Priorslee Lake: 05:37 – 07:00 // 08:25 – 09:19
Map
Telford sunrise: 06:35
6.0°C > 7.5°C Yet another day off low overcast. Moderate N wind. Mostly poor visibility, better at Trench.
Highlights this morning were
- >200
Meadow Pipits passing N: by far my largest-ever number on passage here. There seemed to be no other species involved in the movement
-
Swallow(s?) and single
House Martin at the lake were my first of the year
(41st visit of the year)
Notes
- back to just one pair of
Gadwall this morning
- 1
Great Crested Grebe seen flying apparently from The Flash to the lake while I was walking the other way. There was one ‘missing’ from The Flash but no obvious extra bird here
- the 12 large
gulls were in a single party cloud-hopping. Although they were calling I am not confident about separating
Lesser Black-backed and
Herring Gulls on call
-
Raven calling again from trees on N side: later 3 flew N
- 3
Sand Martins with the
Swallow and
House Martin
- probably 2 single
Swallows as one noted with obviously long tail streamers
- noisy
Nuthatch calling alongside Teece Drive again: and equally persistent, if somewhat quieter,
Treecreeper
- 11
Song Thrushes singing this morning
- 1
Mistle Thrush singing well to the SE of the lake: usually these are to the far W
- just 20 of the
Meadow Pipit were over here
and
- my first
moth of the year in the Priorslee Avenue tunnel. With all the building and road works all the street-lamps both along Teece Drive and the footpath at the W end of the lake are inoperative and I am deprived of these ‘moth traps’!
Counts of birds flying over the lake (in addition to those on / around lake), again affected by the poor visibility
- 6
Greylag Geese in 4 groups
- 8
Canada Geese in 4 groups
- 3 (2♂)
Mallard
- 12 large
gulls
- 1
Stock Dove
- 2
Feral Pigeons
- 113
Jackdaws
- 5
Rooks only
- 2
Pied Wagtails
- 20
Meadow Pipits
Counts of birds leaving roosts around the lake
- 33
Magpies
Count of singing warblers
- 7
Chiffchaffs again
The counts from the lake area
- 2
Mute Swans: pen on nest
- 2 (1♂)
Gadwall
- 3 (2♂)
Mallard
- 23 (15♂)
Tufted Duck
- 1
Grey Heron
- 3
Cormorants
- 11
Great Crested Grebes again
- 14
Moorhens
- 51
Coots
- 1
Herring Gull
I found this single large Primrose plant well inside the trees along the N side. Odd that it is an isolated example and in deep shade but it seems not to be a cultivar and likely genuine. I do not have comprehensive plant records for the site but as far as I recall my first here.
I am sure we can do better than this over the coming weeks: a male Chiffchaff – a male because it is singing.
(Ed Wilson)
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Priorslee Flash: 07:10 – 08:15
Map
(37th visit of the year)
Notes
-
Mallard all over the place today: at least 4 on house roofs and several asleep in the roadway
- I am told that the council(?) treated the
goose eggs on the island yesterday. I was also told that a party of 3 goslings has been taken by a local ginger cat
- another
Heron sighting though this bird was flying high over and cloud-hopping
- extended visit while I counted the passing
Meadow Pipits: passage seemed to more or less stop after 08:05 when I had 192(!) in the log. What a way to get a site year-tick!
Noted flying over
- 1
Grey Heron
- 4
Feral Pigeons
- 192
Meadow Pipits
Count of singing warblers
- 4
Chiffchaffs
The counts from the water
- 2
Mute Swans
- 5
Greylag Geese
- 29
Canada Geese
- 1 all-white
feral goose
- 17 (14♂)
Mallard
- 1 white
feral duck
- 29 (19♂)
Tufted Ducks
- 2
Great Crested Grebes
- 3
Moorhen
- 14
Coots again
No gulls here
Nesting time is it? This female Blackbird has a mouthful
Why do they do this at this time of year: a drake Mallard on a house-roof at The Flash......
... and a duck Mallard as well
All that chasing after ducks is exhausting work but this is perhaps not the best place to go to sleep!
(Ed Wilson)
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Trench Lock Pool: 09:28 – 09:47
Map
(20th visit of the year)
Very quiet with no hirundines seen: this is often a good location for early birds
Notes
- 3 only
Great Crested Grebes seen again but another may have been on a nest somewhere
- 1
Song Thrush in song was my first of the year at this site
- 5
Goldfinches with single pairs of
Blue and
Great Tits were excitedly calling and jumping around on branches of a tree with an ivy-covered trunk. Their behaviour suggested they had found a roosting Tawny Owl: if so it was staying hidden and not about to fly off!
The counts from the water
- 2
Mute Swans
- 6
Canada Geese
- no ‘real’
Mallard
- 3
feral Mallard-type ducks
- 11 (7♂)
Tufted Ducks
- 1
Little Grebe
- 3
Great Crested Grebes
- 3
Moorhens
- 54
Coots
No gulls here
A difficult shot: this small moth was silhouetted against the lit strip light in the Priorslee Avenue tunnel. Forcing the flash on the camera allowed some detail to be seen – mainly the discal spot which is common on many species of pug moth. However I think this is a rather worn
Brindled Pug from a combination of wing-shape and flight time. Note the small plumed midge sp. at the bottom of the shot.
(Ed Wilson)
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On this day in 2006 and 2011
2011
Nedge Hill - Map
Ring Ouzel
60 Golden Plover
20 Yellowhammer
4 Wheatear
Blackcap
Chiffchaff
Willow Warbler
4 Stock Doves
(Andy Latham/John Isherwood/Ed Wilson)
------------------------------
2006
Priorslee
Ruddy Duck
36 Sand Martins
1 Swallow
2 Blackcaps
6 Chiffchaffs
5 Willow Warblers
Barn Owl
2 Ruddy Ducks
(Ed Wilson/Martin Adlam)
