19 Oct 24

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

11.0°C > 13.0°C: Early heavy rain delayed the start of the visit. Medium overcast gradually replaced from the West by clear skies. Light wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 07:44 BST

* = a species photographed today.

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:55 – 09:20

(222nd visit of the year)

I did wonder whether birds might be on the move as soon as the rain stopped. Apparently not.

Bird notes:
- one of the Canada Geese had a darkly tinted chinstrap. It never posed for a photo. I recall a similar bird at Trench Lock Pool many years ago.
- there were very few Lesser Black-backed Gulls early and none was brave enough to settle on the water so they all flew on. It was several Herring Gulls that paved the way for a small arrival of both species much later.

Counts of birds noted flying over:
- 18 Wood Pigeons
- 23 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Common Buzzard
- 206 Jackdaws
- 4 Rooks only
- 3 Pied Wagtails

Birds seen leaving roost around the lake:
None, but 1 Reed Bunting heard at West end roost site but not seen

Warblers noted (the figure in brackets relates to birds heard singing):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler

Counts from the lake area:
- 16 Canada Goose: of these five departed together
- 19 Mute Swans
- 2 (1♂) Mallard
- 6 (4?♂) Tufted Duck
- 8 Moorhens
- 184 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- c.150 Black-headed Gulls
- 8 Herring Gulls
- 8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron

Street lamps poles pre-dawn:
Not visited

Sailing Club
Not visited

Noted later:

Moths:
- *1 November Moth-type Epirrita dilutata agg. Still on a street lamp pole at c.09:00

Flies:
- 1 fly Opomyza florum

No sunrise today! The early rain clearing to the East.

The result of all the rain. The entry stream in to the lake is a very muddy brown. The Wesley Brook from The Flash is clear water. By the Teece Drive there are several other sluices emptying in to it and whenever it rains hard these run brown.

As the cloud cleared the now waning and slightly lop-sided Harvest Moon could be seen.

The only insect I noted of interest here was this November Moth-type Epirrita dilutata agg. which was still on a street lamp pole at c.09:00.

(Ed Wilson)

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Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Not visited today.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:25 – 10:40

(225th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- A more accurate count of most things was possible this morning. Nothing of special note.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 2 Jackdaws

Noted on / around the water:
- 7 Canada Geese: flew in together
- 6 + 3 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 31 (20♂) Mallard
- 8 (?♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (0♂) Goosander
- 10 Moorhens
- 138 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- 1 Black-headed Gull

Noted around The Flash:

Bees, wasps etc.:
- *1 Honey Bee Apis mellifera
- *>30 Common Wasps Paravespula vulgaris

Flies:
- *1 Common Blow Fly Calliphora vicina

Beetles:
- 1 Alder Leaf Beetle Agelastica alni

Bugs:
- *1 Hawthorn Shieldbug Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale
- *>10 Nettle Groundbugs Heterogaster urticae
- *1 adult and 1 nymph Common Nettle Bug Liocoris tripustulatus
- *3 adult Common Green Shieldbugs Palomena prasina

The Ivy is just beginning to flower and attracting insects. I noted just this one Honey Bee Apis mellifera.

At least 30 Common Wasps Paravespula vulgaris were in attendance.

Also one Common Blow Fly Calliphora vicina. And no: it is not blowing a bubble - that is part of an Ivy flower behind the fly that appears to be at its mouth.

Basking in the sun on a street lamp pole in squirrel alley was this Hawthorn Shieldbug Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale.

Six for the price of one! From the bottom: an adult Common Green Shieldbug Palomena prasina; two friendly adult Nettle Groundbugs Heterogaster urticae; what I believe to be, on the basis of the banded antennae and legs, a nymph of a Common Nettle Bug Liocoris tripustulatus; and bits of two more adult Nettle Groundbugs just disappearing from view.

With the same striped antennae and legs is an adult Common Nettle Bug.

(Ed Wilson)

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Sightings from previous years

2009
Priorslee Lake
63 Mute Swan
7 Wigeon
14 Pochard
26 Tufted Duck
c.600 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
6 Herring Gull
1 Yellow Legged Gull
27 Redwings
3 Fieldfare
2 Willow Tits
(Mike Cooper / Ed Wilson)

2008
Priorslee Lake
>100 Tufted Duck
2 Water Rail
107 Redwings
176 Fieldfare
19 Siskins
4 Skylarks
3 Meadow Pipits
2 Redpolls
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
2 Shoveler
37 Redwing
1 Fieldfare
250+ Starlings in the roost
11 Pochard
48 Tufted Duck
202 Coot
5 Moorhen
(Ed Wilson)