7.0°C > 10.0°C: Early light rain eased. Stayed cloudy with visible clearance to the north-west only making imperceptible progress. Light / moderate north-westerly breeze. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 07:51 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: 06:10 – 09:30
(258th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
No significant overhead migration. Two groups of Wood Pigeons totalling c.100 birds after 09:00 when the weather had started to clear was the only significant movement.
Other bird notes:
- a party of 58 (all?) Greylag Geese went outbound (East) at 07:15. Later the usual westbound groups were seen to contain at least one of the mainly white geese.
- duck numbers were lower today with many Mallard flying out and in (again?).
- several sighting of Cormorants overhead. A single flew West; then a quartet circled the area and decided not to visit leaving to the West; a sextet flew East; another lone bird flew West. All of these before a single visited but did stay.
- Lesser Black-backed Gulls were heard overhead as early as 06:50 with c.250 already present at 07:00 when it was just about light enough to see. More continued to pile in until I estimate there were at least 1000 present by 07:25.
- it was 07:20 before the first handful of what was eventually c.550 Black-headed Gulls appeared. Today these mostly arrived from the West.
- a northerly component in the wind meant that the passing corvids were all very high. The difficulty of seeing them at height does not entirely explain the paucity of numbers. I would have expected to heard Jackdaws that were otherwise hard to see and I did not.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 109 Greylag Geese: 58 eastbound together; 51 westbound in three groups: see notes
- 1 mainly white feral goose: westbound with Greylags
- c.147 Wood Pigeons: c.100 of these in two migrant groups
- 2 Herring Gulls
- 37 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 12 Cormorants: see notes
- 36 Jackdaws only: see notes
- 21 Rooks: see notes
- 7 Redwings
- 5 Pied Wagtails: all singles
- 4 Siskins
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 12 (7♂) Mallard
- 7 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 Moorhens only
- 46 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- c.550 Black-headed Gulls
- *16 Herring Gulls
- *1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
- *c.1000 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: almost all of these before 07:30
- 1 Cormorant: arrived and soon departed
- 2 Grey Herons
Warblers recorded (the figure in brackets is birds noted singing):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler still
Noted on the West end street lamp poles pre-dawn:
In the rain I was astonished to find so many waterproof moths!
Luck or skill: you decide. This in an adult Yellow-legged Gull. With wings spread it is easy to see the features that confirm the identity. The outer primary feather (P10) at the wing tip is the only primary feather with a white "mirror" (white surrounded by black): an adult Herring Gull has mirrors on both P9 and P10. Then the black area of the wing tip extends on to white-tipped P6 and P5: on Herring Gull the black area on P5 is imperceptible at best and usually absent. Below this bird and bathing is an immature Herring Gull. The others are all Lesser Black-backed Gulls.
This is a Muscid fly Phaonia subventa/rufiventris-type. I would need an unobstructed view of the abdomen to get a positive identity.
By sitting sideways on the street lamp pole this winter cranefly Trichocera sp. is providing a clearer view of its features. No help in getting a full identity though.
None of my apps gave any names for this spider that I could cross-check with NatureSpot. I am inclined to think it is a pale example of a Garden Spider Araneus diadematus.
In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel pre-dawn:
It took one look at my torch beam and ran away: probably wise. So it remains an unidentified ground beetle though in truth most ground beetles remain unidentified even with a good photo.
(254th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- 11 Mute Swans most of the time: three flew off West as I was leaving
- very small passage of migrant Wood Pigeons
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 13 Wood Pigeons in two migrant groups
- 1 Sparrowhawk
Noted on / around the water:
- 16 Canada Geese
- 51 Greylag Geese at least
- 11 Mute Swans: a trio departed
- 25 (15♂) Mallard
- *8 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 27 (2♂) Goosander
- 7 Moorhens
- 92 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes only
- 5 Black-headed Gulls
- 9 Herring Gulls: various ages
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: two (near?) adults; one first-winter
- *6 Cormorants
- *1 Grey Heron
Noted around the area:
A different Mottled Umber moth Erranis defoliaria apparently trying to camouflage itself by resting on a yellow fire hydrant sign. This one has but a thin wavy cross line and not the wavy cross-band seen on the specimen present the previous two days.
