30 Nov 24

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

10.0°C > 12.0°C: Much low cloud with light drizzle early. Some clear spells seen to the south-east never made it. Almost calm. Good visibility with light mist over the water for a while.

Sunrise: 07:58 GMT

* = a species photographed today

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:00 – 09:20

(261st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- perhaps it was yesterday's extra adult Mute Swan that was hard to find: it was resting on the bank of the Wesley Brook while all the other non-residents were on the south-west grass. I hope it is alright.
- at least 250 Lesser Black-backed Gulls had arrived by 07:15 at which time some started to leave to the South. Soon after >50 birds arrived, mainly from the South. After 08:45 >50 arrived mainly from the East. I have assumed all these were different birds. Always a few Herring Gulls in with these groups.
- the Great (White) Egret still present.
- I was not surprised that the mild conditions had encouraged a Song Thrush to sing. I was not expecting to hear a Blackbird at this date, albeit it was only singing quietly.

Birds noted flying over:
- 3 (2♂) Goosanders: West together 08:10
- 12 Wood Pigeons
- 3 Herring Gulls
- 26 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 29 Jackdaws
- 59 Rooks
- 3 Starlings
- 1 Lesser Redpoll

Counts from the lake area:
- 1 Canada Goose
- *21 + 2 Mute Swans
- 2 (1♂) Gadwall
- 6 (5♂) Mallard
- 3 (2♂) Pochard
- 13 (5♂) Tufted Duck
- 6 Moorhens
- 269 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- >350 Black-headed Gulls
- >35 Herring Gulls
- 2 Yellow-legged Gulls
- >350 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: see notes
- 1 Cormorant: arrived
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Great (White) Egret

Noted on the street lamps poles pre-dawn:
The mild conditions gave a bumper haul.

Moths:
- *5 Winter Moth Operophtera brumata
- *1 Winter Moth-type Operophtera sp.

Bees, wasps etc.:
- *2 ichneumons

Flies:
- 2 wood gnats Sylvicola sp.
- *>10 winter cranefly Trichocera regelationis

Barkflies:
- 1 barkfly Ectopsocus briggsi agg.
- *1 barkfly Valenzuela flavidus

Springtails:
- 1 springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis-type
- 1 globular springtail.

Bugs:
- *1 planthopper, probably Eupteryx urticae

Beetles:
- *1 ground beetle Notiophilus biguttatus

Earwigs:
- 1 Common European Earwig Forficula dentata

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.
- *1 money spider, just possibly Walckenaeria antica
- *3 Missing Sector Orb-web Spiders Zygiella x-notata [Silver-sided Sector Spider]
- 1 harvestman Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus
- 3 harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis

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

Barkflies:
- 2 barkflies Valenzuela flavidus

Slugs, snails:
- 8 'small black slugs'
- 2 small snails

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

Later:

Nothing noted

A gathering of seventeen (near) adult and two immature Mute Swans resting on or close to the south-west grass. You need to look hard to see the second immature – it is the first bird from the right preening in the water.

A very fresh specimen of Winter Moth Operophtera brumata.

To my eyes in real life this moth looked slightly larger and therefore possibly a Northern Winter Moth O. fagata. But the hindwings do not seen to project far enough beyond the folded forewings so I am not sure. Winter Moth-type. Operophtera sp.

One of two unidentified ichneumons noted on the street lamp poles.

Two of at least ten winter craneflies Trichocera regelationis on and around the street lamp poles.

A female winter cranefly. The antennae look longer and it may be one of the other species in the genus. Note the slim abdomen on this group.

Perhaps my best photo of one of the small barkflies Valenzuela flavidus.

A tiny planthopper, probably Eupteryx urticae.

It seems this ground beetle is Notiophilus biguttatus . The family are characterised by the protruding eyes and this species shows a pale area toward the tip of the elytra. A new species for me.

This is one of the money spiders. There are many species very difficult to separate. There are pale bands across the abdomen of this example. The NatureSpot shows this as a characteristic of Walckenaeria antica but their photo gallery is far from exhaustive.

A male Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:25 – 10:35

(264th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- now ten Pochard with six adult drakes and two apparent immature drake. My highest number of the year here. [New arrivals also at the Balancing Lake].

