27 Sep 25

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

10.0°C > 11.0°C: Clear to the East otherwise increasingly cloudy. Light south-easterly breeze, increasing moderate. Good visibility.

Sunrise: 07:05 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: 05:35 – 09:30

(235th visit of the year)

The one that got away!
Big frustration from yesterday. At first light a bird was calling from deep in the vegetation along the dam face. It was an unfamiliar call. I fired up the Merlin app. and the sonogram was clearly showing the call even though the atmospherics were such that the M54 was an even noisier background than usual. Merlin failed to show any identity. It did pick up a Pied Wagtail passing over (even though it mis-labelled it as White Wagtail - the mainland Europe equivalent). I was unable to get a recording of anything other than the traffic noise. I saw the bird move twice, a small, warbler-like bird, flitting between cover. I heard and saw it no more despite searching and listening.

Searching around the internet I now suspect that it was a Yellow-browed Warbler, a species which is an increasingly common Autumn vagrant from Siberia to the UK. It is a species I have only previously encountered in Asia on its wintering grounds and that was more than 35 years ago.

Later at home I played calls of this species from the xeno-canto website. The Merlin app. again failed to identify them.

Without more conclusive evidence I will have to let it go. Drat – as they say!

Today's bird notes:
- after a few blank days both the usual species of geese noted.
- a chaotic start to the day. Apart from one tight group of Jackdaws these and the Rooks passed in small mixed groups interspersed with at least 100 Lesser Black-backed Gulls passing on a very similar flight line. While all this was going on at least 250 Black-headed and a similar number of Lesser Black-backed Gulls were streaming in to settle on the water.
- later two groups of c.125 Black-headed Gulls streamed in from the south-east and for the totals are assumed to be returning birds.
- none of the Black-headed Gulls seem interested in the football field at the moment. Has it dried out too much for the food availability – whatever it is they are attracted to?
- as for the past few days I could see no Herring Gulls among the early arrivals. Nine were noted later so some of the later arrivals of Lesser Black-backs are likely also new birds. But how many?
- the trio of passing Skylarks were, unusually, flying South. Typical Autumn passage is to the West.
- I noted at least six Barn Swallows flying South. I saw these while I was looking between trees and there could have been more. I usually record this species in small numbers in to October most years.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 12 Canada Geese: outbound together (after 09:15)
- 14 Greylag Geese: inbound together
- 2 Stock Doves: singles
- 121 Wood Pigeons
- 2 Collared Doves: singles
- >100 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Sparrowhawk
- 205 Jackdaws
- 118 Rooks
- 3 Skylarks: together
- 7 Starlings: together

Counts from the lake area:
- 12 Canada Geese: arrived as a duo and party of 10
- 2 Mute Swans
- 12 (5♂) Mallard
- 3 (1♂) Tufted Duck
- *14 Moorhens
- 56 Coots
- 4 Great Crested Grebes
- >250 Black-headed Gulls
- 9 Herring Gulls
- >250 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- no Cormorants
- 1 Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 6 Barn Swallows at least: see notes

Warblers recorded (the figure in brackets is birds noted singing):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- 7 (0) Chiffchaffs
- 1 (0) Blackcap

Noted on the West end street lamp poles pre-dawn:

Moths:
- none

Springtails:
- 1 springtail Pogonognathellus longicornis

Other flies:
- *1 male Spotted-winged Drosophila Drosophila suzukii
- *1 dark-winged fungus gnat Sciara sp.

Bugs:
- *1 planthopper, probably Eupteryx urticae

Arthropods:
- *1 White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 Noble or False Widow Spider Steatoda nobilis
- 1 female harvestman Leiobunum blackwalli
- 1 harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis

Noted on the walls of the sailing club HQ pre-dawn:

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 30 spiders: usual suspects

Noted later elsewhere:

Bees, wasps, etc.:
- Common Wasp Paravespula vulgaris
- European Hornet Vespa crabro: at least 5 around the nest site

Flies:
- *2 craneflies Tipula confusa
- no other flies seen at all.

Fungus:
- Brown Rollrim Paxillus involutus

Clear to the East so there was a decent sunrise.

I was not (quite) standing in the water!

An adult and juvenile Moorhen in the grass on the dam-top.

"What do you think of it so far?"

"I'm not impressed". Long-tailed Tits of course.

