26 Dec 24

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

5.0°C > 6.0°C: Another winner for the Telford micro-climate. Starry with a sliver waning moon when I left home. Mist from Limekiln Bank and then fog at the lake. Why did I bother?. Very poor visibility. Light wind.

Sunrise: 08:22 GMT.

* = a species photographed today

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:30 – 09:10

(282nd visit of the year)

All observations badly affected by the fog. Very few fly overs noted. Only birds around the edges of the lake seen.

Bird notes:
- two first winter Mute Swans were seen in flight only. Although I only logged one yesterday I noted a bird in several different locations, probably trying to hide from the resident cob – and me.
- how do the gulls manage to find their way in pre-dawn in the mist and fog? SatNavs?
- there seven Song Thrushes singing away this morning. Can they detect that daylight is increasing and Spring is on the way?
- a Mistle Thrush as singing by the Castle Farm Way gate pre-dawn. Another(?) was again singing from the Ricoh area later.
- five Pied Wagtails heard flying over was my highest total for many weeks. Perhaps helped by the lack of traffic noise from the M54?
- as there was little to watch in flight I visited all the areas where Reed Buntings are normally found, sometimes roosting. I heard none. They bred in lower numbers than usual this year. Also I have noted almost no roost departures this winter.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 9+ Greylag Geese: nine seen inbound; others heard
- Jackdaws heard only
- 5 Pied Wagtails

Counts from the lake area:
- 1 Canada Goose
- 2 + 2 Mute Swans: see notes
- 12 (7♂) Mallard
- 23 (16♂) Tufted Duck
- 11 Moorhens
- Coots not counted
- Great Crested Grebes not seen
- >30 Black-headed Gulls
- >5 Herring Gulls
- >60 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Great White Egret

Noted on the street lamps poles pre-dawn:

Moths:
- 1 male Winter Moth Operophtera brumata
- 2 male Mottled Umber moths Erranis defoliaria
- *1 unidentified female moth

Flies:
- 1 winter cranefly Trichocera sp.
- 1 female plumed midge

Beetles:
- 1 Orange Ladybird Halyzia sedecimguttata

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- *1 Nursery Web Spider Pisaura mirabilis
- *1 harvestman Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus

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

Flies:
- 1 winter cranefly Trichocera sp.
- 1 gnat

Barkflies:
- 1 barkfly Valenzuela flavidus

Springtails:
- *1 springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis-type
- 9 globular springtails from several different species within the genus Dicyrtomina group.

Slugs, snails etc.:
- 6 'black slugs'
- 1 small snail

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 3 spiders, species not determined

Noted later on the Teece Drive fence:

Moths:
- *1 male Mottled Umber moth Erranis defoliaria

Caddisflies:
- *mating pair, not identified

Elsewhere:

Fungi:
- *possible Bleeding Oak Crust Stereum gausapatum

No sunrise this morning. Away from the lake, as here, the visibility was slightly better.

Peering at me through the mist is a Great Spotted Woodpecker.

He (you can just see red on the nape indicating it is a male) seemed little troubled by my presence.

Now you can see he is a male. The large white shoulder patch is often very obvious when this species is seen in its bounding flight.

 "Where shall I go now?"

Resting on the Teece Drive fence was this unusually-toned and poorly-marked male Mottled Umber moth Erranis defoliaria.

Another female moth to identify. This on a different street lamp pole from where I saw a similar individual yesterday. Could she have walked that far?

Seen in the cold light of day does not help me. I'll see whether the Shropshire recorder can help.

A mating pair of caddis flies. This group is hard to identify at the best of times: paired and dew-covered is not the best of times. Obsidentify thought they were moths. I could not persuade Google Lens to concentrate on one individual so it gave some very strange answers for the pair.

The antennae look long-enough for this springtail to be Pogonognathellus longicornis.

A rare species of spider – one that I can identify! The pale line down the cephalothorax as well as the general shape are diagnostic. I only seem to see this species from the turn of the year in to late Spring. But this is full-size so where has it been lurking?

A harvestman from the species pair Dicranopalpus ramosus/caudatus (though I read a third species has recently been identified from eastern England). Another seven-legged special, this time the front right leg is missing.

This will probably reward revisiting (if I remember). It seems to be Bleeding Oak Crust Stereum gausapatum, the white edging being an identification feature. It seems to have nothing to do with the white fungus, also a crust, that I cannot get an identification for using this photo. The green is moss and lichen (I am not going there: I have a life to live).

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel pre-dawn:

Flies:
- *1 Psychodidae sp. [Drain Fly, Moth Fly or Owl Fly]
- *1 winter cranefly Trichocera sp.
4 unidentified gnats of at least two species

Slugs, snails etc.:
- *1 slug, perhaps Netted Slug Deroceras reticulatum

Arthropods:
- *1 Common Rough Woodlouse Porcellio scaber

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 2 spiders, species not determined

One of the Psychodidae species also known as Drain Flies, Moth Flies or Owl Flies. The literature used to say there were 99 species, none of which could be identified from photos. I read recently that a new species had been discovered. I marvel that anyone knows.

A winter cranefly Trichocera sp.

This slug is perhaps Netted Slug Deroceras reticulatum. The patterning is OK but most individuals shown on the web are creamier in tone.

A Common Rough Woodlouse Porcellio scaber. If my log summary is to be believed this is my first this year.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:15 – 10:20

(284th visit of the year)

Slightly less affected by the mist.

Bird notes:
- at least 20 Greylag Geese around the island when I arrived. At least 70 seen flying in later.
- I am still not sure whether two of the long-term visiting Mute Swans have departed as I could not see inside the island. I noted two adults in flight together and later four adults (and two first winters / cygnets) on the water. I suspect the two in flight were two of those I saw on water later.
- fewer Pochard and Tufted Duck seen. I am sure this was a real decrease as the number of duck Tufted Duck was little changed while the number of more visible white-sided drakes was smaller.
- a Water Rail was alarm-calling from the top end.
- Coot numbers continue to decline: fewer than half the record number present two months ago.
- there were two Song Thrushes in song.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 10 Canada Geese
- >90 Greylag Geese
- 4 + 2 (1 brood) Mute Swans: see notes
- 40 (25♂) Mallard
- 5 (3♂) Pochard
- *51 (25♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 Water Rail: heard only
- 15 Moorhens
- 58 Coots
- *29 Black-headed Gulls

Elsewhere:

Nothing noted

Even duck Tufted Ducks have mostly acquired a small tuft, even is the pale around the base suggests this is a first winter bird.

Yes you. No need to look at me like that.

The drake has a much longer 'tuft' - well crest really.

A complaining first winter Black-headed Gull. Not sure I have noted before that the grey feathers on the mantle have small white fringes. These probably wear before they moult the head and wing feathers to adult plumage. These first year birds may or may not breed but will normally migrate back to their natal site to see how it is done.

(Ed Wilson)

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2013
Priorslee Lake
Two 1st-winter female Scaup
(Unknown)

2012
Priorslee Lake
A drake Scaup
4 Gadwall
10 Great Black-backed Gull
(Kriss Webb)

2009
Priorslee Lake
1 Black-necked Grebe
5 Great Crested Grebes
4 Gadwall
26 Pochard
97 Tufted Ducks
3 Goosander
327 Coots
5 Redwings
4 Fieldfare
10 Goldfinches
14 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)