2 Apr 26

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

6.0°C > 9.0°C: Early low cloud with some very light drizzle gave way to sunny intervals and fair-weather clouds. A light northerly breeze. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 06:42 BST

* = a species photographed today
$ = a new species for me in this area

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 06:00 – 07:00 // 08:10 – 09:45

(77th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the Great (White) Egret arrived at 06:18 again was just beaten in the "first seen flying" stakes this morning by one of the two adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls and an outbound party of 16 Jackdaws.
- a group of c.12 Sand Martins dropped in briefly c.09:00 and were seen climbing away high to the north-west. About 10 minutes later c.12 were noted high overhead before also heading off north-west. The same?
- all four Blackcaps noted were males. One was, strangely, not heard singing.
- on my first walk around I noted four singing Goldcrests. None was heard (or seen) on my second lap when it was fully light.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 2 Canada Geese: pair outbound
- 4 Greylag Geese: two pairs outbound
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull: immature
- 15 Wood Pigeons
- c.175 Jackdaws
- 1 Rook
- 2 Meadow Pipits

Counts from the lake area:
- 7 Canada Geese: a pair and a single throughout; two pairs arrived and departed.
- 2 Greylag Geese
- 2 Mute Swans
- 9 (8♂) Mallard
- 9 (7♂) Tufted Duck
- 8 Moorhens again
- 28 Coots
- 6 Great Crested Grebes
- 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: adults, briefly around dawn
- no Cormorants
- 1 Grey Heron
- *1 Great (White) Egret

Hirundines etc. noted:
- c.12 Sand Martins: see notes

Warblers noted (the number in brackets refers to birds singing):
- 1 (1) Cetti's Warbler
- no Willow Warbler
- 16 (15) Chiffchaffs
- 4 (3) Blackcaps

On the West end street lamp poles pre-dawn:

Flies etc.:
- 1 male plumed midge Chironomus plumosus
- several small midges
- 1 unidentified cranefly

Beetles:
- 1 Alder Leaf Beetle Agelastica alni
- *1 weevil sp.

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- *1 comb-footed spider, possibly Anelosimus vittatus
- *1 money spider-type

Plants:
- *flowering Wild Cherry Prunus avium

Of note around the area later:

Bees, wasps etc.:
- *1 possible Orange-tailed Mining Bee Andrena haemorrhoa [Early Mining Bee]

Hoverflies:
- *1 Early Epistrophe Epistrophe eligans [Spring Smoothtail]
- *1 Tapered Dronefly Eristalis pertinax

Other flies:
- *numerous unidentified flies

Beetles:
- *1 7 Spot Ladybird Coccinella 7-punctata

The Great (White) Egret flies off...

...to perch rather precariously in the trees.

Basking in the sun is what Obsidentify was 94% sure was an Orange-tailed Mining Bee Andrena haemorrhoa.

This is the same bee in my shadow. Obsidentify was no longer sure what species of mining bee it was.

This is the hoverfly Early Epistrophe Epistrophe eligans . It looks somewhat like a Tapered Dronefly Eristalis pertinax but is noticeably smaller with a much more prominent scutellum. This is my earliest date by over a week for seeing this species.

This is a Tapered Dronefly and surprisingly tapered as a female (the eyes do not meet).

A number of flies came out to bask in the sun. Here is one.

And another. Neither identified.

A 7 Spot Ladybird Coccinella 7-punctata

Obsidentify helpfully suggested "Weevil". Thank you.

A 100% certain identification of this spider by Obsidentify as a comb-footed spider Anelosimus vittatus. The rubric in NatureSpot says that the dark area extends down the length of the carapace (abdomen). So? Note this is a male with the "boxing glove" palps.

And a money spider-type.

Flowering Wild Cherry Prunus avium though I am not sure how "wild" any of the trees and shrubs around the lake are.

Plane of the day. There are not too many 4-engined jets operational and most of them are, as here, freighters.

The slightly misleading information from FlightRadar24. It is owned by Kalitta Air but was not flying from Gander to "not available" but from Hill Air Force Base outside Salt Lake City in Utah to Fairford in Gloucestershire. The CMB flight code refers to the radio call-sign "Camber" and indicates a civilian aircraft operating a US Department of Defence (War?) mission. The aircraft is 33 years old and originally flew as a passenger aircraft with Korean Air who later converted it as a freighter. Kalitta has been flying it with this identity for nine years.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Flies
- *several unidentified midges
nothing else noted

A midge primer though their identity remains somewhat of a mystery. A female here and although the abdomen is banded it is too slim to be the midge Chironomus plumosus.

This seems to be the male of the same species.

Another female midge and slight more robust.

