22 Aug 26

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

9.0°C > 16.0°C: Early broken cloud mostly cleared after 07:00. Another calm start with slight mist over the water. A very light and variable breeze developed. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 06:03 BST

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

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 04:50– 06:30 // 07:35 – 09:30

(188th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- ten Tufted Duck at the West end again.
- the *latest brood of Great Crested Grebes comprises at least two juveniles, still hiding on a parent's back.
- two Collared Doves were on the roof of the academy at c.07:40. I have not seem them there before.
- a few Black-headed Gulls could be heard by 05:15. A group of c.50 arrived from the south-west c.05:35. None was seen on the football field. A count of 57 was made at 08:45.
- another morning with a big arrival of Lesser Black-backed Gull. These were heard from 05:10 in small numbers arriving from the south-west. When it was light-enough to see them I counted 487 (sad but true) arriving before 05:35. Some of these may well have flown over. The mist on the water prevented a detailed check as to whether there were any Herring Gulls among them.
- a small number of Lesser Black-backs dropped in later with a few flying over. Single Herring Gulls were noted at this time.
- a lone Swift was dashing around overhead at 05:55. Presumably the same bird was that seen at 06:05.
- the 08:45 Barn Swallow was present again: this time two birds were over the water. Later one flew South.
- a Lesser Whitethroat was seen briefly in the Ricoh hedge

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 11 Canada Geese: flew East in three groups: others heard only.
- 10 Greylag Geese flew East in two groups
- 1 Herring Gull
- 11 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 1 Stock Dove
- 33 Wood Pigeons
- 6 Jackdaws
- 64 Rooks

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 37 (?♂) Mallard
- 10 (3?♂) Tufted Duck again
- 4 Moorhens
- 54 Coot
- 17 *Great Crested Grebes (adults and juveniles)
- >60 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Herring Gull
- >500 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: see notes
- 1 Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 1 Swift
- 3 Barn Swallows

Warblers noted:
- 13 Chiffchaffs: one sang briefly
- 3 Blackcaps
- 1 Lesser Whitethroat

Also noted:

Butterflies:
- 1 *Small White Pieris rapae
- 1 Green-veined White Pieris napi

Moths:
none

Bees, wasps etc.:
- *Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum
- Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris

Hoverflies:
- *Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax: three of these
- *Common Copperback Ferdinandea cuprea [Bronze Sap Hoverfly; Eurasian Copperback]: just one
- ! *Marsh Stripe-back Helophilus hybridus [Marsh Tiger Hoverfly; Woolly-tailed Marsh Fly]

Damsel / Dragon-flies:
- *Common Blue Damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum [Common Bluet]: 1 female
- *Blue-tailed Damselfly Ischnura elegans [Common Bluetail]: 1 male

True flies:
- greenbottle Lucilia sp.
very few other flies seen.

Bugs:
none

Beetles:
none

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
none

On the West end street lamp poles around dawn:

Moths:
- 19 (gulp!) Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 1 Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla

Flies:
- 1 unidentified fly

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 harvestman Paroligolophus agrestis

An over-enlarged distant shot of the latest brood of Great Crested Grebes. At least two on the parent's back.

A female Small White butterfly Pieris rapae

This plume moth had me confused. The two species I see here most often both rest with the wings held at right-angles to the body. There are several species that rest with wings angled like this. I am familiar with none of them. This does not show any helpful markings either.

Happily it stayed around and when I rechecked later it was resting exactly like a Common Plume Emmelina monodactyla should do.

As yesterday a single Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum was the only bee seen. Here feeding on Common Ragwort Jacobaea vulgaris.

One of three Common Droneflies Eristalis tenax I noted this morning.

A Common Copperback hoverfly Ferdinandea cuprea enjoying a convolvulus flower.

