0.0°C > 1.0°C: Areas of thin high cloud. Almost calm start with a night south-easterly breeze developing. Very good visibility.
Sunrise: 08:15 GMT
* = a species photographed today
The thin high cloud should have made it easy to see birds flying over. There didn't seem to be many. Typical.
Priorslee Balancing Lake: 07:10 – 09:30
(11th visit of the year)
Over 85% ice after just one night!
New Bird Species
A pair of Goosander visited briefly: bird species 51 for me here this year.
Bird notes:
- it was presumably the same six Canada Geese that were present early. I am not sure what happened to them as I could not find them later.
- many of the Pochard had gone.
- just two Great Crested Grebes seen at one of the holes in the ice.
- a large gull arrival difficult to get to grips with. Early on when it was still quite dark birds were mostly on the ice though some were in water. This precluded using height to separate the Black-headed Gulls from the larger gulls. By the time the large gulls had finished arriving my best estimate was c.200 Black-headed Gull, >50 Herring Gulls and >550 Lesser Black-backed Gulls.
- a single group of Fieldfare overhead was carrying two Redwing.
- just two Song Thrushes were heard singing.
- two Mistle Thrushes flew high East I would judge too high to be the local birds flying between feeding sites. Later one was seen in trees alongside Castle Farm Way.
- a / the Cetti's Warbler was calling around dawn. It did not sing. Good to know it has made it through the cold snap so far.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 1 Greylag Goose again
- 17 Wood Pigeons
- 7 Lesser Black-backed Gulls only.
- 1 Cormorant
- 22 Jackdaws
- 29 Rooks
- 16 Fieldfare
- 2 Redwing
- 2 Mistle Thrushes
Counts from the lake area:
- *6 Canada Geese: did these depart?
- 6 (3♂) Mallard
- 3 (3♂) Pochard
- *27 (15♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 (1♂) Goosander, briefly
- 2 Moorhens
- *18 Coots
- *2 Great Crested Grebes
- *c.200 Black-headed Gulls
- *>50 Herring Gulls
- *>550 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 6 Cormorants again
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Great (White) Egret
Noted on the West end street lamp poles pre-dawn:
All the poles were covered in ice.
Spiders / harvestmen etc.:
- 1 unidentified spider: same as yesterday
Noted later on the Teece Drive fence or elsewhere
Nothing
Same area down at water level.
Looking across the ice from the north-east area.
Later from mid-point along the North side.
From the north-west area as the colour increased...
...to maximum.
A Coot attempting to recover after falling through the thin ice.
Most of the gulls had departed by now. Just about centre of this view is a Herring Gull-type with a darker back than usual. Is it a Yellow-legged Gull? Well the legs do not look as pink as on the preening Herring Gull behind it. But are they any different from the more normal toned Herring Gull top left? And the sundry array of Lesser Black-backed Gulls have a range of leg tones. I am pending its identity for now. Now: also note the Lesser Black-backed Gull second from the right at the back: it is ringed...
(Ed Wilson)
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The Flash: 09:35 – 10:35
(7th visit of the year)
>90% ice.
New Bird Species
Two additions to my 2026 bird list for here:
- a party of 15 Redwing flew over.
- a Treecreeper was seen briefly with a Long-tailed Tit party.
By bird species total for the year now 40.
Bird notes:
- still just one Great Crested Grebe.
- hard to be sure how many Goosander were present. They were fishing in the open water under overhanging vegetation up against the island. They seemed to be moving anti-clockwise as I was walking clockwise! Certainly two pairs.
- many fewer Coots noted. Perhaps they too were tucked up underneath overhanging vegetation.
Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 1 Jackdaw
- 15 Redwing
Noted on / around the water:
- 4 Canada Geese
- 2 Mute Swans
- 32 (22♂) Mallard
- 30 (12♂) Tufted Duck
- 4 (2♂) Goosander: see notes
- 8 Moorhens
- 21 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 57 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: (near) adult, departed
Noted around the area:
Nothing
Mostly ice here. Looking from the top end.
A small group of Long-tailed Tits came to entertain me.
Puffed up against the cold.
In this view there are some definite buds on the tree.
Last one.
Referring back to the first-winter Blackbird at the lake here is a Song Thrush for comparison.
A friendly Robin?
More likely hoping for titbits!
There are always twigs in the way! A male Bullfinch in full breeding condition.
One more!
(Ed Wilson)
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2014
Priorslee Lake
3 Scaup
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
Willow Tit
(John Isherwood)
2013
Priorslee Lake
2 Wigeon
4 Gadwall
15 Pochard
76 Tufted Ducks
1 Greater Scaup
1 Goldeneye
>114 Coots
72 Black-headed Gulls
176 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
53 Herring Gulls
Yellow-legged Gull
1 Great Black-backed Gull
(Ed Wilson/Tom Lowe)
Little Wenlock, Candles Landfill Site
Caspian Gull.
5+ Yellow-legged Gulls
(Tom Lowe)
2012
Priorslee Lake
Lapwing
5 Great Crested Grebes
26 Pochard
23 Tufted Duck
12 Redwing
Redpoll
(Ed Wilson)
Trench Pool
141 Canada Geese
3 Pochard again
57 Tufted Duck
102 Coot logged
(Ed Wilson)
2009
Priorslee Lake
Yellow-legged Gull
(Mike Cooper)
2007
Priorslee Lake
3 Great Crested Grebes
16 Cormorants
24 Pochard
39 Tufted Ducks
3 Goosanders
1 Water Rail
200 Lapwings
>640 Black-headed Gulls
66 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
7 Herring Gulls
25 Robins
18 Blackbirds
14 Fieldfares
7 Song Thrushes
19 Redwings
7 Mistle Thrushes
42 Magpies
5 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)
2006
Priorslee Lake
600 Wood Pigeons
13 Great Crested Grebes
12 Pochard
26 Tufted Duck
216 Coots
1 Water Rail.
219 Jackdaws
210 Rooks
62 Siskins
3 Reed Bunting
1 Brambling
(Ed Wilson)