10 Sep 25

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

14.0°C > 17.0°C: Broken medium level cloud. The forecast rain was nothing more than a very few spots for less than three minutes. Moderate / fresh south-easterly wind. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 06:36 BST

* = a species photographed today
$ = my first sighting of the species for this year
$$ = my first ever recorded sighting of the species in the area

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 05:30 – 09:20

(218th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the only geese noted were an inbound party of Greylags that flew by while my view was blocked by trees.
- *five visiting Mute Swans to start. After some chasing around a trio departed firstly to the South and then to the East. But did they end up (back?) at The Flash.
- *a pair of Gadwall and a duck Shoveler were new arrivals.
- meanwhile the number of Mallard is much reduced.
- again no obvious juvenile Great Crested Grebes seen and just three adults noted. Where have they gone?
- a passage of Barn Swallows seen. Difficult to know how many. Early on small groups were flying directly South. Later birds were stopping briefly to feed over the water before moving on. There were probably some local birds just feeding and going nowhere. The number shown is my best estimate. A few Sand and House Martins seen though whether these were passing was hard to say.
- after remarking on the recent low numbers of over-flying Jackdaws there were many more today with groups of up to 50 both preceding and following the main parties of Rooks. The first birds were 20 minutes later than yesterday and small numbers were still passing after 08:00. Amazingly despite these differences the number of Rooks counted was exactly the same as yesterday – 144!

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- Greylag Geese: heard only; see notes
- 2 Feral Pigeons: together
- 21 Wood Pigeons only
- 4 Herring Gulls
- 57 Lesser Black-baked Gulls
- 2 Cormorants: together
- 202 Jackdaws
- 144 Rooks again!
- 2 Pied Wagtails

Counts from the lake area:
- *7 Mute Swans: of these three departed
- *1 (0♂) Shoveler
- *2 (1♂) Gadwall
- 13 (♂?) Mallard
- 12 Moorhens
- 129 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes only
- *c.90 Black-headed Gulls
- 8 Herring Gulls
- 67 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 3 Sand Martins
- *>60 Barn Swallows: see notes
- 4 House Martins

Warblers recorded (the figure in brackets is birds noted singing):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 18 (4) Chiffchaffs
- 2 (1) Blackcaps

Noted on the West end street lamp poles around-dawn:
A stiff breeze no doubt kept the numbers down

Flies:
plumed midge Chironomus plumosus
*male mosquito, probably Banded Mosquito Culiseta annulata
*Dance fly Tachypeza nubila
*unidentified fly!

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
Bridge Orb-web Spider Larinioides sclopetarius [Bridge Orbweaver]
harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis

Noted elsewhere:

Butterflies:
- none

Moths:
- *1 Italian Bark Moth Metalampra italica [previously Italian Tubic]
- *1 Common Nettle-tap Anthophila fabriciana

Bees, wasps, etc.:
- *Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum
- European Hornet Vespa crabro

Dragonflies:
- Hawker sp.

Other flies:
- *Root-maggot fly, perhaps a Leucophora sp.
- *green midge Tanytarsus sp.
- a few other unidentified flies

Bugs:
- *Red-legged Shieldbug Pentatoma rufipes

Mammals:
- none

One day later and the moon is distinctly lop-sided with craters showing all around the South and East of the view.

Three of the visiting Mute Swans position ready to depart.

The residents help them make a decision.

"I'm going"

"So are we!"

But where are we going? East?

South?

No mistaking the bill identifying this Shoveler. A duck as there is no sign of any dark on the face that even a first-winter drake would be showing by this date.

And now a pair of Gadwall with the duck in front with extensive pale orange along the side of her bill. The grey-toned drake with the black stern is behind her.

Compare and contrast time. On the left and adult-winter Black-headed Gull; on the right a first-winter. The first-winter has some retained dark flight feathers (and a dark tail-tip when seen in flight). Note the difference in bill and leg colour.

Here another adult showing that the blood-red bill is dark-tipped (only during Winter).

Just one acceptable photo of the many, mainly passing, Barn Swallows.

This an Italian Bark Moth Metalampra italica. It is my first at this site. This year and in 2023 I recorded this species alongside the Wesley Brook just as it passes the Priorslee Academy. A recent and increasingly frequent species of moth rapidly spreading from the Continent.

A now faded Common Nettle-tap moth Anthophila fabriciana. It is close to the end of this species' flight-period.

A Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum seems to be hopeful of still getting nectar from what looks to be a spike of Butterfly-bush Buddleja davidii well passed its prime.

My first of this species away from the tunnel this is a male mosquito, probably Banded Mosquito Culiseta annulata though I would have expected the legs to banded and not just the abdomen.

This is a Root-maggot fly, and with the striped thorax and banded abdomen it is perhaps a Leucophora sp.

This fly found on a street lamp pole pre-dawn is the Dance fly Tachypeza nubila characterised by the dark wings, rounded head and swollen thighs on the front legs.

