18 Nov 24

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

5.0°C: Weird weather: broken cloud early with two light showers: clear for a while: the low cloud rolled in and descended in to fog for a while before lifting and breaking. Very light northerly wind. Very good visibility except very poor during foggy spell.

Sunrise: 07:39 GMT

* = a photo to be uploaded later: watch the blog for information.

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:05 – 09:15

(251st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the drake Eurasian Wigeon was, as yesterday, calling while it was still dark. I saw it soon thereafter but not later. Did it leave?
- a brownhead Goosander dropped in at 08:35, staying less than 10 minutes.
- this year most of the Coots seem to be roosting in the north-east reeds. Previously more have been in the north-west area.
- yet another change with the early gull arrival. The first tranche of c.75 Black-headed Gulls arrived c.06:45. Conversely there was but a lone Lesser Black-backed Gull late in at 07:15 (with just 13 others flying over).

Birds noted flying over:
- 3 Stock Doves: a single and a duo
- 22 Wood Pigeons
- 35 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 70 Jackdaws
- 2 Rooks
- 1 Siskin

Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:

None

Counts from the lake area:
- 56 Canada Geese: five present at dawn departed; a group of 51 flew in with...
- 4 Greylag Geese
- 21 + 2 Mute Swans
- 1 (1♂) Eurasian Wigeon: departed?
- 8 (6♂) Mallard
- *8 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (0) Goosander: came and went
- 7 Moorhens
- 227 Coots
- 5 Great Crested Grebes
- c.180 Black-headed Gulls
- *8 Herring Gulls
- 8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- *1 Cormorant: arrived

Noted on the street lamps poles pre-dawn:

Moths:
- *1 Northern Winter Moth Operophtera fagata
- *2 Winter Moths Operophtera brumata

Bees, wasps etc.:
- *1 small ichneumon

Flies:
- 2 winter craneflies

Springtails:
- 1 globular springtail

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.

Telford Sailing Club

Around the outside of the Telford Sailing Club HQ pre-dawn:

Flies:
- 1 cranefly

Barkflies:
- 1 Valenzuela flavidus

Slugs, snails etc.:
- 1 'small black slug'
- *1 possible Hairy Snail Trochulus hispidus

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 7 spiders of several species not identified

Later:

Nothing noted

The last "supermoon" of the year now waning. The origin of its popular name, Badger Moon, does not have universal acceptance. It is also known as the Frost Moon which, if the weather forecast is correct, may be more apposite. Glimpsed here through a gap in the clouds.

Sunrise – sort of.

The black at the bend of the wing; the darker area of the inner wing and the extensive black on the bill point to this Herring Gull being a third winter bird. I have never noticed the dark / white tips to all the secondaries before. It would probably not be apparent on a flying bird.

A duck Tufted Duck flying around.

The white spotting on the belly identifies this Cormorant as immature. Second or, more likely, third winter.

Two Winter Moths Operophtera brumata were on the street lamp poles pre-dawn. Here is #1.

A close up of #2 which was handily at eye-level.

Moth #3 today. This is a Northern Winter Moth O. fagata. This species is slightly larger and at rest the hindwings noticeably project beyond the folded forewings.

A very small ichneumon found pre-dawn. The usual background is the smart lamp identification label of the new replacement street lamp.

My best suggestion for this tiny snail is Hairy Snail Trochulus hispidus. It really ought to be a "Serrated Snail" but there doesn't appear to be such a species.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:20 – 10:25

(254th visit of the year)

The changing visibility levels hampered the counting and there may be some under-recording.

Bird notes:
- three drake Shoveler in full breeding plumage. I was not sure about the other immature-types as the mist was too thick to see them properly.
- it was a duck Common Teal lurking by the island and the mist cleared. Where was/were the drake(s)?
- also a brownhead Goosander by the island. The one seen at the Balancing Lake earlier?

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 1 Jackdaw

Noted on / around the water:
- 44 Canada Geese
- *6 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 6 (3?♂) Shoveler
- 39 (25♂) Mallard
- 1 (0♂) Common Teal
- 41 (24?♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (0♂) Goosander
- 23 Moorhens
- 109 Coots
- *21 Black-headed Gulls
- *1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: adult
- 1 Grey Heron

Noted around The Flash:

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 2 harvestmen Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus

At least you can see some of the Mute Swans through the murk. This is it getting better.

A couple of likely lassies. The front one is developing the small tuft on the nape that is shown by all adult duck Tufted Ducks.

No: I did not rotate the photo. The adult Lesser Black-backed Gull has been watching the Red Arrows. Note its head it rotated so that it is almost horizontal. The Black-headed Gull is not so aerobatic.

The rounded wings of Jay are well illustrated here. A bit more light would have helped but Microsoft Photos has done a very acceptable job.

(Ed Wilson)

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2013
Priorslee Lake
1 Wigeon
5 Gadwall
2 Teal
1 Pochard
102 Tufted Duck
1 Water Rail
229 Coots
1 Snipe
>500 Starlings
127 Fieldfare
7 Redwings
99 Jackdaws
1 Brambling
1 Yellowhammer
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Newport
1 Waxwing
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake
1 Adult Yellow legged Gull
(John Isherwood)

Priorslee Flash
1 adult Yellow legged Gull
2 female Goosander
(John Isherwood)

2006
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe
36 Pochard
49 Tufted Duck
1 Ruddy Duck
11 Lapwings
1 Woodcock
c.1700 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
>600 Black-headed Gulls
5 Herring Gull
1 Yellow-legged Gull
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
910 Wood Pigeons
22 Robins
21 Blackbirds
258 Fieldfares
13 Redwings
201 Jackdaws
158 Rooks
348 Starlings
4 Reed Buntings
(Martin Adlam / Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
c.1000 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
c.1500 Black-headed Gulls
10 Herring Gull
2 Yellow-legged Gulls
1 Wigeon
(Martin Adlam)