23 Aug 24

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

14.0°C > 16.0°C: Rain just ceasing as I arrived. Thereafter mostly scattered cloud. Initially fresh southerly wind increasing to squally gale-force winds c.06:00 (gusts to Force 10 at Shawbury) before gradually ameliorating and veering westerly to become fresh gusting strong. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 06:06 BST

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

Not too much significance should be read in to today's totals. Small birds were cowering and the noise of the leaves made hearing them a challenge.

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 05:10 – 06:20 // 07:15 – 09:50

(182nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- at c.05:45 and ahead of the strongest winds a group of 26 Canada Geese (and two Mallard) flew in from the East and splashed down. By 07:35 there were just 10 Canada Geese on the water. Were these some of the same? Then 16 more flew in, again from the East. Were these the sixteen that had gone missing?
- a bumper number of Mallard. There were at least four present when I arrived. Then, as noted above, two more flew in with Canada Geese. A few minutes later 20 more flew in together from the East. At 07:40 I counted 33 present.
- *a strange sight of 17 Cormorants flying high South in a group.
- even the Jackdaws, which normally seem to play in the wind, seemed to be struggling.
- a single Starling was with seven Pied Wagtails on the football field c.07:25. Unusual to see this usually gregarious species on its own.

Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 39 Canada Geese: 20 outbound in two groups; 10 inbound in two groups
- 53 Greylag Geese: all inbound in four groups
- 6 Feral Pigeons: together
- 1 Stock Dove
- 81 Wood Pigeons
- 5 Herring Gulls
- 44 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- *17 Cormorants: together!
- 24 Jackdaws
- 14 Rooks

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 1 Barn Swallow: flew low West over the football field at 07:30

Warblers noted (the figure in brackets relates to birds heard singing):
- 8 (1) Chiffchaffs
- 3 (0) Reed Warblers
- 1 (0) Blackcap
'nominal' warbler:
- 1 (0) Goldcrest

Counts from the lake area:
- >26 Canada Geese: see notes
- 2 Mute Swans
- 33 (?♂) Mallard
- 6 adult and juvenile Moorhens
- 80 adult and juvenile Coots
- 2 + 1 (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 8 Black-headed Gulls on the lake c.05:45: 31 on the football field c.06:10
- 3 Herring Gulls: also two adults on the football field c.06:10
- 15 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron

Noted on the street lamps poles pre-dawn:

Moths:
- *1 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]

Spiders, harvestmen etc.
- *1 Common Candy-striped Spider Enoplognatha ovata or similar
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spiders Larinioides sclopetarius
- 2 harvestmen Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus

Sailing Club HQ
I again prowled around the outside of the sailing club HQ pre-dawn:

Spiders:
- many small spiders "blowing in the wind" and unidentifiable

Noted later:
Remaining very windy.

Butterflies:
- *Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria

Bees, wasps etc.:
- Honey Bee Apis mellifera

Hoverflies:

The first name is that used by Stephen Falk. The name in square brackets is that given by Obsidentify or other sources if different. Scientific names are normally common. The species are presented in alphabetic order of those scientific names.
- Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus
- *Stripe-faced Dronefly Eristalis nemorum [Stripe-faced Drone Fly]
- Tapered Dronefly Eristalis pertinax
- *Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax

Damsel- / Dragon-flies:
- *Common Blue Damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum

Other flies:
- *Flesh Fly Sarcophaga, perhaps S. carnaria
- *Tachinid fly Thelaira nigripes
- *European Cranefly Tipula paludosa
- plus the usual array of unidentified species.

Bugs:
- Dock Bug Coreus marginatus
- *possible Red-legged Shieldbug Pentatoma rufipes instar
- *!Spiked Shieldbug Picromerus bidens

Molluscs:
- (Great) Black Slug Arion agg.
- White-lipped Snail Cepaea hortensis

The Sturgeon Moon is already looking very lopsided.

After the rain and before the storm whipped up white crests on the lake.

After the worst of the storm passed the debris on Teece Drive.

Most odd: a flock(?) of 17 Cormorants high overhead. The largest number of this species I have seen together for a while.

One of two Speckled Wood butterflies Pararge aegeria this morning.

And the other. This very fresh specimen clearly shows the white edging to the wings that it not always apparent.

This Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella seemed to be sitting out the rain and wind on one of the street lamp poles.

The white bands between the tergites on this dronefly identify it as a Stripe-faced Dronefly Eristalis nemorum.

Not a Stripe-faced Dronefly: it is a male Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax. This species also has a stripe on its face!

A female Common Dronefly.

As is this. Not that from this angle the thorax has faint markings similar to a Dead-head Hoverfly Myathropa florea.

And yet another with even stronger markings. Note at the very top left a tiny bug...

 ...and here it is: the best photo I could manage. This may just be an early instar Red-legged Shieldbug Pentatoma rufipes. There seem to be no photos of very early instars on the internet.

Final female Common Dronefly. The extent of the orange markings on the abdomen are very variable on this species.

A male Common Blue Damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum: the only damselfly I noted this morning.

A stunning-looking fly. It is one of the flesh flies from the genus Sarcophaga, perhaps S. carnaria.

Another delightful-looking insect is the Tachinid fly Thelaira nigripes.

A European Cranefly Tipula paludosa.

A Spiked Shieldbug Picromerus bidens. Note the 'spiky shoulders'.

A Common Candy-striped Spider Enoplognatha ovata or similar. As so often specific identify requires more detailed examination.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Moths:
- none

Flies:
- unknown fly sp.

Other things:
- 6 White-legged Snake Millipedes Tachypodoiulus niger

Spiders:
- *1 Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata [Silver-sided Sector Spider]

I can't get an identity for this fly. It seems unusual in that the wings are very much longer than its abdomen.

A Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata joins the missing limb club even when it is putting its best foot forward.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:25 – 07:10

(185th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the single Greylag Goose was yet again on the East side grass. It did not seek to join the other Greylags.
- the two extra sub-adult Mute Swans remain.
- as soon as I could see the whole of the water I counted 171 Black-headed Gulls. A stream of gulls had been leaving while I was positioning and there must have been at least 200 present earlier.
- I did not hear the Willow Warbler. In the conditions it is best not to draw any conclusion.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Hirundines etc. noted:
None

Warblers noted (the figure in brackets relates to birds heard singing):
- 3 (0) Chiffchaffs
'nominal' warbler:
- no Goldcrests

Noted on / around the water:
- 8 Canada Geese
- 33 Greylag Goose: some of these departed
- 4 + 3 (1 brood) Mute Swan
- 28 (?♂) Mallard
- 37 (?♂) Tufted Duck
- 6 Moorhens
- 52 + 6 (3 broods) Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- >200 Black-headed Gulls: see notes
- 1 Grey Heron

Noted elsewhere around The Flash:

Moths:
- none

Spiders, harvestmen etc.
- 1 harvestman Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus

Fungus:
- *Blushing Milkcap Lactarius controversus [Poplar Milkcap Lactifluus controversus]

This fungus seems to be Blushing Milkcap Lactarius controversus. It is also known as Poplar Milkcap. This fungus always appears around the roots of these trees in early Autumn. Obsidentify used the scientific name Lactifluus controversus which does not appear on the internet!

(Ed Wilson)

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Sightings from previous years

2013
Nedge Hill
1 Redstart
(John Isherwood)

2006
Priorslee Lake
3 Common Terns
(Ed Wilson)