A midge. No direct suggestions from either Obsidentify or Google Lens. From the latter there were photos of similar midges and one of those, a photo labelled Rheotanytarsus photophilus, was a close match. The entry for this species in NatureSpot looks good other than suggesting its flight period should have finished in August. I blame global warming!
I was wrong: there are two naff photos. An unidentified fly seems to be standing victorious on what? I have no idea!
Yesterday when I read in the NatureSpot entry for Glistening Inkcap fungus Coprinellus micaceus that the cap was only pleated when fresh I did not expect this to happen. I expected the cap to become smooth. Wrong! I wonder what species the white flower is on the extreme left?
(Ed Wilson)
2010
Priorslee Lake
Water Rail
9 Meadow Pipits
143 Fieldfare
8 Redwings
(Ed Wilson)
2009
Priorslee Lake
1 Yellow-legged Gull
2 Common Gull
6 Wigeon
(John Isherwood)
2006
Priorslee Lake
Female Blackcap
(John Isherwood)
* = 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: 06:10 – 09:30
(258th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
No significant overhead migration. Two groups of Wood Pigeons totalling c.100 birds after 09:00 when the weather had started to clear was the only significant movement.
Other bird notes:
- a party of 58 (all?) Greylag Geese went outbound (East) at 07:15. Later the usual westbound groups were seen to contain at least one of the mainly white geese.
- duck numbers were lower today with many Mallard flying out and in (again?).
- several sighting of Cormorants overhead. A single flew West; then a quartet circled the area and decided not to visit leaving to the West; a sextet flew East; another lone bird flew West. All of these before a single visited but did stay.
- Lesser Black-backed Gulls were heard overhead as early as 06:50 with c.250 already present at 07:00 when it was just about light enough to see. More continued to pile in until I estimate there were at least 1000 present by 07:25.
- it was 07:20 before the first handful of what was eventually c.550 Black-headed Gulls appeared. Today these mostly arrived from the West.
- a northerly component in the wind meant that the passing corvids were all very high. The difficulty of seeing them at height does not entirely explain the paucity of numbers. I would have expected to heard Jackdaws that were otherwise hard to see and I did not.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 109 Greylag Geese: 58 eastbound together; 51 westbound in three groups: see notes
- 1 mainly white feral goose: westbound with Greylags
- c.147 Wood Pigeons: c.100 of these in two migrant groups
- 2 Herring Gulls
- 37 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 12 Cormorants: see notes
- 36 Jackdaws only: see notes
- 21 Rooks: see notes
- 7 Redwings
- 5 Pied Wagtails: all singles
- 4 Siskins
Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 12 (7♂) Mallard
- 7 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 Moorhens only
- 46 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes
- c.550 Black-headed Gulls
- *16 Herring Gulls
- *1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
- *c.1000 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: almost all of these before 07:30
- 1 Cormorant: arrived and soon departed
- 2 Grey Herons
Warblers recorded (the figure in brackets is birds noted singing):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler still
Noted on the West end street lamp poles pre-dawn:
In the rain I was astonished to find so many waterproof moths!
Moths:
- 14 November Moth types Epirrita sp.
- 14 November Moth types Epirrita sp.
Four-winged flies:
- *3 Common Green Lacewings Chrysoperia carnea
- *3 Common Green Lacewings Chrysoperia carnea
Flies:
- *1 Muscid fly Phaonia subventa/rufiventris -type
- *2 winter craneflies Trichocera sp.
- *1 Muscid fly Phaonia subventa/rufiventris -type
- *2 winter craneflies Trichocera sp.
Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- *1 presumed Garden Spider Araneus diadematus
Sailing Club HQ
I did not visit the sailing club HQ pre-dawn in the rain
Noted later elsewhere:
- *1 presumed Garden Spider Araneus diadematus
Sailing Club HQ
I did not visit the sailing club HQ pre-dawn in the rain
Noted later elsewhere:
Nothing
One of the mainly white feral geese again playing tail-end Charlie on a group of Greylag Geese.
Same bird. Slightly less helpful angle.
A plethora of gulls. From the left. An adult Lesser Black-back: a second winter Lesser Black-back (broken tail band): a first-winter Herring Gull (smudgy tail band): a first-winter Lesser Black-back (top: neat tail band): same at bottom though with a less neat tail band): a second (or third?-winter Herring Gull (black on bill): and another first-winter Lesser Black-back (neat tail band; two rows of dark-centred feather on trailing edge of wings).