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Sparrowhawk
- 1 Lesser Redpoll

Noted on / around the water:
- 7 Canada Geese: two of these arrived
- *1 Canada x Greylag Goose: arrived
- 6 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 3 (2♂) Shoveler
- 34 (23♂) Mallard
- 10 (8?♂) Pochard
- 58 (33?♂) Tufted Duck
- 18 Moorhens
- 110 Coots
- 25 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls: both adults
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: both adults
- 2 Cormorants
- 1 Grey Heron

Noted around The Flash:
No sun so no common wasps or flies tempted out other than...

Bees, wasps etc.:
- *1 possible Chalcid wasp, species unknown

Springtails:
- *4 globular springtails of different species

Bugs:
- *1 planthopper sp.

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 harvestman Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus
- *2 harvestmen Leiobunum blackwalli (male and female)

Arriving is a Canada x Greylag hybrid goose. It remained at some distance but seemed to be a different bird from any of those seen recently here.

Right against the island are two immature drake Shoveler. The left bird is mostly hidden. With a bit of imagination on the right hand bird it is possible to see part of the green speculum and the blue of the inner forewing. Honest! Do I need to say two adult winter Black-headed Gulls are also present?

Possibly the find of the day even if I only have a very partial identity for it. It is one of the Chalcid wasp species. There are many none of which I can recall seeing.

This is a tiny globular springtail, probably one of the Dicyrtomina species.

If the tiny planthopper at the lake was hard to positively identify this is more of a challenge as there are no features of note. There are several to choose from that need microscopic examination. So unidentified I am afraid.

The distinctive dark saddle markings of a female harvestman Leiobunum blackwalli. Note the white surround to the two eyes which she shares with...

 ...the differently-shaped male. He is the same shape as a male L. blackwalli but that species has a black eye surrounds.

(Ed Wilson)

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Sightings from previous years without links are below

2012
Priorslee Lake
9 Pochard
3 Gadwall
1 duck Goldeneye
1750 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
370 Black-headed Gulls
76 Herring Gulls
1 adult Great Black-backed Gull
1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
Redpoll
Siskin
Willow Tit
(John Isherwood / Martin Grant)

Holmer Lake
3 Goosander
1 Pochard
(John Isherwood)

Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
11 Yellow-legged Gulls
An adult Caspian Gull
3,000 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
30-40 Waxwings
2 Common Gulls
(Tom Lowe)

2010
Madeley
3 Waxwings
(Pete Nickless)

2006
Priorslee Lake
3 Cormorants
20 Pochard
56 Tufted Ducks
6 Buzzards
1 Kestrel
>1050 Black-headed Gulls
451 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
188 Wood Pigeons
18 Blackbirds
166 Fieldfares
62 Redwings
187 Jackdaws
80 Rooks
4 Siskin
6 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
1 Wigeon again
3 Pochard
47 Tufted Duck
215 Coot
4000 Black-headed Gulls
2500 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
3 Herring Gulls
1 Fieldfare
1 Skylark
168 Jackdaws
72 Rooks.
19 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

29 Nov 24

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

4.0°C > 7.0°C: Broken high cloud giving excellent sunrise. Moderate south-easterly wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 07:57 GMT

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

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:00 – 09:30

(260th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- an extra adult Mute Swan found.
- perhaps five Great Crested Grebes: one pair were either very mobile or there were two pairs as well as a single. I could not find two pairs simultaneously.
- very many large gulls noted. At least 30 present at 06:30 perhaps had roosted – unusual here. Around 07:15 several hundred arrived from the North / north-east at the same time as the Jackdaws and Rooks were passing over on their roost dispersal. Consequently none of the totals is particularly accurate.
- strangely there were no gulls noted passing over – all veered off their flying and dropped in for a drink and / or bathe.
- the Great (White) Egret present again.

