9 Nov 26

The Flash and Priorslee Balancing Lake

5.0°C: Mist / fog. Very light wind. Poor / very poor visibility.

[Sunrise: 07:17 GMT]

A single photograph today

The usual "bad weather" circuit starting late at The Flash. The mist / fog did not clear much. Why did I bother?

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 10:20 – 11:15

(250th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- all numbers are the best I could muster from a walk-around. I obviously missed things and there was scope for double-counting, especially of the Tufted Duck that were mobile on the water.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
None

Counts from the lake area:
- 4 Canada Geese
- 2 Mute Swans
- 7 (4♂) Mallard
- 52 (27♂) Tufted Duck
- 2 Moorhens
- Coots not counted
- 1 Great Crested Grebe
- 6 Black-headed Gulls
- 2 Herring Gulls
- 21 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 3 Cormorants
- 2 Grey Herons

On the West end street lamp poles before dawn:

Bugs:
- 1 Hawthorn Shieldbug Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale: re-re-identified?

Well: this is both confusing and embarrassing - again! A shieldbug on the same West end street lamp pole but lower down than on my sightings on previous days. The resultant clearer photo shows this is most definitely a Hawthorn Shieldbug Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale. The pointed "shoulders" mean that it cannot be a Birch Shieldbug Elasmostethus interstinctus. Did I get it right in the first place and then mis-correct it? Or have there been two individuals?

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 09:20 – 10:10

(248th visit of the year)

The island remained almost invisible throughout.

Bird notes:
- the Mute Swan that was first seen yesterday was closer. It is not ringed so its identity cannot be positively established: it does look very similar to the bird taken in to care a week ago.
- a drake Shoveler seen.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
None

Noted on / around the water:
- 2 Canada Geese
- 1 (1♂) Shoveler
- 41 (25♂) Mallard
- 1 (3♂) Tufted Duck
- 6 Moorhens
- 12 Coot only
- 9 Black-headed Gulls only
- no Cormorants
- 1 Grey Heron

Around the area:
Nothing of note

(Ed Wilson)

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2013
Priorslee Lake
4 Wigeon
4 Gadwall
1 Pochard
60 Tufted Duck
1 Water Rail
235 Coots
7 Song Thrushes
118 Fieldfare
30 Redwings
466 Jackdaws
139 Rooks
c.450 Starlings from roost
(Ed Wilson)

2012
Priorslee Lake
c.100 Greylag Geese
3 Gadwall
8 Pochard
18 Tufted Ducks
153 Coots
c.500 Black-headed Gulls
c.450 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
10 Herring Gulls
1 Great Black-backed Gull
118 Wood Pigeons
103 Redwings
154 Fieldfares
809 Jackdaws
201 Rooks
7 Siskin
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
1 Pink-footed Goose
c.100 Greylag Geese
41 Canada Geese
41 Tufted Duck
12 Goosander
(Ed Wilson)

2011
Priorslee Lake
Yellow legged Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
(John Isherwood)

2010
Priorslee Lake
28 Pochard
65 Tufted Duck
46 Greenfinches
5 Fieldfares
11 Redwings
12 Siskins
(Ed Wilson)

The Flash
2 Goosanders
1 Pochard
45 Tufted Duck
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
Great Black-backed Gull
1 Gadwall
1 Shoveler
2 Wigeon
Peregrine Falcon
(Ed Wilson/John Isherwood)

2006
Priorslee Lake
23 Pochard
75 Tufted Ducks
950+ Black-headed Gulls
1204+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls
499 Wood Pigeons
11 Meadow Pipits
23 Robins
23 Blackbirds
13 Fieldfares
4 Song Thrushes
18 Redwings
1 Willow Tit
321 Jackdaws
241 Rooks
22 Greenfinches
9 Reed Buntings
(Ed Wilson)