A very fortunate catch as this hoverfly leaves a different convolvulus flower. The extent of the yellow on the hind leg confirms this is what Steve Falk calls Marsh Stripe-back Helophilus hybridus; what I previously knew as Marsh Tiger Hoverfly; and Obsidentify names Woolly-tailed Marsh Fly. Thank heaven for a scientific name we all agree upon. It is five years since I last recorded this species. The more common Tiger Hoverfly H. pendulus (also Tiger Marsh Fly or Sun Fly) has more of the hind leg coloured and in a more orange tone.

A female Common Blue Damselfly Enallagma cyathigerum. There are not many about now though I usually see a few as late as mid-September.

A male Blue-tailed Damselfly Ischnura elegans. I do not have "annual last dates" for this species. It seems later that I can recall.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Moths:
- 1 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 1 ! *Rush Veneer Nomophila noctuella
- 1 Double-striped Pug Gymnoscelis rufifasciata

Flies:
- 2 midges
- 37 (gulp) moth fly Psychodidae sp. [Drain Fly or Owl Fly]

Arthropods:
- 2 White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 2 Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata [Silver-sided Sector Spider]

Mammals:
- 1 *Mole Talpa europaea: sadly dead

I found this moth tucked up on a tight corner of the tunnel. It is a Rush Veneer Nomophila noctuella. This is a very common species that I ought to see frequently given the amount of suitable vegetation at the Balancing, The Flash and around the pools between. I only note this species in one out of three years.

On the footpath just outside the tunnel was this dead Mole Talpa europaea. It looks rather scruffy here!

Poor thing.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:35 – 07:30

(184th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- ten Mute Swans again.
- two Little Grebes seen again. In flight and on the water. They may have departed.
- the pair of adult Great Crested Grebe were at the island with one on the nest again. The recent sub-adult was not seen.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 4 Canada Geese
- 1 Greylag Goose
- 10 Mute Swans
- 30 (?♂) Mallard
- 8 Moorhens
- 33 Coot
- 2 *Little Grebe
- 2 + ? (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 11 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant
- 1 Grey Heron
- 1 Little Egret

Warblers noted (no song):
- 3 Chiffchaffs again

Noted around the area:

Moths:
- 5 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 2 *Chevron Grass-moth Agriphila geniculea [was Elbow-stripe Grass-veneer]
- 1 *Yellow Shell Camptogramma bilineata
- 1 ! *Flounced Rustic Luperina testacea
- 1 *Centre-barred Sallow Atethmia centrago

Another sighting of two Little Grebe here. These birds were very skittish, taking off and flying short distances. The lighting is not good but they do not look the same of the two adults I photographed on 14 August.

A not-very-yellow Yellow Shell moth Camptogramma bilineata I found on one of the fence stanchions surrounding the academy here.

At the top end of The Flash I found this Flounced Rustic moth Luperina testacea on a street lamp pole. A very typical date: my last two records were on 28th and 20th August in previous years.

What I assume to be the same Centre-barred Sallow moth Atethmia centrago as seen on the previous two mornings, now descended from its location tight at the top of a street lamp pole on to the main part with a Chevron Grass-moth Agriphila geniculea alongside.

(Ed Wilson)

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2012
Priorslee Lake
Peregrine Falcon
Yellow Wagtail
(Ed Wilson)

2006
Priorslee Lake
3 Sandwich Terns
Common Tern
Kingfisher
Tree Pipit
(Ed Wilson)

2005
Priorslee Lake
Common Tern
Raven
Kingfisher
(Ed Wilson)

21 Aug 26

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

12.0°C > 15.0°C: Often broken cloud with spits of rain c.05:00. Some brighter spells. A calm start with a very light northerly breeze developing. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 06:01 BST

