Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:00 – 09:15
The Flash: 09:20 – 10:358.0°C > 10.0°C: A half-decent sunrise: mostly cloudy at medium/high with some lower patches. Very good visibility becoming good. Light westerly wind.
Sunrise: 07:26 GMT
* = a photo to be uploaded later: watch the blog for information.
Priorslee Balancing Lake:
(244th visit of the year)
A typical busy Autumn morning overhead though it did not last long and the number of birds in the groups was mostly small.
Bird notes:
- two of the adult Mute Swans went for an extended fly-about before returning.
- *the Great (White) Egret was present again, flying off West of its own volition at 07:25.
- a group of ten Goosanders flew East at 07:45, splitting in to groups of eight and two. At least two were drakes. *Then a few minutes later two more brownheads flew low through, also going East.
- some of the Wood Pigeons not in the migrant parties were nevertheless singles flying unusually high. In the past I have noted that sometimes these are chasing to catch up with parties I had not previously noted. Not today: just lonesome individuals.
- the Wood Pigeons parties were all smaller than often at this date. Also they were flying to all points of the compass and not all southbound as is usual.
- only c.100 Black-headed Gulls arrived in dribs and drabs. Long after they had begun to disperse a group of 32 arrived high from the north-west: they may or may not have been new arrivals.
- I was apparently well-position to see the roost-departing Rooks and Jackdaws. I saw very few: I did hear one flock of Jackdaws but could not locate it.
Birds noted flying over:
- 3 Canada Geese: flew South together
- 3 Greylag Geese: inbound together
- *12 (2?♂) Goosanders: see notes
- 11 Stock Doves: two singles, two duos, a trio and two in with Wood Pigeons
- 251 Wood Pigeons: of these 196 flew over in 11 migrant parties
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 10 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 6 Jackdaws
- 6 Rooks
- 10 Starlings: three groups
- 17 Fieldfares: four groups
- 31 Redwings: two groups
- 1 Pied Wagtail
- 1 Siskin
- 8 finch sp., together. Too much road noise to hear their flight calls and identify them
Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:
- c.35 Starlings: one group
- 2 Reed Buntings: together
Counts from the lake area:
- 25 Canada Geese: 23 present at dawn apparently stayed throughout; two more arrived together
- 22 + 2 Mute Swans
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall: departed? hid?
- 12 (8♂) Mallard
- 7 (5♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 Moorhens
- 223 Coots
- 4 Great Crested Grebes
- c.100 Black-headed Gulls: see notes
- 7 Herring Gulls
- 24 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron
- *1 Great (White) Egret: departed
Noted on the street lamps poles pre-dawn:
Moths:
- *1 Common Brindled Brown Agonopterix heracliana [was known s Common Flat-body]
- *2 Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria
Flies:
- 2 plumed midges
- 2 male Spotted-winged Drosophila Drosophila suzukii
- *1 cranefly Tipula confusa
- 1 male cranefly Tipula pagana
Springtails:
- *1 springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis-type
Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spider Larinioides sclopetarius
- *1 small spider possibly Steatoda bipunctata
- *1 harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis
Around the outside of the Telford Sailing Club HQ pre-dawn:
Flies:
- 1 unknown fly-type
- 4 other small midges etc.
Barkflies:
- 16 Valenzuela flavidus
Slugs, snails etc.:.
- *1 small black slugs Arion sp.
- *1 probable Greenhouse Slug Ambigolimax valentianus
Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 12 spiders of several species including
*1 male Neriene montana
Noted later on Teece Drive fence:
Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 harvestman Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus
In the Priorslee Avenue Tunnel pre dawn:
not visited this morning
The Flash:
(247th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- the cob Mute Swan was being aggressive towards his cygnets again.
- now three Common Teal, only one drake. Perhaps there always has been that number for a while.
- a Coot was seen frantically building its nest. Every time it dived and emerged with vegetation it was assailed by the Black-headed Gulls trying to steal the 'food'.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Starling
- 17 Redwings: together
Noted on / around the water:
The totals have to be treated with some caution: someone flew a drone over the water causing birds to scatter
- 1 Canada Goose
- 4 Greylag Geese
- 6 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 27 (16♂) Mallard
- 3 (1♂) Common Teal
- *29 (16♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (0♂) Goosander: arrived
- 16 Moorhens
- 131 Coots
- 1 Little Grebe: heard only
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 21 Black-headed Gulls
- *3 Herring Gulls: two adult; one second winter
- *2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: second winters
- 1 Grey Heron: departed
Noted around The Flash:
Bees, wasps etc.:
- 2 Common Wasps Paravespula vulgaris
Springtails:
- *1 globular springtail probably Dicrytoma fusca
- *1 other springtail just possibly Heteromurus major
Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 harvestman Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus
- 1 harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis
(Ed Wilson)