Birds noted flying over:
- 1 Stock Dove
- 50 Wood Pigeons: of these 22 in two groups were flying north
- no gulls: see notes
- 1 Cormorant
- 77 Jackdaws
- 78 Rooks
- 15 Starlings: three groups
- 1 Fieldfare
- 1 Siskin

Birds noted leaving roosts around the lake:

None

Counts from the lake area:
- 1 Canada Goose
- 21 + 2 Mute Swans
- 5 (2♂) Gadwall
- 9 (6♂) Mallard
- 10 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 7 Moorhens
- 257 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes: see notes
- >550 Black-headed Gulls
- >30 Herring Gulls
- >600 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Cormorants: arrived separately; one of these departed
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Great (White) Egret

Noted on the street lamps poles pre-dawn:

Moths:
- *1 Winter Moth Operophtera brumata

Flies:
- 1 winter gnat

Springtails:
- 2 springtails

Beetles:
- *1 ground beetle, probably Demetrias atricapillus

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- *1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.
- *1 harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis

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

Moths:
- *1 Winter Moth Operophtera brumata

Barkflies:
- *3 barkfly Ectopsocus briggsi agg.
- 1 barkfly Valenzuela flavidus

Springtails:
- 3 springtails

Eggs:
- *small cluster of what appeared to be eggs: of ?

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

Noted later:

Nothing

A sunrise worth getting out of bed for. This was very early – see the street lights - just as the sky started to colour.

More colour with the street lights still on.

Lights out: many gulls on the water by now.

A different perspective.

A Goldcrest flies towards me. A very lucky shot as it deep in cover and only emerged very briefly.

 A Long-tailed Tit.

A male Siskin

And a female. The Alder cones are nowhere near open for easy access.

A male Siskin with a Goldfinch. Apparently Goldfinches can be sexed by the shape of the red behind the eye. Yes: well.

Another male Siskin.

A Winter Moth Operophtera brumata on one of the street lamp poles.

This may or may not be another Winter Moth caught in a web.

This angle does not help other than suggest that some of it has been eaten.

Another definite Winter Moth sitting with wings closed on the wall of the Telford Sailing Club HQ.

A barkfly from the Ectopsocus briggsi group.

None of my apps gave a sensible identification for this small insect. It is similar to some of the globular springtails though none seems to have antennae as long as on this specimen.

What are these? Tiny eggs? These also on the wall of the Telford Sailing Club HQ.

A ground beetle, probably Demetrias atricapillus. NatureSpot notes there are other similar species but does not illustrate them. It was also among the suggestions from Google Lens.

A Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp. As well as long front legs the third pair are noticeably short.

A harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:35 – 10:35

(263rd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- two drake Shoveler staying mostly hidden beneath over-hanging branches around the island. Both looked to be "more adult" than any seen recently though they would probably be acquiring full plumage quickly at this date.
- yesterday's three adult and one first winter drake Pochard supplemented by another immature drake and a duck.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Jackdaws

Noted on / around the water:
- 7 Canada Geese
- 6 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- 2 (2♂) Shoveler
- 40 (26♂) Mallard
- *1 (0♂) 'feral' Mallard
- *6 (5♂) Pochard
- *55 (25?♂) Tufted Duck
- 22 Moorhens
- 108 Coots
- 17 Black-headed Gulls
- 4 Herring Gulls: two adult; one third winter; one first winter
- 2 Cormorants: one of these arrived
- 1 Grey Heron

Nothing else of note around The Flash apart from:
- *1 Pike Esox lucius

The four 'extra' adult Mute Swans did another lap of the water. Here is one passing.

Another one of those "I assume basically a Mallard" birds. In this instance a duck. Not sure where the other genes originate.

An illustration of why I am never sure about the number of Tufted Ducks that are drakes. The white at the base of the bill indicates it is an immature – first winter. The crest looks like that of a duck but on an immature bird that might only be part-grown. At this range the flanks look too white for a duck, suggesting it is a first winter drake. Tricky at this range. More difficult at a distance and in dull lighting.

Two adult drake Pochard. But what sex are the other three?

Here they are. I think the back two are immature drakes still with all-dark bills; and the front one with a more mottled appearance and a pale area on her bill is a duck.

Handsome. A male Greenfinch.

A fisherman had been fishing for all of 10 minutes when he caught this Pike Esox lucius. Beginner's luck?