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

Priorslee Balancing Lake: 04:50– 06:30 // 07:35 – 09:35

(187th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- almost all this morning's Canada Geese flew East in groups.
- now ten Tufted Duck at the West end of the water with three looking to be drakes.
- no gulls were present on the water until after 05:10. At most 75 Black-headed Gulls were present by 05:30. Later I counted 86 on the football field.
- fewer Lesser Black-backed Gulls again with the first at 05:20 and at most c.100. Some had passed over but I suspect most of these then circled around to visit. A few visited later. No Herring Gulls were noted.
- a lone Barn Swallow flew East at 08:45 as one did yesterday.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- >85 Canada Geese: 83 flew East in six groups with others heard only. A duo flew West much later.
- 7 Greylag Geese flew East together
- 31 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 2 Stock Doves: together
- 69 Wood Pigeons
- 12 Jackdaws
- 108 Rooks

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 41 (?♂) Mallard
- 10 (3?♂) Tufted Duck
- 6 Moorhens
- 55 Coot
- 16 Great Crested Grebes (adults and juveniles)
- 1 Common Sandpiper
- >85 *Black-headed Gulls
- c.100 *Lesser Black-backed Gulls: see notes
- 1 Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 1 Barn Swallow

Warblers noted (no song):
- 10 Chiffchaffs
- 4 Blackcaps

Also noted:

Butterflies:
none

Moths:
- 1 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]

Bees, wasps etc.:
- *Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum
- Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris
- *ichneumon wasp from the Braconid group

Hoverflies:
- *Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax: two of these
- *Chequered Hoverfly Melanostoma scalare [Long-winged Duskyface]
- *Pellucid Fly Volucella pellucens [Pied Plumehorn; Great Pied Hoverfly]

Damsel / Dragon-flies:
none

True flies:
- greenbottle Lucilia sp.
- *Flesh fly/flies Sarcophaga sp
very few other unidentified flies seen.

Bugs:
none

Beetles:
none

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
none

On the West end street lamp poles around dawn:

Moths:
- 13 *Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 1 *Chevron Grass-moth Agriphila geniculea [was Elbow-stripe Grass-veneer]
- 2 *Square-spot Rustic Xestia xanthographa

Flies:
- 1 unidentified fly

Beetles:
- 1 *ground beetle Paradromius linearis

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spider Larinioides sclopetarius [Bridge Orbweaver]
- 1 *unidentified spider

It was raining slightly as I arrived this morning and I was not expecting a good sunrise so I was pleased with this...

...and even more pleased with this!

Compare and contrast time. On the football field c.06:10 an adult-winter Black-headed gull is dwarfed by a very dark juvenile or first-winter Lesser Black-backed Gull.

A very worn, nay bald, Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella on one of the West end street lamp poles pre-dawn. I counted thirteen of these moths this morning and every pole had at least one.

A Chevron Grass-moth Agriphila geniculea for a change.

One of two Square-spot Rustic moths Xestia xanthographa seen this morning. As yesterday the dark "square spot" between the kidney mark and the oval on the wing is none too apparent.

It is slightly more obvious on this specimen sharing space with yet another Common Grass-moth.

The only bee I saw today was this Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum. It has fund a very late flower of a bramble.

This small ichneumon wasp is from the Braconid group. There are many to choose from and no easy way to distinguish them.

One of just four hoverflies I saw today: a Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax.

This seems to be another. It looks more "tapered" than I would expect, perhaps not enough for a male Tapered Dronefly E. pertinax (it is a male). Had the front legs been more visible I would have been more certain as the light and dark areas on these legs differs between the species.

Leaving the same convolvulus flower at which I photographed a female Chequered Hoverfly Melanostoma scalare yesterday is perhaps the same individual.

A Pellucid Fly Volucella pellucens at rest on top of the Teece Drive fence. Note the battered edge to the wings. The fence is a surprising productive place to search for insects.

Obsidentify suggested this might be a Common Dronefly which it isn't. Google Lens suggested a Flesh fly Sarcophaga sp. which it might be though it is more slender than...

 ...this, a typical Flesh fly and possibly S. carnaria.

Scurrying down a street lamp pole for cover is what appears to be a ground beetle Paradromius linearis.

