27th August, Sunday - A brief visit at midday saw 35 1st winter Lesser Black-backed Gulls bathing at the dam end. Also present were 2 Dabchick and a pair of Great Crested Grebe with 3 juveniles in tow. (Martin Adlam)

23rd August, Wednesday (05:24 - 08:34) - A mainly cloudy morning with some light / moderate rain. Moderate SSE wind and rather moderate visibility.

Highlights were
- 3 Common Terns today for at least 15 minutes
- still a few late Swifts; and a few warblers, though no Reed Warblers this morning otherwise the typical mix

So here we go with the more detailed avian notes from the lake today
- could not find any Little Grebes today
- the 4 adult Great Crested Grebes with 3 juveniles from the late brood doing well
- no Cormorants noted
- no Heron either
- the 1 surviving cygnet with the resident adult Swans
- no Greylag Geese noted, either with the Canada Geese parties or separately
- 13 outbound parties of 124 [184] Canada Geese noted. No returning birds seen or heard today
- the adult Mallard count on the lake was back to a more respectable 57 today
- 1 Tufted Duck only: a duck
- 1 Kestrel on the wires to E at 06:10, but not thereafter
- poor morning for Moorhens: 3 separate well-grown juveniles; only 2 adults noted
- little change with the Coots: same 7 [7] juveniles with 94 [93] adults
- the count of gulls today:
- - 78 Black-headed Gulls logged: all but 1 flew E, with some stopping for a while
- - 85 Lesser Black-backed-type Gulls logged (not all were specifically checked and some could have been Herring Gulls). Several small parties of up to 10 birds paused at the lake, the first group of 9 birds arriving unusually from the W. One of these was rather a small and pale-headed moulting (near?) adult, but I could not turn it into anything more interesting
- - 4 Herring Gulls specifically identified in amongst the other large gulls, all of them immatures - indeed they all seemed to be juveniles
- 3 adult Common Terns were first noted at 07:48, apparently from the W: they spent about 15 minutes flying around and were often hawking for fish, though I never noted any feeding. Neither did I hear any calls. All 3 seemed to be adults and had complete black-caps - unlike yesterday's putative bird! The Black-headed Gulls attempted to harass them but they always slipped away 'without trying'. Did not see them leave
- 22 Feral Pigeons with the largest group containing 10 birds: none was apparently racing pigeons
- 2 Stock Doves flew E together
- slightly higher count of Wood Pigeons today, partly due to lack of distractions, but that said my lower-than-normal elevation in the hut out of the rain cost me many birds. I logged 222 [141] flying E: and 35 [16] logged flying W. There was a maximum of 5 [8] birds on the wires. There were 14 [6] birds around the lake itself. So my tally today was 276 [171]
- late Swifts again today: the first 2 at 05:56 building to 4 birds by 06:04. 2 still present at 06:15, but gone by 06:30
- 2 Sand Martins flew high W at 08:20 and what may have been the same 2 birds were seen over the lake a few minutes later
- just 1 Swallow logged
- 9 was the highest number of House Martins this morning - birds from the Priorslee estate I suspect
- 3 Grey Wagtails seen together on the SW boating platform today. Several other sightings of singles were probably these same birds
- 5 Pied Wagtails seen over with at least another 1 heard
- 32 Robins was another very high count [33 yesterday; 34 the day before]
- 1 Song Thrush heard giving its Blackbird-like alarm calls at dawn was the only one logged today
- no Mistle Thrushes
- no Reed Warblers seen or heard today: their reeds were taking the brunt of the breeze today so perhaps they were just sheltering
- the whitethroat heard calling at the W end again: once again I would vote for Lesser Whitethroat
- 2 Blackcaps heard with one glimpsed
- 7 Chiffchaffs at least today, with one briefly in song
- no Willow Warblers seen or heard
- 1 Goldcrest heard again
- no Willow Tits yet again
- 1 Jay at least making a lot of noise yet again: initially doing its Buzzard impression (though I noted that this seems tinged with Herring Gull as well), later it was 'being murdered' in the NW area as usual
- the corvid passage took place elsewhere today I assume! I logged just 23 [294] Jackdaws; and 15 [139] Rooks [yesterday's numbers]
- 2 single Starlings noted
- my roost-count for the Greenfinches leaving the SW / S area was just 14 [15]. Parties of 6 and 13 overhead had come from elsewhere, but not from the NW area where another 20, mostly singles, were logged. The total for today a better 53 [28]
- 2 Goldfinches in a 'party'
- no Reed Buntings seen or heard again

