7 Jun 26

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

11.0°C > 15.0°C: Early broken high-level cloud again gave way to lower cloud with a short spell of light rain. Bright through a high overcast later. Light southerly breeze. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 04:48 BST again

* = a species photographed today
! = a first sighting of the species this year
$ = a new species for me in this area

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 04:55– 06:05 // 07:20 – 09:40

(134th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- once again the seven Greylag Geese goslings were present and correct with the third adult present throughout.
- *a single small Mallard duckling seen, apparently an orphan as no adults seen nearby. Of the large count of "adult" some of them could well have been full-grown juveniles of either sex masquerading as ducks..
- no Tufted Duck seen [but a drake at The Flash].
- four juvenile Coots seen from three broods.
- *the pair of Great Crested Grebes have at least three juveniles.
- a Racing Pigeon made a brief stop on the dam-top.
- no song was heard from Friday's Sedge Warbler.
- the recent (South side) Common Whitethroat was not found. At the original south-west site a non-singing bird was seen briefly in flight.
- what sounded like a family party of six Starlings flew from the estate to the academy's own sports field. This about two weeks after the majority of the juveniles fledged.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 4 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Stock Dove
- 3 Wood Pigeons only
- 3 Jackdaws
That's all

Counts from the lake area:
- 3 + 7 (1 brood) Greylag Geese
- 2 Mute Swan: assuming the pen is still on the hidden nest
- 28 (18♂) + *1 (1 brood) Mallard: see notes
- no Tufted Duck
- 4 Moorhens
- 26 + 4 (3 broods) Coots
- *6 + 3? (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes: see notes
- 1 Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 12 Swifts: flew South together
- no Barn Swallows
- no House Martins

Warblers noted (the number in brackets refers to birds singing):
For some reason there was a significant increase in singing.
- 11 (11) Chiffchaffs
- 10 (10) Reed Warblers
- 15 (12) Blackcaps
- 1 (0) Common Whitethroats

Also noted:
A few things braved the elements, mainly flies.

Butterflies:
none

Moths:
- *22 Yellow-barred Longhorn Nemophora degeerella : all between Teece Drive and the Wesley Brook.
- *1 Common Marble Celypha lacunana
- *$1 Black-streaked Tortrix Epinotia signatana: a new species for me in the area. Confirmed by the Shropshire micro-moth recorder.
- *!1 Garden Grass-moth Chrysoteuchia culmella [was Garden Grass-veneer]

Bees, wasps etc.:
only nine bumblebees noted, not all identified
- Tree Bumblebee Bombus hypnorum
- Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum
- Buff-tailed Bumblebee Bombus terrestris
- *sawfly #1
- *sawfly #2

Hoverflies:
none

Damsel / Dragon-flies:
- Blue-tailed Damselfly Ischnura elegans [Common Bluetail]
- 1 unidentified larva

Other flies:
I did not spend much time looking at flies.
- *!long-legged fly Dolichopus plumipes
- *long-legged fly Dolichopus ungulatus or similar
- Black Snipefly Chrysopilus cristatus: all males
- greenbottle Lucilia sp.: also a smaller greenbottle species
- *$ fly Meiosimyza decempunctata of the Lauxaniidae family

Bugs:
none

Beetles:
Definitely a beetle morning.
- *!larva, possibly of 10 Spot Ladybird Adalia decempunctata
- *larva of 7 Spot Ladybird Coccinella 7-punctata
- *Green Dock Beetle Gastrophysa viridula
- *both larvae and !pupae of Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis
- *Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis var. succinea
- *False Blister Beetle Oedemera lurida or O. virescens
- *a mating pair of unidentified longhorn beetles.

Slugs / Snails etc.:
- *$ Common Bladder Snail Physa fontinalis

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.

On the West end street lamp poles around dawn:
Another complete blank.

I do wonder whether the street lights are operational. I do know that one failed many weeks ago.

Cute and cuddly. The apparently abandoned Mallard duckling.

And here attempting the crawl!

So the Great Crested Grebes have two juveniles? One jumps off the parent's back to grab a morsel being brought by the other parent.

But what's this? There are in fact still two "humbugs" on the parent's back, one wrapped around the neck and with its bill just visible. So three juveniles.

A mating pair of Yellow-barred Longhorn Nemophora degeerella. I counted 22 of this moth species in the overgrown scrub between the Teece Drive fence and the Wesley Brook.

A Common Marble moth Celypha lacunana.

Not a brilliant photo of a small moth. This Black-streaked Tortrix Epinotia signatana flew to the ground as it was flushed from the vegetation and is here on the West end footpath. A new species for me here and historically an uncommon species as far North as the Midlands.