I will have to leave this as an unidentified spider. Neither suggestion from Obsidentify seems reasonable when I checked each against the respective photos on NatureSpot.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Moths:
- 1 *Orange Swift Triodia sylvina
- 1 Brown House-moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella
- 1 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 2 *Double-striped Pug Gymnoscelis rufifasciata

Bees, wasps etc.:
- 1 Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris again

Flies:
- 4 midges
- 1 *cranefly Limonid sp.
- 9 moth fly Psychodidae sp. [Drain Fly or Owl Fly]

Arthropods:
- 1 *White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 Stout Sac Spider Clubiona sp.
- 2 Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata [Silver-sided Sector Spider]

A much better image of an Orange Swift moth Triodia sylvina. Always easier when the moths are on the wall and not the ceiling.

A particularly poorly-marked Double-striped Pug moth Gymnoscelis rufifasciata.

Apart from noting that it has lost one of its legs I can only say this small cranefly is one of the Limonid sp.

After the recent millipede confusion it was good to get back to "just" a White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:35 – 07:30

(183rd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- one of the Canada Geese flew in to join four that seem uninterested in flying though they can manage brief flights from the path along Derwent Drive in to the water. A duo flew by.
- a tenth Mute Swan noted.
- the pair of adult Great Crested Grebe were at the island with one on the nest so again an unknown number of juveniles. A sub-adult was in the middle of the water.
- a Cormorant flew in.
- three Grey Herons and the Little Egret still here.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 2 Canada Geese
- 1 Jackdaw

Noted on / around the water:
- 5 Canada Geese: see notes
- no Greylag Geese
- 10 Mute Swans
- 34 (?♂) Mallard
- 5 Moorhens
- 38 Coot
- 3 + ? (1 brood) Great Crested Grebes
- 12 Black-headed Gulls
- 1 Cormorant arrived
- 3 Grey Herons
- 1 Little Egret

Hirundines etc. noted:

None

Warblers noted (no song):
- 3 Chiffchaffs
- no Blackcaps

Noted around the area:

Moths:
- 5 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 3 *Chevron Grass-moth Agriphila geniculea [was Elbow-stripe Grass-veneer]
- 1 *Double-striped Pug Gymnoscelis rufifasciata
- 1 *Centre-barred Sallow Atethmia centrago

Yesterday's Centre-barred Sallow moth Atethmia centrago was joined by a Chevron Grass-moth Agriphila geniculea today.

The best example of a Chevron Grass-moth I noted this morning and at a helpful angle to fully appreciate the markings.

A particularly well-marked Double-striped Pug moth Gymnoscelis rufifasciata.

(Ed Wilson)

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2012
Nedge Hill
2 Redstart
7 Ravens
(John Isherwood)

2006
Priorslee Lake
Shag
3 Kingfishers
(Ed Wilson)

20 Aug 26

Priorslee Balancing Lake and The Flash

13.0°C > 16.0°C: Broken cloud with a clearer spell c.07:30 – 08:30. A calm start with a light westerly breeze developing. Very good visibility.

Sunrise: 05:59 BST

* = 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– 06:25 // 07:35 – 09:40

(186th visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- ten Canada Geese on the lake departed together at 05:40 to the East.
- five Tufted Duck were at the West end of the water with at least one of them a drake.
- I did not manage to establish how many juveniles were in the new brood of Great Crested Grebes first seen yesterday.
- a Common Sandpiper was calling and seen flying around c.05:30 but not seen or heard thereafter.
- about 250 Black-headed Gulls were present by 05:25 with some of these noted as having arrived from the South. Later I counted 63 on the football field.
- The first of many fewer Lesser Black-backed Gulls were heard overhead at 05:10. Just a dozen or so were on the water by 05:30 when 42 more were noted arriving from the south-west. Very few visited later.
- a lone Swift flew over the North side trees at 05:55 and was not seen again. It is close to my latest-ever date for this species here.
- a lone Barn Swallow flew East at 08:45.
- a few House Martin were heard overhead at 05:35 and apparently heading South. Not seen.
- a respectable count of Rooks on roost dispersal. Jackdaw numbers remain very low.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:
- 10 Greylag Geese flew south-east together
- 1 Herring Gull
- 8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls
- 36 Wood Pigeons
- 19 Jackdaws
- 97 Rooks