Also
- the usual examination of the street lights produced just 1 moth again: what may well have been the same Tortrix moth on the same post as early yesterday. Still unsure as to the specific species, but Light Brown Apple Moth (Epiphyas postvittana) still seems the best bet. In addition to the usual crop of spiders with moth-wings in the webs there were several marauding wasps looking for prey
- another wasp was seen attacking the new footbridge and taking slivers of wood away
- on my return to the car there was a 'plumosa-type' midge on the inside of the windscreen, but I guess it could have hopped a ride back from Brazil in my clothes!
- no species of butterfly
- 3 mammals (single bat; single rabbit; and some mole-hills)

My complete log of the birds at and around the lake today is set out below
no Little Grebes; 4 adult Great Crested Grebes and 3 juveniles; no Cormorants; no Herons; 2 adult Swans and 1 cygnet; no Greylag Geese; at least 124 Canada Geese (none landed); 57 Mallards; 1 Tufted Duck (no drakes); 1 Kestrel; no other raptors; no Pheasants; 5 Moorhens (2 adults, 3 well-grown juveniles, no small juvenile); 94 full-grown Coots with the same 7 juveniles from 5 broods; no waders; 78 Black-headed Gulls; 85 Lesser Black-backed-type Gulls; 4 specifically identified Herring Gulls; 3 Common Tern; 22 Feral Pigeons; 2 Stock Doves; 276 Wood Pigeons; no Collared Doves; 4 Swifts; no Kingfishers; no Great Spotted Woodpeckers; no Sky Larks; at least 2 Sand Martins; 1 Swallow; 9 House Martins; no Pipits; 3 Grey Wagtails; at least 6 Pied Wagtails; 14 Wrens; 8 Dunnocks; 32 Robins; just 4 Blackbirds; 1 Song Thrush; no Mistle Thrushes; no Reed Warblers; 1 whitethroat sp., probably a Lesser Whitethroat; no Common Whitethroat; no Garden Warblers; 2 Blackcaps; 7 Chiffchaffs (1 briefly in song); no Willow Warblers; 1 Goldcrest; 1 Long-tailed Tit party; no Coal Tits; no Willow Tits; 9 Blue Tits; 11 Great Tits; no Tree Creepers; at least 1 Jay; 9 Magpies; 23 Jackdaws; 15 Rooks; 7 Crows; 2 Starlings; no House Sparrows; 1 Chaffinch; 53 Greenfinches; 3 Goldfinches; no Linnets; no Bullfinches; no Reed Buntings; and no Yellowhammer.

Also recorded
Mammals:
- 1 Rabbit
- new molehills noted in the SW area
- 1 medium-sized bat sp.

Insects:
- no species of butterflies
- 1 species of moth still to be identified
- 1 unidentified Tortrix moth, provisionally Light Brown Apple Moth (Epiphyas postvittana) [998]
[numbers are the British Checklist Numbers]
- no dragonfly species

22nd August, Tuesday (05:24 - 07:15 // 09:00 - 10:20) - [walked to & around The Flash in between - see Local Bird News]

More attacks on the wild flowers around the lake with the dreaded strimmers on the dam-face, though they left some vegetation

Also of note is a recent addition of a 'barrier' in the Wesley Brook. The fishermen contacted the EPA when a 'leakage' from one of the factories polluted the water. A side-benefit of the fitting of the boom is that the area around has been cleaned up and all the litter and debris that was stranded above the floodwater level has now been removed

Fine with mainly high cloud patches giving great sunrise (pictures). Some lower clouds at times, perversely to the NE at corvid-time; and especially later. No wind, but then a light breeze sprung up from the W. Mainly good visibility, but a few mist patches to the W