One of three Common Green Lacewings Chrysoperia carnea that were braving the rain.
(Ed Wilson)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel pre-dawn:
Moths:
- 1 Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria: same again again!
- 1 Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria: same again again!
Flies:
- *1 cranefly Tipula lateralis
- *63 midges of various species
- *1 cranefly Tipula lateralis
- *63 midges of various species
Beetles:
- *1 unidentified ground beetle
- *1 unidentified ground beetle
Arthropods:
- 1 White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger
- 1 White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger
Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 3 spiders: usual suspects with another...
*1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.
- 3 spiders: usual suspects with another...
*1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.
A well-posed cranefly Tipula lateralis.
A Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp. in close proximity to one of the many midges: this midge a male with plumed antennae. It is not easy to see
(Ed Wilson)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Flash: 09:35 – 10:45
(254th visit of the year)
Bird notes:
- 11 Mute Swans most of the time: three flew off West as I was leaving
- very small passage of migrant Wood Pigeons
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 13 Wood Pigeons in two migrant groups
- 1 Sparrowhawk
Noted on / around the water:
- 16 Canada Geese
- 51 Greylag Geese at least
- 11 Mute Swans: a trio departed
- 25 (15♂) Mallard
- *8 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 27 (2♂) Goosander
- 7 Moorhens
- 92 Coots
- 3 Great Crested Grebes only
- 5 Black-headed Gulls
- 9 Herring Gulls: various ages
- 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: two (near?) adults; one first-winter
- *6 Cormorants
- *1 Grey Heron
Noted around the area:
Moths:
- 4 November Moth types Epirrita sp.
ow three in squirrel alley: the other on the same pole as yesterday but the other side
- *1 Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria
different specimen and different location to that seen on previous two days.
- *1 $ Red-line Quaker Agrochola lota
my first here and only my second in Shropshire after one at the Balancing Lake on 12 October 2021.
- 4 November Moth types Epirrita sp.
ow three in squirrel alley: the other on the same pole as yesterday but the other side
- *1 Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria
different specimen and different location to that seen on previous two days.
- *1 $ Red-line Quaker Agrochola lota
my first here and only my second in Shropshire after one at the Balancing Lake on 12 October 2021.
Bees, wasps etc.:
- 1 Common Wasp Paravespula vulgaris
it had stopped raining: only one wasp was tempted to try the Ivy flowers
- 1 Common Wasp Paravespula vulgaris
it had stopped raining: only one wasp was tempted to try the Ivy flowers
Flies:
- *1 $$ midge, perhaps Rheotanytarsus photophilus
- *1 $$ midge, perhaps Rheotanytarsus photophilus
Fungus:
- the Honey Fungus Armillaria mellea is now looking very sad
- *yesterdays Glistening Inkcap Coprinellus micaceus is not fairing any better
Naff photo of the day. It is a moth and not a hedgehog, beaver or pine marten that my apps suggested. At the very top of a street lamp pole I found this Red-line Quaker Agrochola lota. You can just make out the red (more orange really) in the cross line toward the trailing edge of the wing. I guess the apps were confused by the spider debris and the badge of the pole-maker. Moth species #75 for me here this year. For the first time I have recorded as many species of moth as bird species here in one year. I am currently five bird species down on last year: but 25 moths species up. There is time.
- the Honey Fungus Armillaria mellea is now looking very sad
- *yesterdays Glistening Inkcap Coprinellus micaceus is not fairing any better
I wonder if duck Tufted Ducks are ticklish?
Panic: a Cormorant was fishing underneath one of the footbridges as I approached...
...and splashes / crashes down some way away.
You can see why many birds are wary of Grey Herons. They look very forbidding in flight.
(Ed Wilson)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2010
Priorslee Lake
Water Rail
9 Meadow Pipits
143 Fieldfare
8 Redwings
(Ed Wilson)
2009
Priorslee Lake
1 Yellow-legged Gull
2 Common Gull
6 Wigeon
(John Isherwood)
2006
Priorslee Lake
Female Blackcap
(John Isherwood)