Counts from the lake area:
- 2 Mute Swans
- 42 (?♂) *Mallard
- 5 (1?♂) Tufted Duck
- 5 Moorhens
- 52 Coot again
- 16 *Great Crested Grebes (adults and juveniles)
- 1 Common Sandpiper
- c.250 Black-headed Gulls
- c.60 Lesser Black-backed Gulls: see notes
- 1 Grey Heron

Hirundines etc. noted:
- 1 Swift
- 1 Barn Swallow
- ? House Martins heard only

Warblers noted (no song):
very quiet today
- 5 Chiffchaffs
- 5 Blackcaps again

Also noted:

Butterflies:
none

Moths:
- 1 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]

Bees, wasps etc.:
- Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris
- *ichneumon wasp probably Pimpla rufipes [Black Slip Wasp]

Hoverflies:
singles of each species
- *Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus
- *Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax
- *Chequered Hoverfly Melanostoma scalare [Long-winged Duskyface]
- *Common Twist-tail Sphaerophoria scripta [Long Hoverfly; Common Globetail]

Damsel / Dragon-flies:
none

True flies:
- *Common Green Bottle Fly Lucilia sericata
- other greenbottle Lucilia sp.
very few other unidentified flies seen.

Bugs:
none

Beetles:
- Alder Leaf Beetle Agelastica alni
- *Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis: pupa only

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
none

This family of Great Crested Grebe seems to be thriving. In my experience it is unusual for a brood of four to survive this long.

This ichneumon wasp is probably Pimpla rufipes which is sometimes known as a Black Slip Wasp.

A Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus flying in to the depths of a convolvulus flower (which already has an occupant). No hint of an orange tone anywhere on the body of this specimen. A variable species.

A female Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax.

A Chequered Hoverfly Melanostoma scalare in flight showing clearly the triangular yellow marks on the abdomen that identify the female of this species. Males have square yellow marks. I rarely seem to see males.

A Common Twist-tail Sphaerophoria scripta. The alternative name of Long Hoverfly is not so apposite here as this is a female with a noticeably shorter body.

I have been reporting "greenbottle Lucilia sp." here for many weeks and in the absence of many other insects I thought I ought to try harder. This is a Common Green Bottle Fly Lucilia sericata. That said there were other noticeably smaller individuals present as well so my caution was deserved.

This is a pupa of a Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis. I am not entirely sure anyone is at home. It seems a long while since I saw any ladybirds at any stage of their lifecycle. I guess the hot and dry conditions are not to their liking.

(Ed Wilson)

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On the West end street lamp poles around dawn:

Moths:
- 4 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 1 *probable Brown Moss-moth Bryotropha terrella [was Cinerous Neb]
- 1 *just possibly Clover Case-bearer Coleophora alcyonipennella
- 1 *Square-spot Rustic Xestia xanthographa

Flies:
- 1 *long-legged fly Dolichopus ungulatus or similar
- 1 *possible Muscid fly Mintho rufiventris
- 1 unidentified fly

Arthropods:
- 1 *millipede possibly Cylindroiulus caeruleocinctus

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 1 *lace-weaver spider Amaurobius sp.
- 1 Bridge Orb-web Spider Larinioides sclopetarius [Bridge Orbweaver]
- 1 harvestman from the species pair Dicranopalpus ramosus / D. caudatus

There were many things on the street lamp poles pre-dawn: I did not have much luck identifying them with either Obsidentify or Google Lens. I will get this checked but I think it is a Brown Moss-moth Bryotropha terrella. Pre-dawn it was difficult to discern as it was resting on a lichen-covered part of the pole. I took this photo later when it had moved and was better-lit.