Highlights were
- another intriguing Little Grebe record
- 3 Cormorants over
- another large counts of geese over with plenty of Greylag Geese
- 2 or 3 Buzzards overhead
- more gulls with a good count of Lesser Black-backed Gull
- 4 terns seen high overhead then circled for 10 minutes - 3 Sandwich Terns and what seemed to be a Common Tern
- Tree Pipit over-flying
- more late Swifts at dawn; but fewer Reed Warblers, Whitethroat, and Chiffchaffs noted
- some suggestion of hirundine passage with parties of Swallows and Sand Martins moving SW

So here we go with the more detailed avian notes from the lake today
- the Little Grebe was an apparent winter-plumaged adult (early date for this?), though I only saw it in the open while I was busy on the terns. Later it was half-buried in the reeds and may have been alongside another. This raises the question again as to whether they may have bred here
- the 4 adult Great Crested Grebes with 3 juveniles from the late brood all doing well
- 3 Cormorants flew S together
- no Heron today
- the 1 surviving cygnet with the resident adult Swans
- 15 Greylag Geese seen in parties alongside the Canada Geese parties: 14 seen flying E, with a lone bird later flying !
- many parties of Canada Geese noted again. 10 landed at the lake probably on their return: 184 birds seen flying E in 18 parties. Returning birds were heard while I was en route to The Flash
- the adult Mallard count on the lake was just 28 today
- 2 Tufted Ducks again: apparently both ducks today
- 2 Buzzards together overhead at 10:00: lost track of them while checking passing hirundines and one a few minutes later over the E end could have been a 3rd
- a Kestrel on the wires to E
- 6 well-grown juvenile Moorhens again; 1 smaller juvenile; 6 adults noted. One of the adults was seen carrying a stick as if iit were thinking of nesting!
- news of the Coots: 7 [7] juveniles with 93 [92] adults
- - 2 survivors from brood #14 still in the NW area but largely independent
- - 1 survivor from brood #17 along the N shore
- - 1 survivor, probably from brood #18, along the dam
- - 1 survivor from brood #19 in NE area
- - apparently none survived from broods #20, 21 or 22 broods
- - 2 well-grown juveniles along the dam were probably fledged and could have come from elsewhere
- the count of gulls today:
- - only 56 Black-headed Gulls logged: all flew E, with some stopping for a while
- - a better count of 164 Lesser Black-backed-type Gulls logged (not all were specifically checked and some could have been Herring Gulls). A passage of 49 birds passing E early on. Later 50 more logged with birds seen flying in most directions, but generally S / W. At 09:45 there were at least 65 circling high to the N (from the tip?)
- - no Herring Gulls specifically identified (see above)
- the party of terns was seen flying E high overhead at 06:25: it was apparent that there were 3 'larger' birds and that the smaller bird was neither a Little Tern (too slow wing-beats) nor a Marsh Tern (tail too long). Luckily these swirled around and descended for some 10 minutes, though they never looked like landing at the lake. As they did the Sandwich Terns confirmed their identity by calling. The other bird was more problematic and only very briefly came low-enough to see the plumage against the surrounding trees. This showed a strong head-pattern with a white forehead and a dark carpal bar on the wing. From this I judge it to have been a juvenile / immature / winter plumage Common Tern (though I am not sure that adult Common Terns would have a white forehead by this date). Not sure where the birds went - they were 'gone'!
- 12 Feral Pigeons as 4 singles / small groups: none apparently racing pigeons
- just 1 Stock Dove
- lower count of Wood Pigeons today, partly due to distractions of the great sunrise and then the terns; partly due to my walk to The Flash and back; but with fewer around the lake there did seem to be fewer today. I
logged 141 [253] flying E: and just 16 [148] logged flying W. There was a maximum of 8 [11] birds on the wires. There were just 6 [20] birds around the lake itself. So my tally today was 171 [432]
- late Swifts again today: the first 4 at 05:38 building to 6 birds. 2 still present at 06:20, but gone by 06:40
- 1 Kingfisher heard
- 3 Sand Martins flew through SW at 09:50 just after a large party of Swallows: a lone bird had flown through much earlier
- 43 Swallows logged: after scattered singles a party of 11 arrived from the NE at 09:45 but did not stay. Five minutes later party of at least 28 birds flew SW across the lake without pausing - early migrants?
- 12 was the highest number of House Martins logged and these were to the NNE, perhaps birds from the estate to the E of Castle Farm Way
- a single Tree Pipit heard and seen flying E overhead at 07:00 was only my second record of this species from here
- just 1 Grey Wagtail today
- 4 Pied Wagtails seen over with at least another 4 heard
- 33 Robins was another very high count [34 yesterday]
- no Song Thrushes logged today
- no Mistle Thrushes either
- only 1 Reed Warblers seen along the N side today
- 1 whitethroat heard calling and then seen briefly in flight at the W end, but too briefly to be certain, but I would vote for Lesser Whitethroat
- no Blackcaps seen or heard
- 8 Chiffchaffs at least today, but no song at all
- no Willow Warblers seen nor heard - probably not all gone as there were birds at The Flash today
- no Goldcrests
- no Willow Tits again, though one heard in Teece Drive
- 1 Jay at least making a lot of noise again in the NW area
- the corvid passage took place again while the cloud to the NE / E was at its lowest and whilst I was also distracted by a pretty spectacular sunrise. Once again most of the birds were a long way to the E, probably reflecting where the fields cut for silage are located. I logged 294 [139] Jackdaws; and 139 [31] Rooks [yesterday's numbers]
- no Starlings noted
- my roost-count for the Greenfinches leaving the SW / S area was just 15 [18]. Another 11 seen leaving a different roost in the NW area. 2 others. So a total of 28. Suggests that there is no roost around the lake at the moment
- 3 single Goldfinches
- no Reed Buntings at all

