulus punctatus

Spiders:
- 1 Stout Sac Spider Clubiona sp.

A complete cranefly Tipula lateralis.

And an incomplete one, the victim of a spider's web.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Flash: 06:15 – 07:10

(102nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- main news is that I seem to have been confused by the Mute Swans. There is a fifth immature and the resident pen is still on the nest. Indeed I was told that during yesterday she appeared with six or seven cygnets in tow. They were back being brooded on the island this morning.
- a new brood of just three Mallard ducklings.
- only one pair of Great Crested Grebes noted.
- no Willow Warblers heard singing.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
None

Warblers noted (the figure in brackets relates to birds heard singing):
- 6 (6) Chiffchaffs
- 5 (4) Blackcaps
'nominal' warbler:
- 1 (1) Goldcrest

Noted on / around the water:
- 18 Canada Geese
- 4 Greylag Geese
- 6 Mute Swans seen: but see notes
- 16 (12♂) + 3 (1 brood) Mallard
- no Tufted Duck
- 2 Moorhens
- 22 + >3 (3 broods) Coots: one brood only heard
- 2 Great Crested Grebes

Noted elsewhere around The Flash:

Flies:
- caddisfly Tinodes waeneri

 A record shot only: a trio of Mallard ducklings. My third brood this year.

Some of the marked trees at the top end: presumably for felling?

And some more. I had a good look at these trees. Most (all?) are Ash trees. They seem to be very little affected by ash die-back.

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sightings from previous years

2013
Priorslee Lake
Shelduck
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Priorslee Lake
Grasshopper Warbler
(John Isherwood)

2009
Nedge Hill
Whinchat
Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

2008
Priorslee Lake
Arctic Tern
(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill
2 Wheatear
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
2 Ruddy Ducks
(Ed Wilson)