This small moth is just possibly a Clover Case-bearer Coleophora alcyonipennella, the only species in the group that seems to be flying at this date. It would be a new species for me. I will not be claiming it as the photo – of a small moth a long way up the pole – is not clear-enough.

I am on safe(r) grounds with this Square-spot Rustic moth Xestia xanthographa. The "square-spot" is the (not very obvious) dark area between what are known as "the oval" and "the kidney spot" that are present on the forewings of most moths that have this general shape at rest – the Noctuid group.

This is one of the long-legged flies Dolichopus ungulatus or similar

Google Lens was most help here and its suggestion of the Muscid fly Mintho rufiventris looks possible.

Another millipede to confuse. As with the specimen I photographed in the tunnel yesterday I thought at the time it was a White-legged Snake Millipede Tachypodoiulus niger. But that species has a black body and this brown. It is possibly Cylindroiulus caeruleocinctus though photos on the web show that species with short antennae.

This is a lace-weaver spider from the Amaurobius group.

(Ed Wilson)

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In the Priorslee Avenue tunnel:

Moths:
- 1 Brown House-moth Hofmannophila pseudospretella
- 1 Common Carpet Epirrhoe alternata [it took exception to my torch light and escaped before I could photograph it]

Bees, wasps etc.:
- 1 Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris [unusual here]

Flies:
- 1 midge
- 4 moth fly Psychodidae sp. [Drain Fly or Owl Fly]

Arthropods:
- 1 Common Rough Woodlouse Porcellio scaber

Spiders, harvestmen etc.:
- 6 Missing Sector Orb-web Spider Zygiella x-notata [Silver-sided Sector Spider]
- 1 *harvestman Opilio canestrinii

A harvestman species that seems to like the tunnel. It is Opilio canestrinii characterised by very long legs usually held splayed. Like all harvestmen there is no separate head or thorax.

(Ed Wilson)

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The Flash: 06:30 – 07:30

(182nd visit of the year)

Bird notes:
- still nine Mute Swans.
- no Little Grebe seen.
- a pair of adult Great Crested Grebe were close together with an unknown number of juveniles on the back of one of them. A sub-adult was fishing in the middle of the water.
- no Cormorants noted.
- two Grey Herons and the Little Egret still here.

Bird(s) noted flying over here:

None

Noted on / around the water:
- 4 Canada Geese still
- no Greylag Geese
- 9 Mute Swans again
- 31 (?♂) Mallard again
- 6 Moorhens
- 31 Coot only
- 1 Little Grebe
- 3 + ? (1 brood) *Great Crested Grebes: see notes
- 14 Black-headed Gulls
- no Cormorants
- 2 Grey Herons again
- 1 Little Egret again

Hirundines etc. noted:

None

Warblers noted (no song):
- 2 Chiffchaffs
- 1 Blackcap again

Noted around the area:

Moths:
- 6 Common Grass-moth Agriphila tristella [was Common Grass-veneer]
- 1 ! *Centre-barred Sallow Atethmia centrago

Bugs:
- 1 Red-legged Shieldbug Pentatoma rufipes: seventh day, trapped in a web. Looked about to drop out.

Somewhere under the fluffed-up feathers are one or more juvenile Great Crested Grebes. Lets hope this brood is more successful than the previous attempt back at the end of May when the juveniles disappeared the day after they took to the water. I am not sure whether these are the same parents.

Meanwhile the immature Great Crested Grebe has caught a fish and doesn't seem to know what to do with it, carrying it about.

This Centre-barred Sallow moth Atethmia centrago was tucked up under the overhang on a street lamp pole. Sallow moths always hint at Autumn – there are several different species and none is on the wing before mid-August. My only previous record of this species in the area was at the Balancing Lake in 2020.


(Ed Wilson)

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2009
Priorslee Lake
1 Common Sandpiper
(Ed Wilson)

2007
Priorslee Lake
1 Wheatear
(Ed Wilson)