A reminder: almost all male Spotted-winged Drosophila flies Drosophila suzukii have dark tips to their wings: all females have unspotted wings. It is a small fly (up to 4mm). I did not realise before searching the internet today that this is an invasive species and potentially a serious pest to soft fruit trees. The fly introduced from its native Japan to the USA on imported fruit. From there it has been transported to Europe. It has only been known in Britain since 2012.

I believe this to be one of the dark-winged fungus gnat in the genus Sciara. There is no information about the individual species and how to identify them on the NatureSpot web site so I assume that it is not possible from photos.

Another chance to see... a cranefly Tipula confusa.

Two small insects here. Top left is a planthopper, probably Eupteryx urticae, as its scientific name suggests, it favours nettles which are plentiful in the area. Not sure about the other: a tiny cranefly with an orange-brown body? [the planthopper is just c.3mm]

Does this help? Not at all!

It makes a change to see a White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger away from the Priorslee Avenue tunnel. This on one of the street lamp poles along the West side footpath pre-dawn.

Most of the spiders around the Telford Sailing Club HQ are too high for me to take decent photos. This Garden Spider Araneus diadematus was an exception.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Moths: [46 species here before today; no addition]
- none

Flies:
- 3 moth flies Psychodidae sp. [Drain Fly or Owl Fly]
- *1 winter cranefly Trichocera sp.
- 58 midges of various species

Arthropods:
- 6 White-legged Snake Millipedes Tachypodoiulus niger

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 4 spiders: usual suspects
- *1 female harvestman Leiobunum rotundum

One of the winter craneflies in the genus Trichocera. Not identifiable from photos..

The parallel-sided dark saddle means this is a female harvestman Leiobunum rotundum. Yet another harvestman with a leg missing.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:35 – 10:35

(226th visit of the year)

When I arrived the local Carrion Crows were flying around calling loudly and the Feral and Wood Pigeons were flying in all directions and the Black-headed Gulls departing. I could not see what might be causing the commotion.

Bird notes:
- still ten Mute Swans.
- what I believe to the four Mallard ducklings, now fully grown, were seen loosely together but no longer with their mother.
- six of the Tufted Ducks flew in together.
- it was a Pied Wagtail that was flying around today.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 5 Jackdaws
I no not specifically log the local movements of the pigeons

Noted on / around the water:
- 13 Canada Geese
- 16 Greylag Geese
- 10 Mute Swans
- *43 (29♂) Mallard: see notes
- *23 (5?♂) Tufted Duck
- 9 Moorhens
- 95 Coots
- 8 Great Crested Grebes: three adults and five first winter birds
- 4 Black-headed Gulls: departed
- 8 Cormorants again
- *3 Grey Herons

Warblers recorded (the figure in brackets is birds noted singing):
- 3 (1) Chiffchaffs

Of note around the area:

Nothing else

The bill colour indicates this is a drake Mallard. It is one of the four birds from the last brood and is still to complete growing his wing feathers and moult in to regular drake plumage. All four were still loosely together but their mother seemed to be no longer with them.

Meanwhile a drake Mallard had spotted where the food is being distributed.

Another drake arriving. Note how as he banks the head is kept level.

This duck Mallard has also spotted food. She is not quite so elegant!

Not quite the Torvill and Dean of the Mallard world. The drake has still to complete the moult in to breeding plumage.

A duck Tufted Duck...

 ...in close up!

I think this is called "splash down".

"Like water off a duck's back" - a drake Tufted Duck just surfacing after diving for food that the dabbling Mallard cannot reach.

Time for a scratch.

And another dive.

One Grey Heron is being chased away...

...while a third makes its way to a favoured perch up a tree on the island.

Plane of the day: this is a Vulcanair built Partenavia P.68 Observer 2 belonging to the Danish company Bio.Flight A/S - hence the OY- prefix to the registration. It is an Italian design which Bio.Flight uses for survey work. The basic design allowed for 11 seats but no doubt most of the fuselage is taken up with specialist equipment.

The FlightRadar24 data shows it was flying from Bournemouth to Chester (also known as Hawarden). Bio.Flight has up to six aircraft detached from their base at Roskilde to operate out of Chester while they surveying in the UK and Ireland.

(Ed Wilson)

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2013
Priorslee Lake
1 Teal
3 Wigeon
1 Kingfisher
(John Isherwood)

2011
Priorslee Lake
13 Meadow Pipits
3 Redpoll
Siskin
Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)

2010
Priorslee Lake
Juvenile Common Scoter
3 Little Grebes
Drake Pintail x Mallard
(Ed Wilson/Andy Latham)