Also
- examination of the street lights produced just 1 moth again: a Tortrix species which needs more research, but will probably be a Light Brown Apple Moth
- two species of butterfly
- no mammals (bats or rabbits); but some molehills now showing through the mown grass

My complete log of the birds at and around the lake today is set out below :
1 Little Grebe; 4 adult Great Crested Grebes and 3 juveniles; 3 Cormorants over; no Herons; 2 adult Swans and 1 cygnet; 15 Greylag Goose over; at least 184 Canada Geese (10 landed); 28 Mallards; 2 Tufted Ducks (no drakes); 2 or 3 Buzzards over; 1 Kestrel; no other raptors; no Pheasants; 13 Moorhens (6 adults, 6 well-grown juveniles, 1 small juvenile); 93 full-grown Coots and apparently 7 juveniles from 5 broods; no waders; 56 Black-headed Gulls; 164 Lesser Black-backed-type Gulls; no identified Herring Gulls; 3 Sandwich Terns; 1 probable Common Tern; 12 Feral Pigeons; 1 Stock Dove; 171 Wood Pigeons; no Collared Doves; 6 Swifts; 1 Kingfisher; no Great Spotted Woodpeckers; no Sky Larks; 4 Sand Martins; 43 Swallows; 12 House Martins; 1 Tree Pipit over; no Meadow Pipits; 1 Grey Wagtail; at least 8 Pied Wagtails; 18 Wrens; 7 Dunnocks; 33 Robins; 9 Blackbirds; no Song Thrushes; no Mistle Thrushes; 1 Reed Warbler; 1 whitethroat sp.; no Lesser Whitethroats identified; no Common Whitethroat identified; no Garden Warblers; no Blackcaps; 8 Chiffchaffs (no song); no Willow Warblers; no Goldcrests; 1 Long-tailed Tit party; 1 Coal Tit; no Willow Tits; 16 Blue Tits; 11 Great Tits; no Tree Creepers; 1 Jay; only 5 Magpies; 294 Jackdaws; 139 Rooks; 3 Crows; no Starlings; no House Sparrows; no Chaffinches; 28 Greenfinches; 3 Goldfinches; no Linnets; no Bullfinches; no Reed Buntings; and no Yellowhammer

Also recorded
Mammal
- no Rabbits
- new molehills noted on the flattened cut grass
- no bat sp.

Insects:
- 2 species of butterflies
- 1 Small White [1550]
- 1 Speckled Wood [1614]

- 1 species of moth still to be identified
- 1 unidentified Tortrix moth, provisionally Light Brown Apple Moth (Epiphyas postvittana) [998]
[numbers are the British Checklist Numbers]

- no dragonfly species

(Ed Wilson)

21st August, Monday (04:21 - 09:20) - First visit back from Amazon jungle and with the timing and logistics not quite sorted.