This is what I think a female Chironomus plumosus should look like with a broad and marked thorax and a substantial body.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 07:05 – 08:05

(75th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- the pair of (Common) Teal accidentally flushed from the top end. A drake seen later beside the island presumably one of these.
- *a surprise was seeing two brownhead Goosander.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 2 Collared Doves together: not apparently any of the local birds

Noted on / around the water:
- 25 Canada Geese
- 2 Greylag Geese
- 2 Mute Swans
- 20 (16♂) Mallard
- 2 (1♂) (Common) Teal
- 12 (9♂) Tufted Duck
- *2 (0♂) Goosander
- 4 Moorhens
- 24 Coots
- 1 Great Crested Grebe again

Warblers noted (the number in brackets refers to birds singing):
- *1 (1) Willow Warbler
- 5 (5) Chiffchaffs
- no Blackcaps

Of note around the area:

Flies:
- 1 female plumed midge Chironomus plumosus

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- *1 Garden Spider Araneus diadematus [Garden Cross Spider]
- 1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.

These two brownhead Goosander were a surprise. My previous sighting here was on 16 February. My only other April record here was on 1st April 2023.

A Willow Warbler. It was singing which helps to separate it from the similar-looking but very different sounding Chiffchaff.

Here we see the more prominent supercilium and that the legs are not black (though this is not a 100% reliable feature as some Chiffchaffs have paler legs). One reliable behavioural difference is that Chiffchaff is always on the move flitting through the branches constantly dipping its tail and flitting after prey. The slightly larger and more robust Willow Warbler almost never dips its tail and works through the vegetation usually gleaning insects from off of the branches.

Yesterday I photographed a Song Thrush apparently collecting nest material from alongside the Wesley Brook. Here is a female Blackbird...

...doing the same thing (sorry about the stick! I am sure there is an AI photo editor that could remove the stick but hey-ho)

A spider taking refuge in a fold in a street lamp pole. The diagnostic mark at the top of the abdomen is not visible but it looks to be a good candidate for a Garden Spider Araneus diadematus.

(Ed Wilson)

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2014
Priorslee Lake
5 Great Crested Grebes
1 Cormorant
7 Greylag Geese
14 Tufted Duck
4 Blackcaps
6 Chiffchaffs
229 Jackdaws
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
6 Greylag Geese
1 Cackling Goose
52 Tufted Ducks
2 Blackcap
4 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

Trench Lock Pool
3 Great Crested Grebes
3 Greylag Geese
12 Tufted Ducks
1 Little Gull
2 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

Trench Middle Pool
33 Greylag Geese
10 Tufted Duck
3 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

2013
Priorslee Lake
1 Water Rail
2 Gadwall
7 Wigeon
2 Little Grebe
Chiffchaff
Reed Bunting.
(John Isherwood)

The Flash
1 Brambling
1 Shoveler
(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill
>100 Fieldfare
> 50 Redwing
6 Lapwing
Meadow Pipit
Yellowhammer
(John Isherwood)

2012
Priorslee Lake
3 Great Crested Grebes
9 Greylag Geese
2 Tufted Duck
1 Curlew
1 Peregrine
4 Blackcaps
13 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
4 Great Crested Grebes
48 Tufted Duck
2 Blackcaps
1 Willow Warbler
5 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill
1 Curlew
5 Skylarks
1 Blackcap
3 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake
2 Curlew
Wheatear
> 50 Sand Martin
(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill
1 male Common Redstart
21 Wheatear
(John Isherwood, Ian Grant)

2010
Priorslee Lake
White Wagtail
Wheatear
3 Sand Martin
Chiffchaff
Willow Warbler
Willow Tit
(John Isherwood)

Nedge Hill
Common Redstart
6 Lapwing
(John Isherwood)

2009
Priorslee Lake
3 Great Crested Grebe
17 Tufted Duck
2 Willow Tit
4 Chiffchaffs
4 Bullfinch
1 Reed Bunting
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
25 Tufted Duck
2 Shoveler
3 Chiffchaffs
(Ed Wilson)

Nedge Hill
2 Lapwing
2 Curlew
1 Blackcap
1 Sparrowhawk
4 Meadow Pipits
4 Skylarks
4 Chiffchaffs
8 Goldfinches
5 Yellowhammers
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
5 Great Crested Grebes
1 Heron
7 Tufted Ducks
2 Ruddy Ducks
146 Jackdaws
1 Stock Dove
192 Wood Pigeons
2 Skylarks
1 Meadow Pipit
27 Blackbirds
31 Fieldfares
3 Swallow
53 Sand Martins
4 Swallow
3 Blackcaps
2 Willow Warblers
4 Chiffchaffs
2 Jays
22 Greenfinches
2 Siskins
(Ed Wilson, Martin Grant)