An unusually poorly-marked Garden Grass-moth Chrysoteuchia culmella. The angled cross-line near the wing-tip identifies. It is early in this species' flight season so it seems odd that it look so worn.

I cannot say anything more than "sawfly" for this insect. There are many species and many of them look very similar.

Another unidentified sawfly investigating whether the mating pair of Harlequin Ladybirds Harmonia axyridis, both of the form succinea are edible. Good luck munching the wing cases!

Something I did not expect: the unidentified larva of a damselfly emerging on a dull day. I have no information on how to identify these.

Here are what seems to be two male long-legged flies Dolichopus plumipes displaying. This species has the strange adornment on the middle leg apparently to impress females. How do "they" know?

For comparison here is my best photo to date of the more abundant long-legged fly D. ungulatus.

This fly that I have not previously seen (identified?) is Meiosimyza decempunctata. It is in the Lauxaniidae fly family though that is not very descriptive.

Certainly a ladybird larva. I think of a 10 Spot Ladybird Adalia decempunctata. Here on the Teece Drive fence.

Another ladybird larva, this of a 7 Spot Ladybird Coccinella 7-punctata.

A Green Dock Beetle Gastrophysa viridula. I am not sure why the elytra (wing-cases) look so short. Only these elytra gloss in the light, various colours depending on the angle.

This is a ladybird pupa, likely of a Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis. I can find few illustration of ladybird pupae on the internet.

A False Blister Beetle, either Oedemera lurida or O. virescens. In these very similar species the sexes also look the same, are more slender than the Swollen-thighed Beetle O. nobilis and the elytra are held less open when at rest.

There must have been something in the air today. More mating, this time a pair of longhorn beetles. This confuses the ID apps and reference to the NatureSpot photo gallery did not provide a conclusive identity.

Courtesy of one of the fishermen who extracted this Common Bladder Snail Physa fontinalis from the water. Any palmists able to read my lines?

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Flies:
- 14 midges only of several species again

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 probable male Snake-back Spider Segestria senoculata
- 1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.

With palps like this it has to be a male spider with its prey. It may be the same species as I saw yesterday - a Snake-back Spider Segestria senoculata.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:10 – 07:15

(131st visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- An even larger count of adult Canada Geese with the gosling and its parents again among them. Today most of them were in one bunched up group which made them even harder to count as they would not stay still.
- seventeen Greylag Geese two of which flew in together.
- still eight visiting Mute Swans. No sign of any cygnets as yet
- a drake Tufted Duck was my first of this species since 29 May (and before that 17 May). This species is usually present throughout the year and has bred here.
- my first juvenile Moorhen here this year (juveniles have been in the pools between here and the Balancing Lake for several weeks)
- fifteen juvenile Coots found from nine broods.
- no Great Crested Grebe noted.
- no Grey Heron today.
- one (or more) Great Spotted Woodpecker calling again from the island.
- a Nuthatch calling along squirrel alley was my first for several weeks.
- a male Pied Wagtail was on Derwent Drive as I arrived, flying away South,

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull

Noted on / around the water:
- 172 + 1 (1 brood) Canada Geese
- 17 Greylag Geese
- 10 Mute Swans: assuming the pen is still on the hidden nest.
- 22 (19♂) Mallard
- 1 (1♂) Tufted Duck
- 6 + 1 (1 brood) Moorhens
- 41 + 15 (9 broods) Coots
- no Great Crested Grebe
- no Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- no Swifts
- 2 House Martins

Warblers noted (the number in brackets refers to birds singing):
- 3 (3) Chiffchaffs
- 5 (5) Blackcaps

Noted around the area:

Moths:
- *4 Yellow-barred Longhorn Nemophora degeerella

Bees, wasps etc.:
- *Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum
- *Buff-tailed Bumblebee Bombus terrestris

Flies:
- long-legged fly Dolichopus ungulatus or similar
- Black Snipefly Chrysopilus cristatus: all males
- *!fly Suillia variegata from the Heleomyzidae(!) family

Beetles:
- Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis var. succinea

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 Long-jawed Orb-web Spider Tetragnatha sp.

Just resting in the low overcast were four of these Yellow-barred Longhorn moths Nemophora degeerella.

When it wakes up this Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum has breakfast ready "delivered". Common Knapweed Centaurea nigra awaits.

A more active Buff-tailed Bumblebee Bombus terrestris.

This the fly Suillia variegata. It is from the Heleomyzidae(!) family of flies and is distinguished by the white tip to the dark-spotted wings and the two lines of dots on the thorax.

(Ed Wilson)

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2009
Priorslee Lake
15 House Martins
15 Swifts
2 Chiffchaffs
Willow Warbler
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
1 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)