Most of the grass areas have been mown during my absence and the mowing has enthusiastically been extended to a number of the wildflower areas as well. There was a distinct whiff of chemicals along the N shore, but whether this was from inside the area or from the Celestica grounds was hard to say.

Mainly cloudy and with heavy shower at c.07:00. Rather dark at times. Mist over the grass at dawn, but a light NW later. Good visibility except in heaviest rain.

Highlights were
- late brood of Great Crested Grebes was 3 juveniles and all doing well
- possible Shag overhead; definite Cormorant over
- large counts of geese over
- few juvenile Coot, though some Moorhens
- disappointing number of gulls
- high number of pigeons
- party of Mistle Thrushes on wires
- still signs of 'summer' with late Swifts over at dawn; and Reed Warblers, Whitethroats, Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs all seen.

So here we go with the more detailed avian notes from the lake today
- no sign of the Little Grebe
- 4 adult Great Crested Grebes with 3 juveniles from the late brood all doing well
- what looked like a Shag seen flying away so will have to be 'unconfirmed' - speed of wing-beats seemed much too fast for Cormorant - 1 Cormorant circling overhead for some 10 minutes, but disappeared when heavy shower arrived
- 1 Heron at E end
- the 1 surviving cygnet with the adult Swans who had an unringed adult to chase off
- 1 Greylag Goose seen in amongst the Canada Geese
- lots of Canada Geese with many parties noted. Just 1 landed at the lake, unusually arriving from the E and ignored the threats from the swan and then stayed throughout: another 128 birds seen flying E in 14 parties, with most birds descending in to fields to the NNE. Later at least 216 counted flying W were probably returning birds
- the adult Mallard count on the lake was 51 today: no (ex)juveniles seen
- 2 Tufted Ducks. 1 drake on the water and 1 duck asleep with the Mallard
- a Kestrel on the wires to NE
- 2 well-grown juvenile Moorhens again, and 3 smaller juveniles; 5 adults noted
- news of the Coot juveniles: many losses while I was away: just 7 juveniles with 92 adults
- - 2 survivors from brood #14 still in the NW area but largely independent
- - 1 survivor from brood #17 along the N shore
- - 1 survivor, probably from brood #18, along the S side
- - 1 survivor from brood #19 in NE area
- - apparently none survived from broods #20, 21 or 22 broods
- - 2 well-grown juveniles along the dam were probably fledged and could have come from elsewhere
- Small than expected count of gulls today:
- - 185 Black-headed Gulls logged: just 21 arrived from the W at dawn; later 132 flew off N / NE from the Ricoh factory area; much later another (?) 32 arrived from the E
- - 30 Lesser Black-backed Gulls logged with birds seen flying in most directions. Most interesting were the 6 adults that flew low W, almost stopping to bathe: not of itself interesting, but there were 7 immature big gulls with them and these all seemed to be first winter Herring Gulls
- - 7 Herring Gulls (see above)
- 17 Feral Pigeons as 12 singles / small groups: none apparently racing pigeons
- 8 Stock Doves with 3 parties of 2 birds flying over; and the 2 birds to the NE again
- high count of Wood Pigeons today. I logged 253 flying E: and mostly later 148 were logged flying W. There were a number of these flying higher than 'local birds' and the largest party was a very loose group of 58 birds suggesting some movement. There was a maximum of 11 birds on the wires. There were 20 birds around the lake itself. So my tally today was 432
- late Swifts today: the first 3 at 05:40 building to 8 birds. These all faded away when the shower moved in and were not seen later
- 3 sightings of Kingfisher(s) this morning, including 1 flying alongside the Wesley Brook down Teece Drive and over the entrance gate!
- numbers of hirundines were hard to determine and birds may have been returning - especially the House Martins. But the late arrival of a small group of 4 Sand Martins suggested that some may have arrived throughout. At least 8 House Martins; and up to 8 different Swallows
- 3 flight views of perhaps the same Grey Wagtail today
- 7 Pied Wagtails seen over with at least another 2 heard
- 34 Robins, mainly heard, was a very high count
- 10 Blackbirds logged today was better than my last day here when I logged just 3 calling birds
- 1 of the 2 Song Thrushes was briefly in song - apart from Wrens and Robins, the only songster of the day
- a party of 11 Mistle Thrushes logged on the wires to the E
- 3 Reed Warblers seen, all along the N side with none in the large NW reed bed
- no Lesser Whitethroats noted
- 2 Common Whitethroats flushed as they fed from the W end umbellifers not felled by the exuberant grass-cutters. Seen too briefly to age
- 2 Blackcaps logged calling with one 'red head' briefly glimpsed
- 10 Chiffchaffs at least today: 2 in sporadic song; 4 heard calling elsewhere; and 4 seen together with the Reed Warblers along the N side
- no Willow Warblers seen nor heard - probably all gone
- 2 Goldcrests in the NE area
- the Willow Tits seemed to be elsewhere again
- 1 Jay at least making a lot of noise in the NW area
- the corvid passage took place while the cloud to the N / NE / E was at its darkest and I logged 139 Jackdaws (with a respectable, in the conditions, party of 87); and just 31 Rooks [no yesterday's numbers]
- 1 Starling flew over
- my roost-count for the Greenfinches leaving the SW / S area was just 18(!) with 13 before the shower and 5 after! Another 21 seen leaving the lake from what seemed to be a different roost in the NW area; and there was a party of 17 on the wires to the E much later. So a total of 56 - no early Goldfinches - in fact just 1 lone over-flying bird noted
- 4 Reed Buntings heard

