13 Dec 25

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

3.0°C:  Yet another clear start ruined by the Telford micro-climate. Mist and fog rolled in after 07:15 and had only begun to thin by the time I had to leave The Flash. Light and variable wind. Good visibility soon became very poor and later merely poor.

Sunrise:  08:14 GMT

A very few photos will be added later

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:25 – 09:20

(301st visit of the year)

For what it is worth this what I noted.

Bird notes:
- two Mute Swans had arrived by 08:30.
- a drake Goosander was present c.07:45 at least.
- the first Lesser Black-backed Gulls were heard at 07:01 with c.40 circling the water by 07:15 after which they began to settle. Soon afterwards they were all lost in the mist.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 2 Wood Pigeons
- 1 Herring Gull
- 22 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant again
- 5 Jackdaws: others heard
- no Rooks

Counts from the lake area:
- 6 Canada Geese: one of these flew in
- 2 Mute Swans: arrived
- 11 (8♂) Mallard
- 15 (9♂) Tufted Duck
- 1 (1♂) Goosander
- 7 Moorhens
- >36 Coots
- 4 Great Crested Grebes
- 18 Black-headed Gulls only
- 2 Herring Gulls only
- >250 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 6 Cormorants: arrived as a duo and a quartet. Some (of these?) departed
- 1 Grey Heron

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

Moths:
- 3 male and one female Winter Moths Operophtera brumata
- 1 male Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria

Nothing else

Later on the Teece Drive fence or elsewhere:

Nothing noted

VERY early just as the faint red glow of dawn was starting to be eaten away by the incoming bank of mist and fog.

This is a female "Winter" moth: one of many species where the female has no, or only vestigial, wings. Covered in dew and / or frost it is difficult to be certain of its identity. The stocky shape and apparent absence of vestigial wings suggest a female Winter Moth Operophtera brumata

An unusual view of a male Winter Moth O. brumata with his wings held above his back.

I am pleased I photographed this moth on a street lamp pole. At the time I thought it slightly too large for a male Winter Moth O. brumata and wondered about Northern Winter Moth O. fagata. Looking at the photo the wing shape is wrong for these species. It is very faintly-marked male Mottled Umber Erranis defoliaria .

at The Flash

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Flash: 09:25 – 10:35

(295th visit of the year)

Visibility slightly better here.

Bird notes:
- I did not seen any Shoveler.
- the Great (White) Egret eventually appeared out of the murk.
- after yesterday's singing Collared Dove I noted a pair (I assume) together.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 6 Canada Geese
- 19 (15♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Pochard only
- 30 (13♂) Tufted Duck
- 3 (1♂) Goosander
- 11 Moorhens
- 41 Coots
- 4 Great Crested Grebes
- 22 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull: third-winter, arrived
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gulls (near) adult arrived
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Great (White) Egret

Noted around the area:

Flower:
- Red Dead-nettle Lamium purpureum

After yesterday's singing(?!) Collared Dove on a roof-top in Derwent Drive this was one...

...two apparently doing the equivalent of having a fag behind the bike-sheds: or in this instance behind the salt and grit box at the academy entrance.

One looking guilty having been found out.

The other one pleading not to be punished?

Red Dead-nettle Lamium purpureum  is not a flower I expected to see at this date though NatureSpot gives December as the latest flowering date. I found it on ground disturbed when the sign for The Priorslee was ripped down and replaced with a mini-garden below the newly erected Hickory's Smokehouse sign. [I wonder if anyone from the company is ever going to remove all the planning notices they added to the local lamp posts?]

(Ed Wilson)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2013
Priorslee Lake
1 ‘Nelson's Gull' but also colloquially ‘Viking Gull
3 Yellow-legged Gulls
1 Little Grebe
2 Siskins
4 Gadwall
2 Teal
4 Pochard
87 Tufted Duck
3 Goosander
236 Coots
1 Snipe
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
45 Redwings
(Ed Wilson/JW Reeves)

2012
Priorslee Lake
Ring-billed Gull hybrid
1800 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
500 Black-headed Gulls
100 Herring Gulls
2 Yellow-legged Gull
6 Greater Black-backed Gulls
1 Common Gull
1 Little Grebe
3 Redwings
1 Teal
9 Pochard.
40 Tufted Ducks
1 Water Rail
c.170 Coots
3 Redwings
c.300 Jackdaws
(Ed Wilson / Tom Lowe)

2010
Priorslee Lake
2 Goldeneye
2 Skylarks
c.25 Redwing
c.8 Fieldfare
12 Bullfinches
c.30 Siskins
1 Redpoll
(Ed Wilson)

2009
Priorslee Lake
Little Grebe
Black-necked Grebe
4 Great Crested Grebes
31 Swans
2 Greylag
33 Pochard
1 Willow Tit
c.35 Goldfinches
3 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
1 Little Grebe
26 Pochard
44 Tufted Ducks
73 Coots
7 Lapwings
>1500 Black-headed Gulls
>1300 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
38 Herring Gulls
1 adult Yellow-legged Gull
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
24 Robins
13 Blackbirds
5 Fieldfares
11 Redwings
1 Willow Tit
132 Jackdaws
7 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
Wigeon
Water Rail
c.1500 Black-headed Gulls
2 Little Grebes
5 Great Crested Grebes
13 Pochard
40 Tufted Duck
235 Coot
270 Jackdaws
154 Rooks
2 Redpoll
5 Siskins
12 Pied Wagtails
2 Redwings
10 Fieldfares
21 Reed Buntings
13 Greenfinches
(Ed Wilson)