Sunday 13 November 2016

The three young Mute Swans belonging to the dominant pair on the Long Water were joined by a fourth, which was hanging around in the background, clearly wanting to come to the edge to be fed but looking a bit nervous. The dominant female seemed to be tolerating it.


Jorgen has seen this before, and thinks it may be a fourth cygnet of the pair that strayed on to the Serpentine and got separated from the family.

But when I passed by a couple of hours later it was being chased off by the male swan.


A Black-headed Gull pulled up a hoverfly larva in the Serpentine. These peculiar creatures hang below the surface and breathe through a long siphon, which you can see hanging down here.


The sunshine brought people out on to the terrace of the Dell restaurant, and the young Grey Heron was hanging around the edge looking hopeful.


This Carrion Crow on the south side of the Serpentine has a more proactive attitude to being fed by humans. If I don't give him a peanut he bashes me over the head. He is therefore known as Headbanger.


There was a Fieldfare in the rowan trees on Buck Hill.


There was also a Redwing, but it stayed behind twigs and I couldn't get a picture of it. They are much more nervous than Fieldfares.

One of the usual pair of Magpies was also here.


A Mistle Thrush was on a neighbouring tree, taking a break to digest rowan berries.


A pair of Wood Pigeons in the Rose Garden were also pausing to digest a meal of rose hips.


A Wren was climbing a plane tree in the Dell, probing crevices for insects. It was behaving exactly like a Treecreeper, and when I first saw it I thought it was one.


Some Long-Tailed Tits were working their way through hawthorn trees near the Italian Garden.


The male Little Owl was basking in the sun in the usual chestnut tree near the leaf yard.

4 comments:

  1. It should not be surprising that treecreepers are closely related to wrens. Jim n.L.

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  2. The crow must think that the human-shaped peanut dispenser needs the occasional shake to keep it functioning reliably!

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    Replies
    1. It does make one feel a bit like Meals on Wheels.

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