Also
- examination of the street lights produced just 1 grass moth: a 'new' species which I had in my home trap as well, but have yet to specifically identify. The small number may have been because I checked the lights after the shower and others may have taken cover and / or been washed off!
- no butterflies
- one medium / large bat over the N / NE area

My complete log of the birds at and around the lake today is set out below :
no Little Grebe; 4 adult Great Crested Grebes and 3 juveniles; 1 possible Shag over; 1 Cormorant over; 1 Heron; 3 adult Swans and 1 cygnet; 1 Greylag Goose seen; at least 217 Canada Geese (1 landed); 51 adult Mallards with no identifiable ducklings; 2 Tufted Ducks (1 drake); 1 Kestrel; no other raptors; no Pheasants; 12 Moorhens (7 adults, 2 well-grown juveniles from different broods, 3 smaller juveniles from 2 other broods); 92 full-grown Coots and apparently 7 juveniles from 5 broods; no waders; 185 Black-headed Gulls; 30 Lesser Black-backed Gulls; 7 probable Herring Gulls; no terns; 17 Feral Pigeons; 8 Stock Doves; 432 Wood Pigeons; no Collared Doves; 8 Swifts; 3 sightings of Kingfisher(s); no Great Spotted Woodpeckers; no Sky Larks; 4 Sand Martins; up to 8 Swallows; 8 House Martins; no pipits; 3 sightings of Grey Wagtails; at least 9 Pied Wagtails; 21 Wrens; 6 Dunnocks; 34 Robins; 10 Blackbirds; 2 Song Thrushes (1 in intermittent song); 11 Mistle Thrushes; 3 Reed Warblers (none in song); no Lesser Whitethroats; 2 Common Whitethroat; no Garden Warblers; 2 Blackcaps (1 brownhead); 10 Chiffchaffs (2 in intermittent song); no Willow Warblers; 2 Goldcrests; 1 Long-tailed Tit party; 1 Coal Tit; no Willow Tits; 17 Blue Tits; 9 Great Tits; no Tree Creepers; 1 Jay; 8 Magpies; 139 Jackdaws; 31 Rooks; 5 Crows; 1 Starling; no House Sparrows; 8 Chaffinches; 56 Greenfinches; 1 Goldfinch; no Linnets; no Bullfinches; 4 Reed Buntings; and no Yellowhammer

Also recorded
Mammals:
- 1 Rabbit
- no new molehills noted on the flattened cut grass
- 1 medium / large Bat sp.

Insects:
- no species of butterflies
- 1 species of moth still to be identified
- 1 different unidentified grass moth
- no dragonfly species

(Ed Wilson)

11th August, Friday (8:15pm) - Good number of hirundine feeding over the water this evening including 11 Swift. (Martin Adlam)

7th August, Monday (6:45am) - 1 Oystercatcher flew Southwest over the Lake (Martin Adlam)

6th August, Sunday (11:15am) - 2 Common Tern (Merv)