It looks distinctive-enough but all I can find for this green midge is that it is likely one of the Tanytarsus species.

Sadly this big-red-eyed fly will remain unidentified!

A fine-looking Red-legged Shieldbug Pentatoma rufipes.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Moths: [45 species here before today; no addition]
none

Four-winged flies:
*1 unidentified mayfly

Other flies:
2 moth flies Psychodidae sp. [Drain Fly or Owl Fly]
*1 Phantom cranefly Ptychoptera albimana
6 midges of various species

Arthropods:
3 White-legged Snake Millipedes Tachypodoiulus niger
3 Common Rough Woodlice Porcellio scaber

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
*2 Lace web spiders Amaurobius sp. possibly A. similis
*5 other spiders mostly Missing Sector Orb-web Spiders Zygiella x-notata [Silver-sided Sector Spider]

The plan view of an unidentified mayfly. I presume, since the eyes are not turbinate, it is a female.

It was difficult to get a side-elevation view along the wall. This did not help either Obsidentify (Red-clawed Crayfish) or Google Lens (Giant Mayfly).

Only my second-ever Phantom cranefly Ptychoptera albimana. The previous one was here on 8 August this year.

One of two Lace web spiders Amaurobius sp. possibly A. similis

A Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata illustrating why I am seeing so few midges at the moment – it is eating one for breakfast.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:25 – 10:30

(212nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- certainly more geese inside the island.
- another three Mute Swans. The birds from the Balancing Lake perhaps? Though there was no obvious "trio" together
- *a duck Common Teal still present.
- another low count of Tufted Duck.
- *back to the expected count of four adult and five juvenile Great Crested Grebes.
- *a Kingfisher seen banging a fish on a branch to stun it before eating it.

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

Noted on / around the water:
- >46 Canada Geese: of these 39 arrived
- >11 Greylag Geese: of these five arrived
- 11 Mute Swans
- 34 (20?♂) Mallard
- *1 (0♂) Common Teal
- 7 (2?♂) Tufted Duck
- *13 Moorhens again
- 87 Coots
- *4 + 5 (2 broods) Great Crested Grebes
- 12 Black-headed Gulls
- 5 Cormorants again
- *2 Grey Herons
- *1 Kingfisher

Warblers recorded (the figure in brackets is birds noted singing):
- 3 (0) Chiffchaffs
- no Blackcaps

Noted around the area:

Moths:
- none

Bees, wasps, etc.:
- *Robin's pincushion, the gall of the wasp Diplolepis rosae.

Flies:
- 1 Tachinid fly

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- *1 harvestman Opilio canestrinii

Plant:
- * $ Fat-hen Chenopodium album [Lamb's Quarters]

A "grab shot" of the duck Common Teal showing the green area, called the speculum, in the wing.

A juvenile Moorhen steps out. Before they acquire their distinctive shields they can be separated from juvenile Coots by their greyer plumage, the white along the flanks and the under-tail. The feet do not have the lobed webs of the Coots.

 A juvenile Great Crested Grebe from the first of the two broods to hatch.

This is a slightly less-developed juvenile from the other brood. The area in front of the eye is still sullied with the pink that is so prominent when juveniles are first seen.

A Grey Heron flies away.

One that nearly got away. Spot the Kingfisher disappearing under the overhanging willow.

Here is that Kingfisher sitting on a branch. Look carefully and note the fish hanging by its tail from the bill of the bird.

None of these photos is as clear as I would have liked. The bird was a long way away and the light could have been better. I tried several camera settings. Here the Kingfisher has turned around and is tossing the fish in the air to try to get it head first down its gullet....

..like this. The Kingfisher had battered the fish on the branch to kill, or at least stun it, to make it easier to handle (beakle?)

Just the tail to go.

This growth is known as Robin's pincushion and is a gall produced by the larva of the Bedeguar Gall Wasp Diplolepis rosae, usually on Dog Rose Rosa canina. The female wasp is infrequently seen while the male wasp is almost never seen.

This is a harvestman Opilio canestrinii. The white around the oculum (the eyes carried above the front of the abdomen) might suggest it is a harvestman Leiobunum blackwalli. But the male of that species has a more circular body and the female has a dark saddle that widens posteriorly and ends abruptly part way along.

This plant is Fat-hen Chenopodium album. Also called White Goosefoot it is known to Obsidentify as Lamb's Quarters. Wikipedia explains: The name "lambs-quarters" is thought to derive from the name of the English harvest festival Lammas quarter. This festival was associated both with sacrificial lambs and with the vegetable Chenopodium album.

(Ed Wilson)

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2011
Nedge Hill
2 Wheatear
2 Yellow Wagtail
1 Raven
(John Isherwood)

Priorslee Lake
Common Sandpiper
Wheatear
(John Isherwood)

2010
The Flash
Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)

2008
Priorslee Lake
2 Kingfisher
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
Pochard
Common Gull
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
A juvenile Arctic Tern
(Ed Wilson)