(Ed Wilson)

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Sightings from previous years

2012
Priorslee Lake
Black Tern
(Arthur Harper)

2010
Priorslee Lake
Yellow Wagtail
Kingfisher
(Ed Wilson)

28 Nov 24

The Flash and Priorslee Balancing Lake

1.0°C > 3.0°C: Early fog: remained misty. Thin high cloud. Light wind. Moderate visibility.
[Sunrise: 07:55 GMT]

It was fog that delayed my start today. A visit to The Flash then other things to do. Later an early afternoon visit to see whether there was a pre-roost aggregation of gulls: there wasn't!

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

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 10:20 – 11:30

(259th visit of the year)

From the dam-top area only.

Bird notes:
- what is presumably the same Great (White) Egret put in another appearance.
- the Cetti's Warbler could be heard above the traffic noise.

Counts from the lake area:
- 12 Canada Geese
- 20 + 2 Mute Swans
- *3 (1♂) Gadwall
- 6 (4♂) Mallard
- 7 (2♂) Tufted Duck
- 7 Moorhens
- 242 Coots
- 2 Great Crested Grebes
- 8 Black-headed Gulls
- 5 Herring Gulls
- 16 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Grey Heron
- *1 Great (White) Egret

Of note:

Nothing else

Record shot of the Great (White) Egret. As luck would have it there is a pair of Gadwall at the right with the drake the left bird of the pair.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 14:05 – 14:35

(262nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- a duck and an immature drake Shoveler reappeared.
- two Common Teal by the island: one was a drake; in the haze I could not be sure about the sex of other.
- still the three adult and one first-winter drake Pochard.
- the drake Goosander was present again.
- even more Moorhens than the recent high counts. Perhaps the small pools between the lake and The Flash were frozen over and those residents had sought refuge here.
- a Coal Tit was singing again.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 6 Canada Geese
- 6 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans
- *2 (1♂) Shoveler
- 40 (23♂) Mallard
- 2 (1?♂) Common Teal
- *4 (4♂) Pochard
- *50 (28?♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (1♂) Goosander
- 26 Moorhens
- 112 Coots
- 17 Black-headed Gulls
- *3 Herring Gull: two adults and one second winter
- 1 Cormorant
- *1 Grey Heron: arrived

Of note around The Flash:

Nothing else

"My what big feet you have". For some reasons the four 'extra' adult Mute Swans that are normally two well-separated pairs flew the length of the water. This is one of them preparing to touch down.

A typical view of a Shoveler, head in the water and spinning around to stir up the sediment for the bill to sift the goodies. I took over 20 shots of this duck to get sight of the bill and not once did she lift it further out of the water than it is here. On all species of duck the nostrils are at the base of the upper mandible so she has barely to lift her bill to breathe.

A soggy-looking drake Pochard. The camera has managed to capture many of the fine vermiculations formed by barring on the grey back feathers.

An equally soggy-looking is this first winter drake Pochard. He has an all-dark bill.

 A drake Tufted Duck flies...

...by and...

...under-carriage coming down. Apologies for the distracting out-of-focus gull in the background.

A trio of action shots of an adult winter Herring Gull. One.

Two.

 And three.

The Grey Heron arrives. I get the impression I am being watched.

"Where are my meal-worms?" A Robin looks accusingly at me.

"Say that again. I am hard of hearing".

(Ed Wilson)

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Sightings from previous years without links are below

2012
Priorslee Lake
3 Gadwall
7 Pochard
24 Tufted Ducks
1 Goldeneye
c.373 Wood Pigeons
2 Woodcock
17 Redwings
29 Fieldfares
c.490 Jackdaws
56 Rooks
9 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
2 Pochard
48 Tufted Duck
10+ Goosander
(Ed Wilson)

2009
The Wrekin
Firecrest
(Martin & Ian Grant)

2006
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe
26 Pochard
47 Tufted Ducks
1 drake Ruddy Duck
1 Water Rail
64 Coots
895 Black-headed Gulls
48 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
35 Fieldfares
24 Redwings
191 Jackdaws
123 Rooks
53 Starlings
16 Greenfinch
13 Goldfinches
7 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
2 Little Grebes
A duck Wigeon
Cormorant
c.75 Lapwing
2 Fieldfares
1 duck Pochard
34 Tufted Duck logged.
200 Coot
(Ed Wilson)