Sunday 3 July 2016

The Little Owl family had all moved into the leaf yard and were hard to see but could be heard. There was a brief glimpse of one of the owlets in an ash tree behind the upper of the two benches on the south side.


Later the male flew back into the nest tree, where he was more visible.


A Grey Wagtail was flying around the lower waterfall in the Dell looking for insects to feed a young one, which was parked on a rock.


This seems to be the second brood of Grey Wagtails this year, since there is already a young bird that is now independent.

A Wren scolded a Magpie from an ornamental bush in the Rose Garden.


The sunlight caught the iridescent blue feathers of the teenage Mandarin, which was mooching around the Vista.


These Red Crested Pochards are drakes in eclipse, looking almost like females except for the red eye and bill.


A Moorhen occupied a deserted Coot nest under the willow near the bridge. It will only be able to nest there if the Coots don't want the nest back, and they are very jealous of their property.


A Great Crested Grebe and the one chick so far came over to the Serpentine island, with the chick as usual chasing its parent and constantly calling.


One of the young Grey Herons made a short flight from the nest and managed to land in a tree without mishap.


Emperor dragonflies were hunting over the Long Water by the Italian Garden.


A Painted Lady butterfly recklessly settled in the middle of a path beside the Long Water. By chance it was perfectly camouflaged against the tarmac and gravel, and was in imminent danger of being trodden on.

4 comments:

  1. That Grey Wagtail picture deserves being framed and hung from the wall. Absolutely astounding!

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    1. Just lucky. I just kept pressing the button, and one of the pictures was all right.

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  2. Yes, that Grey Wagtail photo is truly amazing Ralph. I just love it!

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  3. I love the photo of the Emperor Dragonfly which, when you click to bring it up very close, you can see (I can) a little face with two eyes, a nose and a mouth which looks almost human. The details in all your photos Ralph are just stunning.

    Thank you again for keeping us all up to date and with such a variety of photos.
    Marie

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